Welcome to Better Know a Guest, your weekly guide to the wonderful and diverse array of personalities appearing on ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ each week.
Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of ‘Better Know a Guest’. We are already going into the third week of shows! Last week was filled so many exciting moments, and great appearances. There were many great actors and actresses on, such as Lupita Nyong’o and Jake Gyllenhaal. We also got great musical performances from the legendary Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp. For week three we have an amazing line up. Stephen will be interviewing a number of politicians, musicians, actors, and he will even be talking with Hugh Jackman about the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ that Stephen will co-host on September 26.
This is sure to be a great week with exciting interviews! Feel free to please leave us a comment, and let us know which guest you are excited to see this week.
Monday, September 21 (2015)
Stephen Curry (NBA MVP)
Steph Curry is a point guard for the ‘Golden State Warriors’ NBA team. Curry is known for his three-pointers, and has even set the NBA record for most three-pointers in a season in 2015 with 273. He recently was awarded the ‘2014-2015 Kia MVP Award’. During his speech Curry thanked his fans for their support , and also stated “This is a very special moment I will remember for a long time, but as you know we got a lot of work to do, so let’s get back to it.” He lead the team to winning the ‘NBA Championships’ this year, beating the ‘Cleveland Cavaliers’ in the final game 105 : 97. Their first game of the new season will be on October 27, and they will be playing against the ‘New Orleans Pelicans’.
Ted Cruz (Senator)
Ted Cruz is the junior senator from Texas. Cruz is one of the Republican candidates running for the 2016 U.S. presidential election, announcing his campaign on March 20, 2015. He is currently placed fourth in the Republican Primary Polls with 6.1%, behind Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Jeb Bush. At a recent conference Cruz has said that “the country is in crisis”, and that “It’s now or never. We are bankrupting our kids and grandkids, our constitutional rights are under assault from Washington and America has receded from leadership in the world and it’s made the world a much more dangerous place.” Cruz is a conservative who opposes marriage equality, is against common core curriculum, is pro gun, and is highly against Obamacare.
Don Henley (Album – “Cass County“)
Don Henley is an American rock singer, songwriter, and drummer. He was the founder and drummer of the classic rock band the ‘Eagles’. His latest album is called ‘Cass County’. This is Henley’s first solo album in 15 years, and is set to be released on September 25, 2015, and is currently planning a tour starting in October. This is a country-rock album, and is named after the county in Texas that Henley grew up in. The album has been highly anticipated, and has received many great reviews, including this one from The LA Times “The album looks to be a sure hit among country fans and likely will appeal to a good portion of Henley’s Eagles and classic rock audience as well.” Two songs have already been released from the album, ‘Take A Picture of This’ and ‘That Old Flame’.
Tuesday, September 22 (2015)
Donald Trump (Real Estate Developer / Television Personality / Political Candidate)
Donald Trump is a real estate developer, business author, television personality, and the Chairman and President of ‘The Trump Organization’. He is one of the Republican candidates running for the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and announced his campaign on June 16, 2015. Trump is the leading Republican in the Primary Polls with 34.2%. He is a known conservative, and is against gun control, does not believe in climate change, is against Obamacare, and is for strict immigration policies, and is known for his outrageous comments, and opinions. Some things he has been quoted with saying are “The Mexican Government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc.,”, and “I think the big problem this country has is being politically correct. I don’t have time for total political correctness. And to be honest with you, this country doesn’t have time either.” His famous campaign slogan is “Make America Great Again”.
Simon & Schuster announced today, that Trump will be releasing a “new campaign-oriented book on how to restore a “crippled” America to greatness” on October 27th, 2015. The untitled book will deal with matters on the “economy, big CEO salaries and taxes, healthcare, education, national security, and social issues”, and also promises to outline Trump’s “complete immigration reform” plan, and how he proposes to “secure” the border. Speaking on the books released, Trump said “I am excited to announce that work on my new bestseller is almost done. Not since ‘The Art of the Deal‘ have I had this much fun writing a book.” (via The Hollywood Reporter)
Dr. Ernest Moniz (United States Secretary of Energy)
Ernest Moniz is the 13th U.S. Secretary of Energy, and was appointed to office in 2013. As Secretary of Energy, it Moniz’s duty to deal with issues in support of President Obama’s efforts in matters relating to the environment, technology, and decreasing nuclear weaponry, and danger. Moniz is also a nuclear physicist, and is known for his ability to explain complicated issues in simple terms. In a recent article The Washington Post quoted Senator John Hoeven with saying this about Moniz “I mean the guy is a nuclear physicist — he can be very technical if he wants to be. But he’s also careful to put things in layman’s terms.” His latest task has been to help in efforts regarding the Iran Nuclear Deal.
