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Dean Kamen shows off his prosthetic arm on The Colbert Report
Dean Kamen showed up on The Colbert Report last night to show off Luke -- the advanced prosthetic arm he's been working on with DARPA and the Defense Department for the past few years. Besides the requisite Segway jokes (and Colbert's are pretty funny, we'll give him that), it's pretty heart-warming to see Kamen and his crazy awesome arm hanging out with our favorite faux Republican. Just more proof that Colbert is a major gadget nerd. The video's after the break -- hit the read link if you want to watch the entire episode.
iPad roundup: Letterman licking, Colbert chopping, MobileMe and Remote support
Let's get straight to the meat. The iPad was doing the talk show rounds last night, with heavy hitters David Letterman and Stephen Colbert one-upping each other on who can do the sillier thing with it. Letterman went with the old school "if you don't know what to do with it, lick it" routine, while his competitor brought out a more sophisticated salsa preparation act. Pick your favorite from the videos after the break. In more material news, Apple has announced that MobileMe now includes the iPad among its supported devices, while some eager souls over at MacStories have spotted that iTunes 9.1 now references an "iPad remote," which suggests the nearly 10-inch tablet will soon be able to function as one of the most luxurious channel changers around. And you thought you wouldn't find a use for it.
Stephen Colbert and his iPad at the Grammys
It must be nice to be the host of your own popular Comedy Central show and a host on the Grammy Awards. Why? You get to play with an iPad. No, it's not one of Tim Meehan's faux iPads - this was a working unit that flipped from portrait to landscape mode when Stephen Colbert pulled it out of his jacket... or pants. Enjoy this short piece of video from tonight's Grammy Award ceremonies.
Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert begin HDTV broadcasts January 4
Cross another one off the "waiting for them to go HD" list, as Comedy Central is upgrading The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report to 1080i. What caused the wait until 2010? Apparently that's how long it took to upgrade the control room for these shows that are continuously in production, but at least we'll get to see how many CNBC thumbnails Stewart can squeeze into a 16x9 frame before the Mayan calendar runs out.
Video: Stephen Colbert unveils the Microsoft XXbox
Taking aim at Microsoft's recently unveiled Project Natal, Stephen Colbert unveiled a new-new console on The Colbert Report the other night. The XXbox (or Ex-Xbox, one of our readers cleverly pointed out) bests Natal's lack of controller by at least one point, lacking a console and games. For about 500 bucks, it sounds like a steal. But you know, we'll buy any new gadget. Video is after the break. [Via Joystiq]
Colbert's top threat of the week: killer iPhones. Solution: buy a Zune.
Of course, it all seems so obvious now! How did we not interpret El Jobso's true meaning of the iPhone kill-switch -- it actually kills you. We have noted iPhone expert Stephen Colbert to thank not just for this brilliant deduction, but also for sticking up for the lot of us and giving the iPhone 3G a cold staredown -- but not before declaring, "I knew I should have gotten a Zune! They can't kill me... or do anything else." Zing! Clip after the break (iPhone at 5:45).[Thanks, Matt]
Screen Grabs: Colbert begs for iPhone 3G to replace upside down model
You'd think that after begging for, and apparently receiving, a free iPhone last year, Stephen Colbert would have figured out how to hold the damn thing by now. Katie Cotton's not going to toss you an iPhone 3G freebie acting like this. Oh wait, fake television news isn't real? The "t" is silent? Oh never mind.[Thanks, Jason]
Homemade security 'bum bot' turns up on the Colbert Report
Oh bum bot. We remember when you were fresh out of the hands of creator Rufus Terrill. Now look at you -- featured on the Colbert Report. You may have seen photos of this vagrant-deterring robot before, but you haven't lived till you've seen the hard-hitting, in-depth coverage that Stephen Colbert delivers on it. Take a look at the video after the break to see a defender of America (and bot) on the front lines of battle.[Thanks, Tony S.]
