On Tuesday night’s “Late Show,” David Letterman welcomed the host who will succeed him on the program next year, Stephen Colbert.
“The Colbert Report” host appeared as himself (not his GOP pundit character), dressed in a dark suit and thick-rimmed glasses different from the ones he wears on his Comedy Central show. In talking about taking over “Late Show,” Colbert told Letterman, “I’m gonna do whatever you have done. It seems to have gone pretty well, Dave.”
As it turns out, Colbert almost worked for Letterman back in 1986 at “Late Night.” His girlfriend at the time was interviewing for an internship at the NBC show and he was asked to interview on a whim — and got offered the job instead of her. (Needless to say, the relationship didn’t last and he didn’t take the job.)
Colbert also revealed his first Top 10 list — one that he actually submitted as a writing sample back in 1997 when he applied to be a writer on “Late Show.” (He would go on to do “Strangers With Candy” with Amy Sedaris instead.) The Christmastime list was the “Top 10 cocktails for Santa,” which included festively named libations like the “Silent Nighttrain,” “Scrooge Driver” and “No Room at the Gin.”