The long-rumored Daily Show spinoff finally has a debut date, Oct. 17 right after TDS.

Stephen Colbert's description of the show:It'll be nice not to have to lunge to change the channel after TDS in order to avoid Adam Corolla, who is about as bad a match with TDS as you could think of. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how exactly they do this; it would have been easy to give Colbert his own TDS-type show, but what they seem to be going for here will be quite original, as well as funny, if they pull it off. Pulling it off won't be easy with no precedent to go by as far as I know (the late, unlamented Crossballs is the closest I can think of, but that was almost more of a prank show). But, if anyone can, presumably these are the people.

I think I remember reading somewhere that the Daily Show would end with a split screen with Jon handing things over to Stephen kind of like the other news networks do at the end of each show. Should be interesting. I wonder what the format of the show will be and how they will keep it fresh. Are they going to be doing real interviews with politicians/authors/newsmakers like the Daily Show, but will Stephen be in character or be himself? I can't wait until the show starts, but I do feel sad that SC is leaving. I hope he comes back for TWiG once in a while.

I'll miss him a lot too in TDS. I'm just hoping "The Colbert Réport" gets picked up in Canada as well. Stephen said on Letterman last Friday that they have an initial commitment of 8 weeks (basically until Christmas). I do hope it is a big success.

This sounds like a back-handed compliment, but anything's got to be better than Adam Carolla. Having said that, I'm really looking forward to this show.

Me too, especially if it means no more eTalk Daily.

Anyone know about when the show might be hiring people? It debuts Oct. 17 I think so I'm hoping they still might not have hired all of the staff. I'm still holding out some vague hope i might get the call someday. I know I got my resume to the right person...but no reply.

Ooh! I really hope that you get hired. We could finally infiltrate the system! Have an insider! Woo! Also...it would be really great for you :)

I am soooo ready to get that damn Adam Carolla show off of the air. He is just insufferable. I say we start a campaign to get rid of it. Although, I am sure it is capable of sinking itself. Every time Jon says, "Next, Too Late with Adam Carolla," it just pisses me off that Jon has to use those valuable 5 seconds to plug that unworthy-of-following-TDS show.

The Colbert Report is going to be taped in the old studio right? BTW, I loved Stephen on Letterman Friday night. He just looked so happy and relaxed. Loved the boat story. Did anyone else suddenly picture him in that adorable sailor suit? Wonder if he wore it on the boat...I can only imagine...

It always seems to me like he's cringing when he says it.

Does that mean no more MoZ? 'Cause that would be sad.

Maybe the MoZ will be at the end of the colbert report. In fact, it might work even better there since Steven will be in character and could do interesting lead-ins to it.

Does anyone have any idea about whether they will be giving out tickets to tapings? There's nothing on the Comedy Central website about it as far as I can tell.

The Comedy Network in Canada announced its fall lineup a week or so ago and no Colbert Réport. I'm so disappointed. It'll most likely mean a Colbert drought for Canucks.

There's now a section on the Comedy Central page for The Colbert Report. Amongst the photos, t-shirts and such is a link regarding tickets.

Thanks for sharing that link....I just got my e-ticket today!!! :-) Strangely, it's not for one of the first few episodes, but for a "test show" on October 13th. I don't know what will be going on, but as long as I get to see Stephen up close in his spiffy new gig it really doesn't matter ;-) Anyone else here going?

I think I have that day off because my boss is celebrating Yom Kippur. I'm going to see if I can get tickets.

ETA: I got tickets! Now let's see who else I can get to go.

You're telling me! I can't believe that jackass got a show on TLC too! Stephen Colbert is so much more entertaining. Also, not a jackass. Did I mention that?

Can someone please proofread the website for Colbert?


I just got confirmation that I have tickets for October 17. Isn't that the premiere? I'm so psyched!

I emailed The Comedy Network to see if they were planning on picking up the Report, and received an email that it was under consideration.

"Bears are scary. And they want our honey."

iMissEthan you are SO lucky! I wonder if they will pass out some swag to the audience?

Still I can't help it every time I see the commercials thinking "I coulda worked on that show!"

UNDER CONSIDERATION??? Not good enough! We, as comedy loving Canadians, must storm the offices of the Comedy Network and threaten them under pain of BEYOTCHSLAPPING if they do not put The Colbert Report on right after The Daily Show. And if they bring in the attack dogs of the Canadian Radio and Television Commission (or NAMBLA) they will be killed on sight. Or at least be given very uncomfortable atomic wedgies. ONWARD FAKE NEWS JUNKIES!!!

Good Washington Post story on the show.



Do you think it'll be Franken playing Leiber?

I think that would be a little too obvious, but then I don't think it should be any well-known comedian. That's because it shouldn't be too obvious that Colbert and "Leiber" are playing parts.

Can't Colbert be considered Canadian, and therefore Canadian content?

Maybe Jon? Isn't his birth name Jon Stewart Leibewitz?

How? He's originally from South Carolina. Don't go claiming what is rightfully ours!

Sam Seder? Jerry Seinfeld (yeah, right)?

It would be fun if it was Jon, but what's the possibility of Stewart taking on another show...?

heh, Jon Stewart playing Leiber on the Colbert Report would just, as Jon likes to say, blow our minds. Sam Seder I could see, but he's not really big-name enough. Neither is Marc Maron, the other Air America host who would fit the role nicely. No way could Comedy Central get Seinfeld. Billy Crystal could do a good faux-Franken.

