On Thursday (May 21), Stephen Colbert hosted the finale of The Late Show. During his monologue, he reflected on his 2015 appearance on Michigan's public access station Only In Monroe, where he performed a test run of The Late Show to an audience of 12 people and had Eminem as a guest. "Show business being what it is these days, that's probably where you'll see me next," he said in the monologue, and then pulled through yesterday.
The late-night legend occupied the 11:35 p.m. time slot last night with the show's hosts Michelle Baumann and Kaye Lani Rae Rafko Wilson, plus guests such as Detroit's own Jack White, who operated as the music director, and actors Steve Buscemi and Jeff Daniels.
It was an eventful hour. "You know you got a lot of equipment over there," said Colbert when introducing the Rock & Roll Hall Of Famer. "Uh, left your wax cylinders at home?" The host and guests did some shots after Colbert presented some local news, then he got "high as a kite" inhaling helium and singing the White Stripes' "Fell In Love With A Girl." White and Colbert had an intimate moment sharing a hot dog (as pictured above) in a segment about the rivalry between two local “Monroe-style” hot dog shops. Buscemi appeared during a PSA — not a commercial — for The Original Buscemi's Pizza & Subs, with which he is not affiliated. White also revealed he is a Bigfoot expert.
At the end, everyone began destroying the makeshift set. White's fellow Detroit icon Marshall Mathers — aka Eminem — appeared via video as "the fire marshal" to give Colbert, White, and Daniels the green light to burn the remnants in a dumpster. (Speaking of dumpsters, Donald Trump tweeted an AI-generated video of himself throwing Colbert into a dumpster.)
White appeared on The Colbert Report and The Late Show many times over the years, and recorded a Third Man 7" with the comedian in 2011. On Instagram yesterday, he posted, "America needs to give a standing ovation for this man tonight. God Bless Stephen, it is absolutely ridiculous that we live in a country where a President's ego can vindictively censor network television.....and nobody stops him. Carry on down your new paths with your head held high sir. You've told the truth and given us so much to laugh at, and we're expecting even more in the future. Thank you."
Watch some highlights, and the full episode, below.
@stereogum Stephen Colbert made a surprise return to the airwaves last night, with Jack White as musical director and Bigfoot expert. Back in 2015, the talk show host appeared on Monroe, MI’s public access show ‘Only In Monroe’ before launching ‘The Late Show.’ On Friday, a day after his CBS run ended with a surprise Paul McCartney performance, Colbert came back to the program with a monologue, a Buscemi’s Pizza PSA, an interview with Jeff Daniels, and a segment about the rivalry between two local “Monroe-style” hot dog shops. White’s fellow Detroit icon Marshall Mathers — Colbert's guest on 'Only In Monroe' last time — made a cameo as fire marshal at the end, giving him permission to destroy the set. White appeared on 'The Colbert Report' and 'The Late Show' many times over the years, and recorded a Third Man 7" with the comedian in 2011. "God Bless Stephen, it is absolutely ridiculous that we live in a country where a President's ego can vindictively censor network television.....and nobody stops him," he posted yesterday. "Carry on down your new paths with your head held high sir. You've told the truth and given us so much to laugh at, and we're expecting even more in the future. Thank you." #StephenColbert #JackWhite #Eminem #MonroeMI #Bigfoot
♬ original sound - stereogum
UPDATE: YouTubers reported takedown notices from Colbert's former network CBS after uploading clips from the show. That's because CBS Studios financed and produced the episode, but they said on Sunday (May 24) that they'll stand down for now:
“Stephen Colbert’s return to Monroe in the ‘Only in Monroe’ episode was financed and produced by CBS Studios and was posted on Stephen Colbert’s YouTube channel in collaboration with Monroe Community Media and ‘The Late Show’s’ YouTube channels. As is our regular practice, we send copyright notices to unauthorized websites that post copyrighted content from CBS and our network/studio talent such as Stephen Colbert. However, for this episode, we have decided to waive further enforcement of this standard industry practice until additional review.”
