Hubster Jess has sent us this wonderful “Taping ReporT” of her trip to the July 16th, 2014 taping of “The Colbert Report”.
Hi CNH! I’ve been lurking around the Hub for some time now and always enjoy reading other people’s taping reporTs so I thought I would share my experience at the show on July 16th.
I live in the Netherlands but am currently on vacation in the US to spend time with my wonderful girlfriend Lauren and her amazing family. Lauren has been to Daily Show tapings four times, but had never witnessed a Colbert Report taping, so it was pretty much an unspoken rule we would try our best to get tickets while I’m here.
After spending a few days glued to our laptops, we finally got two tickets for the July 16 taping. We got the tickets the day before the taping so we had to plan everything very quickly and were obviously aware of Bill de Blasio being the guest that night. We were, of course, super excited.
We arrived at the studio around 3pm and waited patiently to be let in. Eventually we were given tickets 17 and 18, which we were really happy with. The people checking our reservations were very lovely and relaxed, which made the whole process a lot less of a hassle than I thought it might be. Around 5:30pm they started letting people into the waiting area. The security guard who checked my bag was lovely — he saw my Wonder Woman bag and complimented me on how cool it is and asked which superhero it was linked to (it only has the WW logo on it). While he was going through my bag he noticed the tattoo on my wrist (a tiny crescent moon) to which he said “is that a crescent moon? look! I have a little star tattoo!” and showed me his wrist with an adorable little star tattoo on it. All the little, friendly moments at the show made me feel very calm about the whole ordeal. I was REALLY excited, but not freaking out or uncomfortable which I’m really happy about.
When they opened the doors and let us into the studio my first thought was: IT’S SO TINY! The camera angles really do make it look so much bigger on TV. I stared at everything intently and pointed stuff out to Lauren whilst nearly squeezing her hand off because I was so damn excited. We had great seats, we could see him during the entire show without a camera blocking our view. I already felt so lucky at this point.
Paul Mercurio was a great warm up comedian. He picked out some interesting people to joke around with and even ended up asking a young woman and man if they were a couple because they looked so cute together. and they turned out to be cousins! Oops!
And then they introduced Stephen and he came running out and I was freaking out. He looks so freaking good in person. It’s unfair.
Time for the Q&A and I was ready to ask my question! I think Lauren and I remembered all the questions that were asked that day and here they are (probably slightly out of order):
Q: Will you run for president again?
A: I would have to talk to my family. Pray with my minister… If I even have one, I’m a catholic! My priest, my rabbi, imam…
Q: Will Hillary run for president?
A: (in a very “duh” tone) yes!
Q: (this girl was wearing black lipstick) Would you rather be a Power Ranger or Pokemon Master?
A: Power ranger ’cause the costumes are sexier!… Did you eat a grape lollipop/Popsicle before you got here?
Q: Uhh no
A: Can I take a closer look?
Q: Yes
A: *Stephen trips on steps and everyone is awwing and gasping* *looks closely at girl’s lips* is this new, is anyone else doing this? Put up your hand if you’ve done this. *no one puts up hand* you’re alone! You’re a trendsetter!
Q: Which guest would you like to have on the show?
A: Jesus! JD Salinger would’ve been nice. Anyone from the Bush administration. I would dedicate a whole show to them.
Q: Will you do anything with your Super PAC on ‘The Late Show’?
A: I ended the super PAC! *jokingly* You obviously need to watch my show more often! I gave away the money. I challenged the press to find out where the money is.
Q: Which band would you like for ‘The Late Show’?
A: The Beatles! I don’t know actually … Any musician/band who’s been a guest on the show, they’ve all been really nice and lovely. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Guy: Led Zep!
Stephen: *laughs* but they’ve never been on my show!
Q: This is a statement, not a question: you always say you have one Mexican viewer but actually you have two, us right here!
A: Aw, that’s nice! You were let out of the detention center!
Q: What’s your favorite Even Stevphen segment?
A: There was one where I convinced Steve, the atheist, that there is a God. I enjoyed yelling “I WIN, I WIN!” at him.
And then I was lucky enough to ask my question, the last question before the taping started.
