Late-night comedy used to represent the ultimate escapism for viewers young and old: There was Carson, Letterman, Leno. Later came Stewart, Ferguson, O'Brien, Kimmel and Fallon.
Before June 2015, each of these men had a unique set of skills — skills they had acquired over very long careers. Short version: Each could make an audience laugh in his own way, aided by excellent writing staffs that could churn out quality content and A-list guests on a nightly basis.
But then Donald Trump rode down that escalator at Trump Tower, and within a short period of time became an unlikely frontrunner for the Republican nomination for president. This was an absolute Godsend, particularly for Stephen Colbert. Because at the time, the CBS late-night host was mired in third place in the TV ratings, well behind the Jimmys Fallon and Kimmel. On some nights, NBC's 12:30 pm ET program beat his show at the friendlier 11:30 pm slot despite massive hype after being selected as Letterman's replacement at the Ed Sullivan theater. It was looking like Chevy Chase all over again.
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