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Jimmy Fallon was a guest on The Late Show last night – his first ever appearance on the show. The Tonight Show host chatted with Stephen Colbert about their longtime friendship and shared memories, before Fallon performed a musical number in honor of his colleague.
The serenade honored Colbert’s work on “The Late Show,” which will end May 21. The lyrics were sung to the tune of “My Way,” and Fallon also took aim at Donald Trump’s role in the show’s exit.
“And now the end is near,” Fallon crooned into the microphone as the lights dimmed. “And so you face the final curtain/ But Trump, he made it clear/ He wants you gone/ Of that we’re certain/ You’ve been a gracious host/ We’ve loved you since the old ‘Report’ days/ And more/ Much more than this/ You did it your way.”
Fallon asks for an Emmy
He went on to sing: “CBS, they said you’re through/ And now it’s down to just two Jimmys/ But wait, before you go/ Can I please have one of your Emmys?”
At the end of the song, the two climbed onto Colbert’s desk and hugged. “I’ll see you in the locker room,” Colbert said to Fallon.
Last year, CBS announced that it was discontinuing the late-night talk show that Colbert has hosted for over a decade for financial reasons.
CBS calls Colbert irreplaceable
“We view Stephen Colbert as irreplaceable and will retire The Late Show franchise at this time. We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the show will be remembered in the pantheon of greats who shaped late-night television,” CBS wrote in a statement. “This is a purely financial decision in the context of a difficult late-night environment. It is in no way related to the performance of the show, its content or other operations at Paramount.”
Colbert commented on the decision on his show, saying, “I’m not being replaced. This just stops everything. I want to say that the people at CBS have been great partners.”
Colbert took over “The Late Show” from David Letterman in 2015 after previously hosting the news satire show “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central. The show, which is produced at the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City, is currently in its eleventh season with Colbert as host.