Q: A little while ago you grew a Tony Stark goatee. I really liked it and I was wondering if we can expect that in the near future?
A: *laughs* you liked it?
Q: Yes, it was great! I love facial hair.
A: I liked it too! I told my kids — we had just been off for a week and I didn’t shave! I told my boys I would shave it to look like Tony Stark’s goatee. They didn’t think I would actually do it and did a double take when I came downstairs with the goatee! *laughs* My daughter came home and said “oh dad … *cringe face* … Actually … It looks pretty cool!” It was a good look, that Tony Stark goatee! Are you a Tony Stark fan or a Marvel fan?
Q: I’m a Marvel fan.
A: Who’s your favorite character?
Q: Captain America.
A: Really?
Q: Yes, really.
A: Well, then we might have something interesting for you today …
Then he thanked everyone for the questions and sat down behind the desk. It was such a wonderful experience talking to him. He was so patient and nice with everyone, not that I expected anything different from him. I was really curious to find out what would happen on the show that would be interesting to me. I eyed the Captain America shield and thought he might take it off the wall or something … I was freaking out a little at this point, haha!
He did the usual stuff (playing with the hair and make-up people’s hair and face, flinging WristStrong bracelets into the audience – none for us, unfortunately – and pretending to throw the knife which was aimed at me at one point and I excitedly motioned for him to throw it my way) and then started the show. He taped the table of contents and said he had a bit of a sore throat (which you can hear very well, especially in the first part of the show) which had just started that day and everyone “awwww-ed”.
The episode was basically exactly the same in person as on TV. A few minor things were cut (I’m assuming because of time) and he only had to redo one bit because the script “turned into ants” on the teleprompter. When he started talking about Captain America I was really excited and fangirling not just because Stephen was talking about Cap, but also because I was genuinely curious to find out who would be the new Captain America. When Joe Quesada mentioned that Stephen could be the new Falcon he looked out into the audience, straight at me and I was beaming and nodding my head fiercely, which hopefully indicated that I LOVED it so much because I *really* did love it so much!
Bill de Blasio came out for the interview and people started chanting “BILL!” which made Stephen and Bill share a look and laugh, which was adorable. Bill’s kids and wife were sitting near the interview set. The interview was great, I don’t think anything was cut from it.
Stephen taped the good night and while he was still looking at the comic book he said “I wonder what will happen to Steve Rogers …”
He then answered two more questions:
Q: What are you gonna miss about the character?
A: I’ll miss him because I like the character. *audience laughs* I really do! His innocence is interesting to me. He doesn’t learn anything! I’ll miss being able to say things like “shouldn’t he be Captain African America?”
And then the most “huh” worthy question of the night:
An older guy held up this weird looking thing and asked Stephen to guess what it is. He said “a light?” and the guy said “that’s your first clue!”. Stephen was visibly confused and said “I don’t know” and the guy said “it has to do with TV! that’s your second clue!” and then an audience member said it was the first TV remote control which made the guy really happy. He turned to Stephen and said “isn’t that cool? You’re on TV and this is the first TV remote control!” and Stephen hesitantly said “that is cool….. what is the question?” to which the audience laughed and the guy said he didn’t have one which made Stephen laugh. Then he thanked us for being a great audience, wished us a good night, and left.
Lauren and I exited the studio, high on Stephen and walking on air. Bill came out and there were a lot of photographers waiting for him. He ended up taking a few pictures here and there before leaving in a car. Most people from the taping left, except for a few people, including a kid on a bicycle (who didn’t attend the taping).
A lot of people exited the building. I recognized a few writers (Jay! Opus!) and said hi and thank you to them. The kid on the bicycle would yell after every person that left the building: “did Colbert leave yet???”. Some people were visibly annoyed. It was very unfriendly and I really wanted him to leave. Luckily, he did! Around 9pm! As Lauren and I were discussing whether we should stay or go (we still had to eat and a bus to catch at 10:40pm), the door opens and Stephen comes out. He looked AMAZING up close. Fluffy hair, his private glasses, blue shirt, khakis… just.. fantastic. He walks over to all of us waiting and shakes everyone’s hands! I introduced myself and he said “Hi Jess!” which was really sweet and wonderful. He took selfies with people and signed stuff. Lauren asked him to take a picture with her phone and he said “sure! let’s take a selfie!”. As we’re getting in position I say “thank you so much for a great show, I LOVED THE CAPTAIN AMERICA SEGMENT!” to which he laughed and said “yeah, I bet you weren’t expecting that when you came here today!” and I was a giggly mess “I really wasn’t! It was awesome!”.