Raury (Album – “All We Need“)
Raury Tullis is a young and upcoming American musician, whose music is a mix of hip-hop, soul, and folk. Raury signed with Columbia Records in 2014, after releasing his first album ‘Indigo Child’. According to a recent article he had this to say about the inspiration behind his last album, and what his message is about “We aren’t sheltered from learning things that most adults who are locked in their cultures and their ways would stop you from learning about.” His latest album is ‘All We Need’, and will be released October 16, 2015.
Wednesday, September 23 (2015)
Hugh Jackman (Co-Host of Global Citizens Festival) and Hugh Evans (Founder of the Global Poverty Project)
Hugh Jackman will be co-hosting the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ with Stephen Colbert, Salma Hayek Pinault, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, and Deborra-Lee Furness. The annual music festival was established in 2015 to mark the establishment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a 17 task “to-do list” which aims to end extreme global poverty by the year 2030. This year, the festival will be held on Central Park’s Great Lawn in New York and will feature performances by Beyoncé, Coldplay, Pearl Jam and Ed Sheeran. The festival will take place on Sunday, September 26th, and will be broadcast in the US on September 27 (NBC), and on September 28 (BBC) in the UK.
Hugh Evans is a humanitarian who helped create the Global Poverty Project along side Simon Moss. The project aims to bring an end to extreme poverty around the world. The four issues that are being raised at the festival this year are education, ending polio, helping refugees, and helping to get electricity to certain parts of Africa. You can get tickets for the event by going to https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/, and help take action to raise awareness for one or more of these issues.
Elizabeth Warren (Senator)
Elizabeth Warren is a Democratic senior senator from Massachusetts, and advocates for issues of the economy. Her last book, published in 2014, ‘A Fighting Chance’, in which she discussed issues of bankruptcy laws, big banks, and the financial crisis in the country. Recently she has spoken out about the GOP political candidates, and was quoted with saying “If we fight for Massachusetts values, if we fight for Democratic values, if we fight for America’s values we will win here in the commonwealth and all across the country,” She has said that she will not be running for the 2016 election.
Pearl Jam (Band)
Pearl Jam is a well known American rock band, who are scheduled to perform at the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ on September 26th, 2015. Pearl Jam currently have tour dates scheduled in Brazil, Mexico, and Chile, and are also rumored to be planning a new album for 2016.
Thursday, September 24 (2015)
Andrew Sullivan (Author)
In honor of Pope Francis arriving in New York City, Thursday’s episode has an all- Catholic guest line-up, starting with Andrew Sullivan. Sullivan was a pioneer in political blogging, and was the former writer for The Dish, a popular political blog, which ran for 13 years. He announced his retirement from blogging this past February. Sullivan is a gay Roman Catholic, and in one of his last entries on The Dish, called ‘The Miracle of Francis,’ he wrote, “…Francis may well become a figure more important than merely Pope.”
Maria Shriver (NBC News)
Maria Shriver is a correspondent and special anchor for NBC News. On September 16th, Shriver wrote an article on her website, entitled ‘Looking Ahead to Pope Francis’ Us Visit.’ In the article, she states, “Pope Francis traveling to the United States will have political impact, without any doubt. However, Francis defies the contemporary U.S political classifications. Are either ‘progressive’ or ‘conservative’ accurate ways of reading his message? I don’t think so. We may if we try to fit his statements as ‘liberal’ against ‘conservative’.”
Jim Gaffigan (Creator and Actor – “The Jim Gaffigan Show”)
Jim Gaffigan is currently staring in the TV Land series, ‘The Jim Gaffigan Show,’ which he co-created. He is a Roman Catholic – a subject that often comes up in his comedy. Gaffigan will give a stand-up performance for Pope Francis and one million others during the Pope’s visit to Philadelphia on September 26th. On the most recent episode of ‘CBS Sunday Morning,’ Gaffigan said, “While Pope Francis is warm and genuine, I believe the thing Catholics and non-Catholics respond to most is his humility. In this age of Putin, ISIS and Trump, it is so nice to hear a world leader say, ‘Who am I to judge?’”
Thomas Wenski (Archbishop of Miami)
Archbishop Wenski will join Pope Francis for his four-day tour of Cuba, starting on September 19th. Wenski leads the largest Cuban American community in the United States, which includes South Florida’s 1.3 million Catholics. In an interview with Jaweed Kaleem of The Huffington Post, Wenski said, “The theme of Pope Francis’ visit is mercy. As such, not insults.”
