5.7 million people tuned in watch David Letterman on Monday night for the follow-up show to last weeks shocking blackmail/sex-scandal revelations — more than doubling the ratings of late-night rival Conan O’Brien. This is good news not only for Letterman — ratings are the silveriest of linings in TV land — but for Craig Ferguson, whose Late Late Show follows him — and potentially CBS’ The Early Show, depending on how many people fall asleep with the TV on.

Tonight Dave Letterman goes back on the air after one hell of a weekend. And I’m already confused.

Thursday night — as I’m sure you know by now — he went on the air and told an extraordinary story, first about being blackmailed and then about what he’d been blackmailed for. “Creepy” things, that vague descriptor, was put into a little sharper focus like so: “I have had sex with women who work for me on this show.”

Well, it is what he does. For tonight’s monologue, taped earlier at the Ed Sullivan theater, Dave Letterman returned to his show with a monologue — a very topical one.

David Letterman returned to tape his show today — his first after his on-air mea culpa on Thursday night wherein he revealed that he had been the victim of a $2 million extortion attempt over multiple affairs he’d had with female staff members. Despite his initial statement that he did not plan to speak again on the topic, he used the opportunity to apologize, to his staff — and to his wife. Full text of the apology inside.

In September 2005, Gossip Cop‘s Michael Lewittes had a random encounter with David Letterman and his assistant, Stephanie Birkitt. Four years later — in the midst of Letterman’s affair/extortion super story — the serendipitous encounter seems less like a charming coincidence and more like a priceless insider’s anecdote.

Over at The Huffington Post, they’ve been treating the news of David Letterman‘s shocking affairs with staffers — and the extortionist who tried to squeeze Letterman for $2 million dollars, suspected to be Robert “Joe” Halderman — with their trademark blanket coverage, leaving no stone unturned. The secret winner? Jay Leno. Ads for his show are popping up all around the news of his rival’s troubles.

Up until this mess broke wide open, Joe Halderman was known as an Emmy-winning producer for CBS’ 48 Hours. Millions of people may have seen the work of Halder, 51, but they didn’t know who he was. Now, his name is on the way to infamy — as the guy who tried to blackmail David Letterman.

On national television, before an audience of millions (and no doubt many millions more via YouTube in the days to come), CBS Late Show host David Letterman admitted that he had had affairs with female staffers on his show — and was being blackmailed by someone about it, to the tune of $2 million.