The highly-anticipated and delayed presence of Senator John McCain on David Letterman’s talk show helped the host boost the ratings to the highest level in almost three years and eclipse Jay Leno’s “Tonight Show.”

The Republican nominee for the White House finally sat down with David Letterman after a few weeks during which the latter threw everything he had at McCain for canceling a scheduled presence at the “Late Night Show.” Letterman was left with no one to talk to during the talk show and the host filled the gap with recordings of the Arizona Senator while he was preparing for an interview with Katie Couric. That interview was given during the evening when McCain had scheduled the appearance on Letterman’s “Late Night Show.”

"That's what I feel like, I feel like an ugly date," Letterman said back then. "I feel used. I feel cheap. I feel sullied."

“When you call up and you call up at the last minute and you cancel a show, ladies and gentlemen, that’s starting to smell,” said the comedian.

Since then, Letterman trashed McCain with every chance he got. If it wasn’t all anger and frustration, it was a smart move from the talk show host. An eventual McCain-Letterman encounter became an audience magnet and when it did happen the audience ratings skyrocketed. As much as 6.53 million people tuned in to watch how McCain and Letterman kiss and make up or how they go at it. On that same night (Thursday), Jay Leno had 4.57 million viewers. His guest included Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., the Democratic vice presidential nominee.

The “Late Night Show” with Letterman was averaging about 3.5 million viewers.