YMCA Jerusalem Youth Chorus and Choir of St. Jean Baptiste
According to their website, “The YMCA Jerusalem Youth Chorus empowers young singers to become leaders for peace in their communities by providing a space where they can engage one another in musical and verbal dialogue.” The chorus brings together young Israelis and Palestinians for singing and dialogue sessions run by professional facilitators.
St. Jean Baptiste Catholic Church is located in New York City. The church will hold a Mass for Peace on September 24th, in honor of the inaugural US visit of Pope Francis. Their choir is directed by Kyler Brown and is comprised of an ensemble of 18 professional and volunteer musicians. According to their website, “The repertoire ranges from Gregorian chant to music by contemporary composers.”
Friday, September 25 (2015)
Malala Yousafzai (Nobel Prize Laureate and Documentary – “He Named Me Malala“)
Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani activist for female education. At the age 18, she is the youngest Nobel Prize Laureate ever. Malala is the subject of the new documentary, ‘He Named Me Malala.’ It tells the true story of how Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban for speaking out on the right to educate girls and how she emerged as a leading advocate for children’s rights. Justin Chang from Variety called the film, “An expectedly stirring portrait of the exceedingly smart and courageous Pakistani teenager who defied the Taliban and lived to tell the tale.” ‘He Named Me Malala’ opens in the US on October 2nd.
Kerry Washington (Actress – “Scandal”)
Kerry Washington stars as Olivia Pope on the ABC drama, ‘Scandal,’ and has received two Primetime Emmy nominations for her role. As a supporter of gay rights, Washington received the GLAAD Vanguard Award this past March. She is a member of V-Day, a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. Season 5 of ‘Scandal’ starts on September 24th.
The Arcs (Album – “Yours, Dreamily,“)
The Arcs are a side-project of Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. Their debut album ‘Yours, Dreamily,’ was released on September 4th. Mike Katzif of NPR wrote, “On The Arcs’ debut, ‘Yours, Dreamily,’ it takes the form of immersive R&B and soul, built around buzzy guitars and funky grooves — and embellished with velvety harmonies, hissy tape recordings and lip-curling attitude.”
Better Know A Guest – September 21 – 25, 2015
Hello everyone! Welcome to another week of ‘Better Know a Guest’. We are already going into the third week of shows! Last week was filled so many exciting moments, and great appearances. There were many great actors and actresses on, such as Lupita Nyong’o and Jake Gyllenhaal. We also got great musical performances from the legendary Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp. For week three we have an amazing line up. Stephen will be interviewing a number of politicians, musicians, actors, and he will even be talking with Hugh Jackman about the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ that Stephen will co-host on September 26.
This is sure to be a great week with exciting interviews! Feel free to please leave us a comment, and let us know which guest you are excited to see this week.
Monday, September 21 (2015)
Stephen Curry (NBA MVP)
Steph Curry is a point guard for the ‘Golden State Warriors’ NBA team. Curry is known for his three-pointers, and has even set the NBA record for most three-pointers in a season in 2015 with 273. He recently was awarded the ‘2014-2015 Kia MVP Award’. During his speech Curry thanked his fans for their support , and also stated “This is a very special moment I will remember for a long time, but as you know we got a lot of work to do, so let’s get back to it.” He lead the team to winning the ‘NBA Championships’ this year, beating the ‘Cleveland Cavaliers’ in the final game 105 : 97. Their first game of the new season will be on October 27, and they will be playing against the ‘New Orleans Pelicans’.
Ted Cruz (Senator)
Ted Cruz is the junior senator from Texas. Cruz is one of the Republican candidates running for the 2016 U.S. presidential election, announcing his campaign on March 20, 2015. He is currently placed fourth in the Republican Primary Polls with 6.1%, behind Donald Trump, Ben Carson, and Jeb Bush. At a recent conference Cruz has said that “the country is in crisis”, and that “It’s now or never. We are bankrupting our kids and grandkids, our constitutional rights are under assault from Washington and America has receded from leadership in the world and it’s made the world a much more dangerous place.” Cruz is a conservative who opposes marriage equality, is against common core curriculum, is pro gun, and is highly against Obamacare.
