Stephen Colbert’s Surprise Hosting on Michigan Community TV

One day after wrapping up his final episode of “The Late Show” on CBS, Stephen Colbert appeared unexpectedly as host of the “Only in Monroe” community access show. This program broadcasts in southeast Michigan along Lake Erie.

Joining Colbert was Jack White, a Michigan native who grew up in Detroit, located about 40 miles northeast of Monroe. With humor, Colbert referred to White as his “volunteer music director” and joked about hearing some of White’s music, though time might be limited. Laughter from a small off-camera audience followed.

During the hour-long broadcast, Colbert interviewed actor Jeff Daniels. The show featured plenty of Michigan-centric humor. Another segment included actor Steve Buscemi, who participated in a recorded skit about a fictional Buscemi’s Pizza in Monroe.

Detroit-raised rapper Eminem made an appearance on tape. Assigned the role of “fire marshal,” he humorously approved setting ablaze remnants of the set that Colbert, White, and Daniels dismantled at the show’s end. Colbert also had a FaceTime conversation with comedian Byron Allen, who is set to host “Comics Unleashed,” the replacement for Colbert’s canceled “Late Show.”

The regular hosts of the community access program, Michelle Baumann and former Miss America Kaye Lani Rae Rafko Wilson, participated in a lighthearted segment with Colbert. They inhaled helium from balloons while discussing Baumann’s fight against cancer. A warning on screen humorously noted, “Former professional TV host, do not try this at home.”

This occurrence marked Colbert’s second time hosting “Only in Monroe.” He had previously hosted an episode in summer 2015, just before taking over “Late Night” from David Letterman. It remains uncertain where or when this recent episode was recorded, which aired exactly 24 hours after Colbert’s last “Late Night” performance. Efforts to obtain comments from the community access channel on Saturday went unanswered.