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There have been a lot of stories that have come out over the last several months about The Late Show after CBS decided to cancel it. One of those stories was from Colbert himself, who joked he and the crew were “fired” the second the series ended, and had to go clean out their desks ASAP. The flippant comment was actually only half comedy. He and his wife Evie did go to his New York office to clean house the following week, and it was there she encountered a scrap of paper he’d kept taped to his desk for “21 years.”
So, what's up with that? Apparently, the funnyman kept a note on hand through his years of TV work to try and always remember who he was as a person and what he stood for. It was his wife who revealed the "scrap" of paper she'd encountered while helping her husband clear out his office in the week after he said his final goodbyes on the 2026 TV schedule. She said (via THR):
I’ve been thinking a lot about transitions lately. The Colbert family’s been going through quite a few of them. Last week, we moved Stephen out of his office at The Late Show, and he showed me a tiny scrap of paper that I’d never seen. It was taped to the edge of his desk. It just has five words written on it: loyalty, respect, trust, honesty and love. He kept it there for over 21 years to remind him of the kind of show he wanted to lead.
But wait, Stephen Colbert only hosted The Late Show for 11 years, right? From what she’s saying, I think he actually may have had that piece of paper with him on The Colbert Report, then transitioned it to his desk when he came over from Comedy Central to CBS. The sentiment is strong, and kind of what I’d expect from the late night host, but the five words really stick out when you read them separately.
- Loyalty
- Respect
- Trust
- Honesty
- Love
It's an admirable list, and one that's served the late night host well, both in his interactions on TV, where people clearly showed up to pay tribute in the last months the show was on air, but also in his marriage with Evie. The couple wed in 1993, well over 30 years ago at this point, and they’ve weathered plenty of career changes over the years. He's often said he knew immediately Evie was the right fit.
After his retirement, she also stepped back from her position as President of the Montclair Film Festival, and Evie said she’ll be leaving behind a legacy there that also hit on the tenets that have been so precious to her famous husband.
Well, for the past 15 years, it’s been my incredible honor to work with all of you to build something that we love, and we do it with trust and honesty and respect, and you’ve all done that with me.
It's been a whirlwind few weeks for the late night host and his family as he left his longtime show, went to his brother's wedding, cleared out his office, and celebrated his wife's retirement. Now, hopefully it's time for a well-deserved break. And maybe a little more work on that post-retirement LOTR movie.