Don Henley (Album – “Cass County“)
Don Henley is an American rock singer, songwriter, and drummer. He was the founder and drummer of the classic rock band the ‘Eagles’. His latest album is called ‘Cass County’. This is Henley’s first solo album in 15 years, and is set to be released on September 25, 2015, and is currently planning a tour starting in October. This is a country-rock album, and is named after the county in Texas that Henley grew up in. The album has been highly anticipated, and has received many great reviews, including this one from The LA Times “The album looks to be a sure hit among country fans and likely will appeal to a good portion of Henley’s Eagles and classic rock audience as well.” Two songs have already been released from the album, ‘Take A Picture of This’ and ‘That Old Flame’.
Tuesday, September 22 (2015)
Donald Trump (Real Estate Developer / Television Personality / Political Candidate)
Donald Trump is a real estate developer, business author, television personality, and the Chairman and President of ‘The Trump Organization’. He is one of the Republican candidates running for the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and announced his campaign on June 16, 2015. Trump is the leading Republican in the Primary Polls with 34.2%. He is a known conservative, and is against gun control, does not believe in climate change, is against Obamacare, and is for strict immigration policies, and is known for his outrageous comments, and opinions. Some things he has been quoted with saying are “The Mexican Government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc.,”, and “I think the big problem this country has is being politically correct. I don’t have time for total political correctness. And to be honest with you, this country doesn’t have time either.” His famous campaign slogan is “Make America Great Again”.
Simon & Schuster announced today, that Trump will be releasing a “new campaign-oriented book on how to restore a “crippled” America to greatness” on October 27th, 2015. The untitled book will deal with matters on the “economy, big CEO salaries and taxes, healthcare, education, national security, and social issues”, and also promises to outline Trump’s “complete immigration reform” plan, and how he proposes to “secure” the border. Speaking on the books released, Trump said “I am excited to announce that work on my new bestseller is almost done. Not since ‘The Art of the Deal‘ have I had this much fun writing a book.” (via The Hollywood Reporter)
Dr. Ernest Moniz (United States Secretary of Energy)
Ernest Moniz is the 13th U.S. Secretary of Energy, and was appointed to office in 2013. As Secretary of Energy, it Moniz’s duty to deal with issues in support of President Obama’s efforts in matters relating to the environment, technology, and decreasing nuclear weaponry, and danger. Moniz is also a nuclear physicist, and is known for his ability to explain complicated issues in simple terms. In a recent article The Washington Post quoted Senator John Hoeven with saying this about Moniz “I mean the guy is a nuclear physicist — he can be very technical if he wants to be. But he’s also careful to put things in layman’s terms.” His latest task has been to help in efforts regarding the Iran Nuclear Deal.
Raury (Album – “All We Need“)
Raury Tullis is a young and upcoming American musician, whose music is a mix of hip-hop, soul, and folk. Raury signed with Columbia Records in 2014, after releasing his first album ‘Indigo Child’. According to a recent article he had this to say about the inspiration behind his last album, and what his message is about “We aren’t sheltered from learning things that most adults who are locked in their cultures and their ways would stop you from learning about.” His latest album is ‘All We Need’, and will be released October 16, 2015.
Wednesday, September 23 (2015)
Hugh Jackman (Co-Host of Global Citizens Festival) and Hugh Evans (Founder of the Global Poverty Project)
Hugh Jackman will be co-hosting the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ with Stephen Colbert, Salma Hayek Pinault, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, and Deborra-Lee Furness. The annual music festival was established in 2015 to mark the establishment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a 17 task “to-do list” which aims to end extreme global poverty by the year 2030. This year, the festival will be held on Central Park’s Great Lawn in New York and will feature performances by Beyoncé, Coldplay, Pearl Jam and Ed Sheeran. The festival will take place on Sunday, September 26th, and will be broadcast in the US on September 27 (NBC), and on September 28 (BBC) in the UK.
Hugh Evans is a humanitarian who helped create the Global Poverty Project along side Simon Moss. The project aims to bring an end to extreme poverty around the world. The four issues that are being raised at the festival this year are education, ending polio, helping refugees, and helping to get electricity to certain parts of Africa. You can get tickets for the event by going to https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/, and help take action to raise awareness for one or more of these issues.
Elizabeth Warren (Senator)
Elizabeth Warren is a Democratic senior senator from Massachusetts, and advocates for issues of the economy. Her last book, published in 2014, ‘A Fighting Chance’, in which she discussed issues of bankruptcy laws, big banks, and the financial crisis in the country. Recently she has spoken out about the GOP political candidates, and was quoted with saying “If we fight for Massachusetts values, if we fight for Democratic values, if we fight for America’s values we will win here in the commonwealth and all across the country,” She has said that she will not be running for the 2016 election.
