With Randy Newman on piano and a cast of almost 100 celebrities -- actors, athletes, newscasters, pundits and political figures -- Stephen Colbert said goodbye to Comedy Central last night. Colbert declared himself "immortal" and jumped on a sleigh with Santa Claus, Abraham Lincoln and Alex Trebek. He'll next be seen as David Letterman's replacement on the CBS Late Show.
Colbert's character is said to be modeled on Bill O'Reilly of Fox News, and the two have maintained an on-camera rivalry.
During the presidential election year, 2012, Colbert started his own Super PAC to give viewers a crash course in the new political finance regime, after the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. He sat down with Ted Koppel to talk about the influence of Super PACs.
James Poniewozik writes about TV for Time magazine.