The New York Times has interesting article on the show today:

The News is Funny...

Interesting things:



and



I'm not sure that's going to work.

TWiG might work with Corddry, but it will be different without Colbert. Perhaps it didn't really fit with his enhanced 1/2 hour persona.

Some hilarious stuff in that article.





I'm really psyched.

Colbert says in the NYT story that God has an exclusive licensing agreement with TDS. They're working on a similar agreement with Satan, though.

They're poaching him from Fox News?

Well, they'll get to keep all of Satan's minions.

Here's the guest lineup for the first two weeks of The Colbert Report:

10/17 Stone Phillips
10/18 Leslie Stahl
10/19 Fareed Zakaria
10/20 Jim Cramer
10/24 Lou Dobbs
10/25 Greg Behrendt
10/26 Neil DeGrasse Tyson
10/27 Jeff Daniels

edited because I posted in the wrong thread

Funny article in EW with Stephen interviewing himself.

Heh heh heh...

I love the picture the New York Times used to illustrate its article on the show in yesterday's Arts section.

Some pics of Colbert on set

I hate that this show is debuting the week I'm out of the country. Dammit!

The set looks so much like TDS. Does anyone know where in Manhattan they are filming?

I was under the impression that Stephen had moved into the old Daily Show studio. I thought I read that somewhere, but maybe someone can confirm?

Is that a banana or am I just glad to see myself?

I am loving the commercials for The Colbert Report, if only because they are pronouncing Report with a silent "T" like Colbert. Have they been doing this the whole time?

It is about time there is a suitable show to follow TDS, although I will miss the reruns of the previous days at 10:30. Do they plan on replaying this 3 times the next day too?

Yep, that's what I remember reading or hearing but I couldn't pinpoint where either.



Yes.

I got to see the first test show they did on Tuesday. They tape the show in the studio where they used to film The Daily Show. They have signs up telling people the new address for TDS for the people who show up there looking for it. It must happen a lot because there were tons of signs.

Anyway, the show was kinda rough. They started mad late, the lights were still being adjusted. Stuff like that.

But it got really cool. Jon Stewart ran out and introduced Stephen Colbert. I love Jon. Then Stephen came out. It was so cool. I'm a huge Strangers With Candy fan so I was grinning like an anime character. My eyes turned to slits and everything. Stephen was really cool and talked with the audience. Someone asked him if he was going to write another book like Wigfield. Stephen said no because it was harder than he thought it was going to be. He thought it was going to be just typing. He was really cool. I fucking love Chuck Noblet.

So the show started. It was very TDS like. It started with headline type things. He did a coundown called The Threatdown and went over the top 5 stories. I don't remember them all but one involved Cheney being called a robot because he had a pacemaker and another was about the bird flu.

It was cool. Stephen messed up his lines because we were laughing so much I think it threw him. He's gonna have to learn to ignore the audience. Oooh...I was in the very front row and he totally looked at me while he adjusted his tie and gave me the "is it straight look." I only allow myself to be geeky about Strangers With Candy so leave me alone. But we totally did have that moment.

They were having teleprompter problems so Stephen had time to play with the audience. It's weird how Jon and Stephen are both funnier off camera. Weird. Anyway, then they did a guest segment where he interviewed Jeffery Toobin from CNN. I know...I got hosed. I'm not from Canada but the word seemed to apply.

The interview segment was a lot different from TDS. It was like Chuck Noblet doing an interview. I loved it. Stephen was kind of a smart ass and the Toobin guy was kinda stiff but was a good sport about it. It was a really cute and funny interview. Not really about anything substantial. Stephen would go off on odd tangents and Toobin tried to keep up. It was the best part of the show. Kinda the opposite of TDS.

Then there was a short segment where Stephen talked about candy apples being different from caramel apples. I about pissed myself when he said that candy apples were a cancer on our society and that they shatter like glass when you bite into them. It was really funny.

Oh, then he did a salute to Tom Cruise for not being gay and getting Katie Holmes prenant with the Cruise Missle. It was funny. He was totally an asshole about it. I loved it.

Finally, as he was signing off and thanking everyone for watching his first show, he took down this giant ram horn. He said it was a Jewish tradition for a new beginning so he blew it to celebrate the beginning of his show. It sounded just like you think it did. It was cool.

Anyway, I have tickets for the Oct. 25th taping and I see I'm getting hosed on the guest again. Now I have to google Greg Behrendt.

Thanks for the report, SeeeTeee -- sounds like it was a lot of fun. And for what it's worth, I really like Greg Behrendt, the man who will go anywhere as long as cake is being served. He'll probably do well in a fake interview segment with Stephen.

I have tickets on Oct. 17th too.

Do we know for sure that the show is being taped the same night it airs, like TDS? Can we definately assume that this is the first show?

SeeeTeee's report was blacked out on my computer. Anyone else's?

SeeeTeee put spoiler tags on his report, which covered up the text with black bars. The black bars can be highlighted to show the text underneath. Alternatively, if "Select All" is available in the web browsers edit menu, that will show the text underneath too.

Much thanks for the report SeeeTeee. I look forward to Monday's show.

Dangit, cutecouple beat me to the punch. *pouts*

Spoiler tags are important, though ... After all, SeeeTeee wouldn't want everyone to know that Colbert brought down the house with a strip number for his first ever-so-lucky audience.

Oooops. ;)

It's probably not as exciting as SeeeTeee's show, but here's my account of last night's awesome test show!!

A Hot Night with Stephen Colbert...