I don't know what to call this.

Part of growing up and maturing is learning that your parents and other elders aren't as perfect as they seemed before. I heard or read that years ago, and I think that there probably is little dispute about the truth in it. I recall very well when I realized that my father wasn't an infallible memory bank with a recording of anything done or said in his presence. Of course, he's only human, and no one remembers everything. For other people, such a realization about their parents comes regarding a more severe and serious failing.


It's not just blood relatives and other people that this happens with. Invariably, the more you come to learn about the life of an admired figure in the public eye, the more likely it is that you'd discover that they subscribe to a faith that isn't yours, vote for a political party you find objectionable, or that they have acted unethically or committed a crime.

That brings me to the thunderclap of a reveal that I stumbled upon online while chatting on the phone about the Dodgers with a friend last night. Evidently, a personal idol of mine going back to childhood, late night talk show host David Letterman, has confessed numerous sexual relationships with female employees of his show. I haven't yet seen any indications of when these relationships and encounters took place, so Mr. Letterman's philandering may or may not have taken place since the birth of his son and his marriage. If it was before the latter, it was probably nonetheless during the committed relationship with the same woman which preceded it.

There are two roughly unequal parts to this matter. In having these presumed affairs, he has committed a terrible transgression against the people he loves. That's probably the bigger part. Now, the second part: We would not being hearing about this if not for the actions of CBS News producer Robert Joel Halderman. It really would make for one heck of a film noir, because rather than smelling a breaking news story upon finding out Letterman, Halderman smelled a quick $2 million dollar payday.

Instead of getting paid, Halderman is facing fifteen years in federal prison for his extortion attempt because Letterman eventually decided to start acting honorably as well as pragmatically. Having done the unseemly deed, Letterman had enough regard for his loved ones and friends to come clean. Furthermore, he did not do it in the way which has become de rigueur these days, which is to call a press conference and to lay bare one's shameful acts with spouse silently standing by.

Now, there are two good reasons to fess up. First, it's the right and decent thing to do. I believe that was in Letterman's heart at long last. Second, it's the smart thing to do in any case. A cover-up is what he would have been punished the most for. Moreover, whether you pay $2 million or $2 trillion, you can't keep a secret locked up. It's just not possible for the average person, and least of all for wealthy celebrities.

So another contemporary notable has been knocked off his pedestal, and fans have been dealt a fresh disappointment from someone else whom they had invested in emotionally. It came from someone we don't know this time, but whether we are failed by someone we know or someone we don't in a manner large or small, one must respond in a mature and reasonable fashion.