Pearl Jam (Band)
Pearl Jam is a well known American rock band, who are scheduled to perform at the ‘Global Citizen Festival’ on September 26th, 2015. Pearl Jam currently have tour dates scheduled in Brazil, Mexico, and Chile, and are also rumored to be planning a new album for 2016.
Thursday, September 24 (2015)
Andrew Sullivan (Author)
In honor of Pope Francis arriving in New York City, Thursday’s episode has an all- Catholic guest line-up, starting with Andrew Sullivan. Sullivan was a pioneer in political blogging, and was the former writer for The Dish, a popular political blog, which ran for 13 years. He announced his retirement from blogging this past February. Sullivan is a gay Roman Catholic, and in one of his last entries on The Dish, called ‘The Miracle of Francis,’ he wrote, “…Francis may well become a figure more important than merely Pope.”
Maria Shriver (NBC News)
Maria Shriver is a correspondent and special anchor for NBC News. On September 16th, Shriver wrote an article on her website, entitled ‘Looking Ahead to Pope Francis’ Us Visit.’ In the article, she states, “Pope Francis traveling to the United States will have political impact, without any doubt. However, Francis defies the contemporary U.S political classifications. Are either ‘progressive’ or ‘conservative’ accurate ways of reading his message? I don’t think so. We may if we try to fit his statements as ‘liberal’ against ‘conservative’.”
Jim Gaffigan (Creator and Actor – “The Jim Gaffigan Show”)
Jim Gaffigan is currently staring in the TV Land series, ‘The Jim Gaffigan Show,’ which he co-created. He is a Roman Catholic – a subject that often comes up in his comedy. Gaffigan will give a stand-up performance for Pope Francis and one million others during the Pope’s visit to Philadelphia on September 26th. On the most recent episode of ‘CBS Sunday Morning,’ Gaffigan said, “While Pope Francis is warm and genuine, I believe the thing Catholics and non-Catholics respond to most is his humility. In this age of Putin, ISIS and Trump, it is so nice to hear a world leader say, ‘Who am I to judge?’”
Thomas Wenski (Archbishop of Miami)
Archbishop Wenski will join Pope Francis for his four-day tour of Cuba, starting on September 19th. Wenski leads the largest Cuban American community in the United States, which includes South Florida’s 1.3 million Catholics. In an interview with Jaweed Kaleem of The Huffington Post, Wenski said, “The theme of Pope Francis’ visit is mercy. As such, not insults.”
YMCA Jerusalem Youth Chorus and Choir of St. Jean Baptiste
According to their website, “The YMCA Jerusalem Youth Chorus empowers young singers to become leaders for peace in their communities by providing a space where they can engage one another in musical and verbal dialogue.” The chorus brings together young Israelis and Palestinians for singing and dialogue sessions run by professional facilitators.
St. Jean Baptiste Catholic Church is located in New York City. The church will hold a Mass for Peace on September 24th, in honor of the inaugural US visit of Pope Francis. Their choir is directed by Kyler Brown and is comprised of an ensemble of 18 professional and volunteer musicians. According to their website, “The repertoire ranges from Gregorian chant to music by contemporary composers.”
Friday, September 25 (2015)
Malala Yousafzai (Nobel Prize Laureate and Documentary – “He Named Me Malala“)
Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani activist for female education. At the age 18, she is the youngest Nobel Prize Laureate ever. Malala is the subject of the new documentary, ‘He Named Me Malala.’ It tells the true story of how Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban for speaking out on the right to educate girls and how she emerged as a leading advocate for children’s rights. Justin Chang from Variety called the film, “An expectedly stirring portrait of the exceedingly smart and courageous Pakistani teenager who defied the Taliban and lived to tell the tale.” ‘He Named Me Malala’ opens in the US on October 2nd.
Kerry Washington (Actress – “Scandal”)
Kerry Washington stars as Olivia Pope on the ABC drama, ‘Scandal,’ and has received two Primetime Emmy nominations for her role. As a supporter of gay rights, Washington received the GLAAD Vanguard Award this past March. She is a member of V-Day, a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. Season 5 of ‘Scandal’ starts on September 24th.
The Arcs (Album – “Yours, Dreamily,“)
The Arcs are a side-project of Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. Their debut album ‘Yours, Dreamily,’ was released on September 4th. Mike Katzif of NPR wrote, “On The Arcs’ debut, ‘Yours, Dreamily,’ it takes the form of immersive R&B and soul, built around buzzy guitars and funky grooves — and embellished with velvety harmonies, hissy tape recordings and lip-curling attitude.”