Fantasy Colbert League: July 5-July 8

So we can talk about every guest this week, but there is one guest this week in my mind! I have been waiting for this for longer than I can remember. Every time that Steve Carell was on Jon, I was thinking, “My goodness – can’t he just go on The Report already?” I have no doubt that this will be one of the highlights of all time. So besides that, it was just Fourth of July weekend. I hope you all had a nice holiday. I made a delicious tomato salad for our family picnic and even infused my own olive oil with basil. Okay, enough me-talk, on with the show…

Michio Kaku is a theoretical physicist who is a professor at the City College of New York. He has written books including, Hyperspace: A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the 10th Dimension, Physics of the Impossible: A Scientific Exploration into the World of Phasers, Force Fields, Teleportation, and Time Travel, Parallel Worlds: A Journey Through Creation, Higher Dimensions, and the Future of the Cosmos, and Visions: How Science Will Revolutionize the 21st Century. His current work revolves around understanding and defining the Theory of Everything, which explains the forces of the Universe. He has appeared on many shows including, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, 20/20, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, 60 Minutes, The Opie and Anthony Show, and Nightline. He also hosts two radio shows, Explorations and Science Fantasic. Graduating from Harvard University, Michio went on to receive his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. Then, he lectured at Princeton, and also went through basic training for the Army during the time of Vietnam. He currently speaks out about global warming and nuclear power.

Follow Michio Kaku on Twitter here.

Fract: Kaku’s family originally came to America when his grandfather took part in cleaning up San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake.

Tuesday, July 6: Garret Keizer

Garret Keizer is the author of the book, The Unwanted Sound of Everything We Want: A Book About Noise, which was released in May of this year. The book talks about how anything invented or achieved requires noise, and therefore, civilization requires it for advancement. In addition to contributing regularly to Harper’s Magazine, Keizer has written the books, God of Beer, The Enigma of Anger: Essays on a Sometimes Deadly Sin, Help: The Original Human Dilemma, A Dresser of Sycamore Trees: The Finding of a Ministry, and No Place But Here: A Teacher’s Vocation in a Rural Community. The book, No Place But Here, was based on his time as a high school English teacher and talks about various aspects of education. Garret has also written for The New Yorker and Smithsonian.org, as well as Mother Jones.

Fract: Trying on titles? Keizer is not only an author – he has served as an Episcopal priest as well.

Wednesday, July 7: Steve Carell

Oh my, where to start? Well, Steve Carell is the star of the new movie, Despicable Me, in which he lends his voice along with Will Arnett and Kristen Wiig, among others. He is also starring in another summer movie, Dinner for Schmucks, alongside Paul Rudd. Originally, Carell was going to go to law school, but passed it over and landed at Second City. After reaching fame on The Daily Show with characters like “Produce Pete,” Steve went on to star in The Office as the quirky boss, Michael Scott. After the show’s success, including garnering him a Golden Globe in 2006, Carell began to star in movies like The 40 Year Old Virgin and Get Smart, as well as a personal favorite, Dan in Real Life. Carell announced earlier this year that he will leave The Office at the end of next season. He is married to fellow Daily Show alum, Nancy Walls and they have two children.

Fract: Steve is Italian, but the family’s last name was shortened from Caroselli to Carell by his father.

Thursday, July 8: Arturo Rodriguez

Arturo Rodriguez is the president of United Farm Workers. United Farm Workers is an organization, co-founded by Cesar Chavez, which has a vision “to provide farm workers and other working people with the inspiration and tools to share in society’s bounty.” Rodriguez’s work revolves around making farm worker union contracts easier to negotiate, as well as providing better benefits and more security to farm workers. U.S. farm workers are currently working with Stephen on the campaign called, Take Our Jobs. Arturo took over the organization in 1993 after Chavez’s death, increasing membership steadily since he began his tenure. In addition to a growing union numbers, Rodriguez has reached agreements with many growers and employers such as vegetable, strawberry, roses, wineries, and mushrooms. Current campaigns on which UFW is focusing attention include guest worker programs, protection from heat-related illness in California, and immigration reform. Arturo first met Cesar Chavez in the 1970′s and was a participant in the 1969 grape boycott at St. Mary’s University, from where he graduated in 1971. He also received a Master’s degree in social work from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Rodriguez has worked unceasingly since the 1970′s. He now resides near the UFW’s headquarters in Keene, California, which is in the Tehachapi Mountains

Fract: In the family: Arturo married Cesar Chavez’s daughter, Linda.

Enjoy this week’s shows!