Jess and Lauren with Stephen Colbert.
He gave back the phone to Lauren, we said thank you so much (AGAIN) and good night. He was so SUPER DUPER LOVELY AND NICE. Every taping reporT I’ve read mentions that he is genuinely a wonderful and kind person which I didn’t doubt for a second, but he just radiates a certain warm kindness at you which had me in tears after he left in his car. I just cannot stress enough how kind, patient and wonderful he is. He does not owe us anything. He already did a lengthy Q&A and he’s pretty candid in interviews… he could simply leave and I would understand that 100% but he stayed and took the time to talk and take selfies. Best human being on the planet! The last person to talk to him was an older woman who gave him a piece of paper with her info on it because she plays an instrument and she offered to play on the show sometime. Stephen said “oh thank you, that’s nice” and then the woman launched into a rant about “serious issues” like “gay marriage” and how she would love to talk about that on the show and since Stephen couldn’t get a word in, he just said “ok, thank you”, waved at all of us and went to his car. We are obviously all watching him leave and I notice that EVIE IS BY THE CAR WAITING FOR HIM AND SHE LOOKED FLAWLESS. She got in the front seat and Stephen got in the back seat. I turned to Lauren to say “THAT WAS EVIE! DID YOU SEE EVIE?! IT WAS HER!”.
The car drove off and we went for dinner followed by a 2 hour bus ride and a one hour car ride home. Every minute of the day was worth it. It was a magical experience for me, one that I didn’t think I’d get to do. I feel extremely lucky!
July 16th, 2014: The Taping ReporT!
Hubster Jess has sent us this wonderful “Taping ReporT” of her trip to the July 16th, 2014 taping of “The Colbert Report”.
Hi CNH! I’ve been lurking around the Hub for some time now and always enjoy reading other people’s taping reporTs so I thought I would share my experience at the show on July 16th.
I live in the Netherlands but am currently on vacation in the US to spend time with my wonderful girlfriend Lauren and her amazing family. Lauren has been to Daily Show tapings four times, but had never witnessed a Colbert Report taping, so it was pretty much an unspoken rule we would try our best to get tickets while I’m here.
After spending a few days glued to our laptops, we finally got two tickets for the July 16 taping. We got the tickets the day before the taping so we had to plan everything very quickly and were obviously aware of Bill de Blasio being the guest that night. We were, of course, super excited.
We arrived at the studio around 3pm and waited patiently to be let in. Eventually we were given tickets 17 and 18, which we were really happy with. The people checking our reservations were very lovely and relaxed, which made the whole process a lot less of a hassle than I thought it might be. Around 5:30pm they started letting people into the waiting area. The security guard who checked my bag was lovely — he saw my Wonder Woman bag and complimented me on how cool it is and asked which superhero it was linked to (it only has the WW logo on it). While he was going through my bag he noticed the tattoo on my wrist (a tiny crescent moon) to which he said “is that a crescent moon? look! I have a little star tattoo!” and showed me his wrist with an adorable little star tattoo on it. All the little, friendly moments at the show made me feel very calm about the whole ordeal. I was REALLY excited, but not freaking out or uncomfortable which I’m really happy about.
When they opened the doors and let us into the studio my first thought was: IT’S SO TINY! The camera angles really do make it look so much bigger on TV. I stared at everything intently and pointed stuff out to Lauren whilst nearly squeezing her hand off because I was so damn excited. We had great seats, we could see him during the entire show without a camera blocking our view. I already felt so lucky at this point.
Paul Mercurio was a great warm up comedian. He picked out some interesting people to joke around with and even ended up asking a young woman and man if they were a couple because they looked so cute together. and they turned out to be cousins! Oops!
