(PCM) It looks like America’s favorite satirical news host will be replacing the venerable David Letterman as host of The Late Show, CBS announced today.
David Letterman, who began hosting The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS in 1993, announced his retirement on April 3 during his show, saying:
“The man who owns this network, Leslie Moonves, he and I have had a relationship for years and years and years, and we have had this conversation in the past, and we agreed that we would work together on this circumstance and the timing of this circumstance. And I phoned him just before the program, and I said, ‘Leslie, it’s been great, you’ve been great, and the network has been great, but I’m retiring. I just want to reiterate my thanks for the support from the network, all of the people who have worked here, all of the people in the theater, all the people on the staff, everybody at home, thank you very much. What this means now, is that Paul [Shaffer] and I can be married.”
Today, to the elatement of many late night fans, CBS announced that Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report, will be replacing Letterman after he retires, which will be within the next year or so according to Letterman.
Colbert, in typical Colbert fashion, found a way to both praise Letterman and express his excitement while also poking fun at the current Late Show host: “Simply being a guest on David Letterman’s show has been a highlight of my career, I never dreamed that I would follow in his footsteps, though everyone in late night follows Dave’s lead … I’m thrilled and grateful that CBS chose me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go grind a gap in my front teeth.”
It appears that the feeling is mutual; Letterman had this to say when the announcement was made: “Stephen has always been a real friend to me. I’m very excited for him, and I’m flattered that CBS chose him. I also happen to know they wanted another guy with glasses.”
To ease anyone’s apprehensions about Colbert’s take over of The Late Show, rest assured that Colbert knows his stuff. Since 2008, The Colbert Report has earned four Emmys; three for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program and one for Outstanding Variety Series, as well as two Grammy Awards for Best Comedy Album for 2010′s A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! and Best Spoken Word Album for 2014′s America Again: Re-becoming The Greatness We Never Weren’t.
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