“Late Show” host Stephen Colbert ended his long-running series on Thursday with something unusual: He never mentioned President Donald Trump by name.
In fact, he only made one subtle reference about the president.
The moment came during his interview with Paul McCartney, who reminisced about performing in the same theater in 1964 for the Beatles’ iconic first performance on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” McCartney noted one difference from the band’s appearances on British TV.
“We’d gotten used to a little bit of makeup in England,” he said. “But we went down there, and the girls put makeup on us, and it was like bright orange.”
Colbert didn’t miss the moment.
“That’s very popular in certain circles these days,” he cracked.
“We set a trend,” McCartney said.
“Now we know where it started!” Colbert said. “Thanks a lot, Paul McCartney!”
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The reference to Trump was quite different from a typical “Late Show,” where Colbert has turned the president and his assault on the nation’s democracy into comedic fodder nightly for years.
Colbert did go through a period when Trump was out of office, during which he rarely mentioned his name on air and used mocking nicknames instead. But for the most part, Colbert has taunted Trump by name almost nightly.
Trump, in turn, has frequently attacked and threatened late-night comedy shows for making fun of him. The president specifically singled out Colbert more than once, and even demanded that he be canceled.
Trump finally got his wish last July when CBS announced the end of “The Late Show.”
The network insisted that the move was “purely a financial decision,” but it occurred as the corporate parent, Paramount, needed FCC permission to complete a massive merger.
The merger was approved just one week later.