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Watch Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell auction off props from ‘Late Show’ set before cancellation
Steve Carell joined longtime friend Stephen Colbert on 'The Late Show' to auction off items from the set before the show ends in May.
With a little more than two months before “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” airs its final episode on May 21, the late-night host is bringing back some of his favorite guests, including longtime friend Steve Carell.
The Massachusetts native and star of “The Office” joined Colbert to discuss parenthood, his new HBO show “Rooster,” their shared history at The Second City improv theater in Chicago, and to take part in a Home Shopping Network parody in which the duo auctioned “Late Show” memorabilia off for charity.
“To make our move out of the historic Ed Sullivan Theater as easy as possible, we have decided to harness the power and style of Home Shopping Network to sell off everything we can from the ‘Late Show’ and donate the proceeds to charity,” Colbert said. “Because if we don’t sell all of this stuff, the network gets to keep all of our stuff. And clearly they’re not big fans of it.”
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Colbert and Carell then hawked a number of items, including a replica sword from “The Lord of the Rings,” a water tower figurine featuring signed art from Shepherd Fairey, and a signed shirtless photo of Colbert, Carell, and “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart.
All of the items, which are currently up for auction on eBay, will benefit celebrity chef José Andrés’ nonprofit World Central Kitchen.
The duo’s sketch performance harkened back to Carell and Colbert’s comedy beginnings, performing together at The Second City in the ’90s. Colbert started as Carell’s understudy in the theater’s main stage cast, while Carell began his time at Second City as the understudy for the late Chris Farley.
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“He was impossible to understudy,” Carell said. “Remember from ‘SNL,’ the scene ‘Down by the River’ with Matt Foley? It started on main stage, and that was his scene.
“All of the people who worked there would go to main stage just to watch that scene,” Carell continued. “I remember seeing it three, four months into the run, and the cast was still breaking up, they couldn’t hold it together. […] That just shows what an incredible performer he was.”
The Second City is also where Carell met his wife of 30+ years, former “SNL” cast member Nancy Carell (née Wells). The couple have two adult children, Annie and John, who Carell credited with saving his career.
“I historically auditioned really badly for everything — I would get nervous, I would get tongue-tied, I just wouldn’t be in the moment,” Carell said. “As soon as we had Annie, all of that just disappeared.
“Because my priorities were completely different,” Carell continued, getting emotional. “I didn’t care so much. A career would be nice, but I’ve got this now.”
Watch Steve Carell on ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’:
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