zeitgeist2Greetings, Zoners, and happy Sunday before Christmas! Everybody get their holiday shopping done? I’m still working on mine, and at the rate I’m going someone may be getting an IOU on Christmas. Those of us here in the Northeast are also digging out from Snowpocalypse ’09, so it’s been a dandy weekend all around. While we’re waiting patiently for two whole weeks for the debut of TCR in HD, here’s a wrap-up of the best Colbert news from around the Interwebz. Today we have more on Stephen’s support for the US Speedskating team, TCR on a couple of “best of” lists (which offer high compliments to the TCR writers), and why Stephen is a marketing whiz.

US Speedskating

  • Stephen Colbert in a skinsuit: Faster, higher, stronger, funnier – The Newark Star-Ledger: “They look like members of Blue Man Group, but beyond that there’s nothing comedic about speedskating,” Colbert says. “These are incredible athletes. My character isn’t ironically detached, he’s ironically a-ttached — things are important to him. And right now we’re here for speedskating.”
  • Did Stephen Colbert jinx U.S. Speedskating? – Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Stephen Colbert has been the savior of U.S. Speedskating, jumping in as the team’s sponsor after Dutch bank DSB backed out. Now he might turned around and jinxed Apolo Ohno and company. The fake-news pundit is on the cover of the new Sports Illustrated in full speedskating regalia. The SI cover is perhaps the biggest jinx in all of sports, ranking just ahead of EA Sports’ Madden video game case.

Second City 50th anniversary

  • Second City’s 50th Anniversary Celebration – Chicago Reader blog: It was a heartfelt reunion of artists and viewers who’ve grown up together, inspired by the people who came before them. It was also a sobering reminder that time moves on. The message came through loud and clear at the reunion show, during a 1993 sketch by Colbert and Paul Dinello about two brothers pondering their futures. “In five years you’re gonna be 35 years old,” said Dinello to Colbert, who is now 45. “You’re not taking care of yourself.” The line drew a huge laugh, because Colbert is in fine shape–but he looks his age.

Best of the year/decade

  • Best TV Shows of the Decade – Hollywood.com: Honorable Mentions: The Colbert Report: Who knew that when the Report spun off from The Daily Show in 2005 it would wind up vastly outshining its progenitor? Pound for pound — since it airs four nights a week — this is TV’s best written show.
  • Best and Worst of 2009: Bob’s list – TV Squad, posted by Bob Sassone: The Best: 6. The Colbert Report. Stephen Colbert is doing something really interesting here. Where The Daily Show (still very good) is a straight satire and takedown of news, politics, and current events, The Colbert Report is like performance art. He has created this “character” and it has taken on a life of it’s own, and it’s great to see what he does with it each and every night. The writing is brilliant, too.

Stephen Colbert, super genius

  • Opinion: Why Stephen Colbert is a media genius – Digital Journal: Viewers have come to expect Colbert to be ignorant and boorish, but he’s far from dumb. In fact, both the fictional Colbert and the actor are incredibly smart in reeling in publicity and a legion of followers who do their bidding.

(h/t DB and Ms I)

Related posts