And then they introduced Stephen and he came running out and I was freaking out. He looks so freaking good in person. It’s unfair.
Time for the Q&A and I was ready to ask my question! I think Lauren and I remembered all the questions that were asked that day and here they are (probably slightly out of order):
Q: Will you run for president again?
A: I would have to talk to my family. Pray with my minister… If I even have one, I’m a catholic! My priest, my rabbi, imam…
Q: Will Hillary run for president?
A: (in a very “duh” tone) yes!
Q: (this girl was wearing black lipstick) Would you rather be a Power Ranger or Pokemon Master?
A: Power ranger ’cause the costumes are sexier!… Did you eat a grape lollipop/Popsicle before you got here?
Q: Uhh no
A: Can I take a closer look?
Q: Yes
A: *Stephen trips on steps and everyone is awwing and gasping* *looks closely at girl’s lips* is this new, is anyone else doing this? Put up your hand if you’ve done this. *no one puts up hand* you’re alone! You’re a trendsetter!
Q: Which guest would you like to have on the show?
A: Jesus! JD Salinger would’ve been nice. Anyone from the Bush administration. I would dedicate a whole show to them.
Q: Will you do anything with your Super PAC on ‘The Late Show’?
A: I ended the super PAC! *jokingly* You obviously need to watch my show more often! I gave away the money. I challenged the press to find out where the money is.
Q: Which band would you like for ‘The Late Show’?
A: The Beatles! I don’t know actually … Any musician/band who’s been a guest on the show, they’ve all been really nice and lovely. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Guy: Led Zep!
Stephen: *laughs* but they’ve never been on my show!
Q: This is a statement, not a question: you always say you have one Mexican viewer but actually you have two, us right here!
A: Aw, that’s nice! You were let out of the detention center!
Q: What’s your favorite Even Stevphen segment?
A: There was one where I convinced Steve, the atheist, that there is a God. I enjoyed yelling “I WIN, I WIN!” at him.
And then I was lucky enough to ask my question, the last question before the taping started.
Q: A little while ago you grew a Tony Stark goatee. I really liked it and I was wondering if we can expect that in the near future?
A: *laughs* you liked it?
Q: Yes, it was great! I love facial hair.
A: I liked it too! I told my kids — we had just been off for a week and I didn’t shave! I told my boys I would shave it to look like Tony Stark’s goatee. They didn’t think I would actually do it and did a double take when I came downstairs with the goatee! *laughs* My daughter came home and said “oh dad … *cringe face* … Actually … It looks pretty cool!” It was a good look, that Tony Stark goatee! Are you a Tony Stark fan or a Marvel fan?
Q: I’m a Marvel fan.
A: Who’s your favorite character?
Q: Captain America.
A: Really?
Q: Yes, really.
A: Well, then we might have something interesting for you today …
Then he thanked everyone for the questions and sat down behind the desk. It was such a wonderful experience talking to him. He was so patient and nice with everyone, not that I expected anything different from him. I was really curious to find out what would happen on the show that would be interesting to me. I eyed the Captain America shield and thought he might take it off the wall or something … I was freaking out a little at this point, haha!
He did the usual stuff (playing with the hair and make-up people’s hair and face, flinging WristStrong bracelets into the audience – none for us, unfortunately – and pretending to throw the knife which was aimed at me at one point and I excitedly motioned for him to throw it my way) and then started the show. He taped the table of contents and said he had a bit of a sore throat (which you can hear very well, especially in the first part of the show) which had just started that day and everyone “awwww-ed”.
The episode was basically exactly the same in person as on TV. A few minor things were cut (I’m assuming because of time) and he only had to redo one bit because the script “turned into ants” on the teleprompter. When he started talking about Captain America I was really excited and fangirling not just because Stephen was talking about Cap, but also because I was genuinely curious to find out who would be the new Captain America. When Joe Quesada mentioned that Stephen could be the new Falcon he looked out into the audience, straight at me and I was beaming and nodding my head fiercely, which hopefully indicated that I LOVED it so much because I *really* did love it so much!
