An EHS Trivia Salute to Letterman

Perhaps one of the most famous entrances of any guest on the Late Show with David Letterman was the cartwheel by EHS alumnus Chris Farley ’82! However, Chris was not the only Edgewood graduate ever to appear on the show with former host David Letterman. Can you pick who among the following was also a guest?

1. John Tefft ’67 – US Ambassador to Russia
​2. Mary Ann Thurber ’73 – Madison Police Officer
3. Adam Burish ’01 – NHL Player & Stanley Cup winner

Madison Police Officer Mary Ann Thurber ’73 appeared on the show in 1985. Facebook or tv.com members can view the episode. Mary Ann would write up her reports for less-significant calls in poetry (the most famous one about a porta potty, “Bucky Latrine”). Letterman had Mary Ann appear in full uniform and she gave Letterman a run for his money when he made comments like, “I don’t suppose anyone has ever told you how good you make a police uniform look.”

According to another anecdote about Mary Ann, she was working with the vice unit on King Street in Madison as an undercover “lady of the night.” When a man approached her and offered her $5 for her services, she chased him away and refused to write him up because she didn’t want to have to admit the low dollar amount!

When Mary Ann received the Edgewood High School Dominican Award for Service to Humanity in 2007, she was honored both for her (then) 29 years of work on the Madison police force and for her volunteer work with Luke House, Walden Homes, Radio Reading Service for the Blind and the Rape Crisis Center. She joked about having to give acceptance remarks that she’d be more comfortable talking to the assembled audience if they’d “please stand up, turn around and put your hands on your heads.” Mary Ann’s retirement in 2012 was covered in a profile piece by the Wisconsin State Journal.

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The Chicago Blackhawks selected Adam Burish in the 2002 NHL draft and he appeared in 169 games for them over three-plus seasons. After helping the Hawks win the Stanley Cup in 2010, the team’s first in 49 years, Burish didn’t appear on the Letterman Show, but teammate and playoff MVP Patrick Kane did, along with the Cup. Adam went to the Dallas Stars in 2010 and the San Jose Sharks in 2012, and the Chicago Tribune ran a story in July about Adam’s future plans.

Though highly accomplished in the field of international politics, with previous service in the State Department and ambassadorial appointments by U.S. Presidents from Bill Clinton to George W. Bush to Barack Obama in Lithuania, Georgia, Ukraine and now Russia, John Tefft was never invited to appear with the quirky talk show host.