Bill de Blasio came out for the interview and people started chanting “BILL!” which made Stephen and Bill share a look and laugh, which was adorable. Bill’s kids and wife were sitting near the interview set. The interview was great, I don’t think anything was cut from it.
Stephen taped the good night and while he was still looking at the comic book he said “I wonder what will happen to Steve Rogers …”
He then answered two more questions:
Q: What are you gonna miss about the character?
A: I’ll miss him because I like the character. *audience laughs* I really do! His innocence is interesting to me. He doesn’t learn anything! I’ll miss being able to say things like “shouldn’t he be Captain African America?”
And then the most “huh” worthy question of the night:
An older guy held up this weird looking thing and asked Stephen to guess what it is. He said “a light?” and the guy said “that’s your first clue!”. Stephen was visibly confused and said “I don’t know” and the guy said “it has to do with TV! that’s your second clue!” and then an audience member said it was the first TV remote control which made the guy really happy. He turned to Stephen and said “isn’t that cool? You’re on TV and this is the first TV remote control!” and Stephen hesitantly said “that is cool….. what is the question?” to which the audience laughed and the guy said he didn’t have one which made Stephen laugh. Then he thanked us for being a great audience, wished us a good night, and left.
Lauren and I exited the studio, high on Stephen and walking on air. Bill came out and there were a lot of photographers waiting for him. He ended up taking a few pictures here and there before leaving in a car. Most people from the taping left, except for a few people, including a kid on a bicycle (who didn’t attend the taping).
A lot of people exited the building. I recognized a few writers (Jay! Opus!) and said hi and thank you to them. The kid on the bicycle would yell after every person that left the building: “did Colbert leave yet???”. Some people were visibly annoyed. It was very unfriendly and I really wanted him to leave. Luckily, he did! Around 9pm! As Lauren and I were discussing whether we should stay or go (we still had to eat and a bus to catch at 10:40pm), the door opens and Stephen comes out. He looked AMAZING up close. Fluffy hair, his private glasses, blue shirt, khakis… just.. fantastic. He walks over to all of us waiting and shakes everyone’s hands! I introduced myself and he said “Hi Jess!” which was really sweet and wonderful. He took selfies with people and signed stuff. Lauren asked him to take a picture with her phone and he said “sure! let’s take a selfie!”. As we’re getting in position I say “thank you so much for a great show, I LOVED THE CAPTAIN AMERICA SEGMENT!” to which he laughed and said “yeah, I bet you weren’t expecting that when you came here today!” and I was a giggly mess “I really wasn’t! It was awesome!”.
Jess and Lauren with Stephen Colbert.
He gave back the phone to Lauren, we said thank you so much (AGAIN) and good night. He was so SUPER DUPER LOVELY AND NICE. Every taping reporT I’ve read mentions that he is genuinely a wonderful and kind person which I didn’t doubt for a second, but he just radiates a certain warm kindness at you which had me in tears after he left in his car. I just cannot stress enough how kind, patient and wonderful he is. He does not owe us anything. He already did a lengthy Q&A and he’s pretty candid in interviews… he could simply leave and I would understand that 100% but he stayed and took the time to talk and take selfies. Best human being on the planet! The last person to talk to him was an older woman who gave him a piece of paper with her info on it because she plays an instrument and she offered to play on the show sometime. Stephen said “oh thank you, that’s nice” and then the woman launched into a rant about “serious issues” like “gay marriage” and how she would love to talk about that on the show and since Stephen couldn’t get a word in, he just said “ok, thank you”, waved at all of us and went to his car. We are obviously all watching him leave and I notice that EVIE IS BY THE CAR WAITING FOR HIM AND SHE LOOKED FLAWLESS. She got in the front seat and Stephen got in the back seat. I turned to Lauren to say “THAT WAS EVIE! DID YOU SEE EVIE?! IT WAS HER!”.
The car drove off and we went for dinner followed by a 2 hour bus ride and a one hour car ride home. Every minute of the day was worth it. It was a magical experience for me, one that I didn’t think I’d get to do. I feel extremely lucky!