Ian Bogost sets good example on Colbert Report
We mentioned that this was coming up yesterday, but, just in case you missed it, here's Persuasive Games author and game designer Ian Bogost fighting the good fight for gaming with bastion of truth and light, Stephen Colbert. We're glad to see it, and not just to watch Colbert wonder aloud if hours of World of Warcraft (or Colbertcraft) will prepare him for when our world becomes Warcraft.We're also glad to see it because Bogost is undeniably a good egg. Instead of just cursing the darkness and hoping to convince a fairly skeptical mainstream media that games aren't necessarily without merit, he's out there actually proving it. In our opinion, we could use a few more Ian Bogosts.
Mii Spotlight: Pop culture goes Mii
The best sort of Miis seem to be made from those people who already look like walking caricatures -- the kind of people who have such distinctive features that you could guess their identity from seeing only their left eye, perhaps, or their signature grin. So it follows, of course, that iconic characters also tend to make for good Mii material, though not always, as we here at the Fanboy learned ourselves to our great chagrin ....
Stephen Colbert makes play for iPhone at D5
For most of us, having Steve Jobs' direct attention is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (well, actually, it's a never-in-a-lifetime event for the overwhelming majority of the populace, but stay with us here). Stephen Colbert got his this week, introducing Viacom CEO Phillipe Dauman via video clip at D5. Jobs was, of course, a big player at D, and Colbert did his best to take advantage by suggesting that a gratis iPhone in his pocket -- followed by a mention on his show -- might be just the trick to spurring sales (notice that he's ogling an imaginary iPhone in this screen grab). We suspect the effort was for naught; iPhones are as scarce now as they've ever been, never mind the fact that the media has generated pretty much all the buzz Apple can handle free of charge. Might we suggest working a company that's a little less stingy with prerelease units, Stephen?
Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen opens chrono-rift in XBLM
Solar plexus! Now that Viacom's gotten the lawyers involved, it's become increasingly difficult for us to track down our favorite Tek Jansen clips on YouTube. Sure, we can always go to Viacom's own iFilm property and watch the preroll ad (and they still can't be embedded in our posts).As Microsoft looks for more ways to fill those 120GB hard drives they want you to buy, they're enlisting the help of Stephen Colbert Presents: Stephen Colbert's Alpha Squad 7 -- Tek Jansen the New Adventures. Available this week, the first short will be free while future installments will cost an unspecified amount. Our favorite? Operation Dragontongue: Chocolate Blades of Thunder. But hurry! If you don't click this link and watch the video immediately, you risk opening a chrono-rift in the space-time continuum and may miss important life lessons (hint: DON'T GO IN CAVES!).[Via Arrogantics]
Today's most patriotic dancing video: Stephen Colbert meets DDR
Or: Colbert + DDR + video - the pulse pounding techno = hilarityYou have a problem. You've got some downtime, need a quick break from the routine, but aren't sure where to turn. Do you browse your RSS feeds for a distraction? Head to the water cooler and try to join in on the insane banter about what reality show contestant was the biz-omb last night? Well, we've got the answer. Just keep yourself parked here and check out Stephen Colbert in a DDR-style dance game, with slightly less than Tron quality graphics. It's amusing, brief, and worth a watch. Then you can return to your previously put-on-pause lifestyle.
Colbert on the iPhone
"The legends are true, it exists." No, Colbert wasn't talking about the iPhone, he was talking about "the much feared double-wag" of his finger Apple got for the new phone that left him "flaccid with rage." You know, these Colbert sound bites aren't really working out -- just watch the video, ok?[Via AppleGazette]
Will Wright, Stephen Colbert, and N'Gai Croal
Legendary game designer Will Wright visited The Colbert Report last night. Surrounded by a nativity scene and lacking his standard comfort mustache, Wright and Stephen Colbert philosophized on why anyone would want to, as Colbert put it, "go into another world to live a life that is just as mundane." About four minutes into the interview, the discussion transitions into Spore, which Wright describes as a "spreadsheet for God." This brings up a debate on Evolution versus Intelligent Design, which should not come as a surprise for anyone familiar with the show. Wright notes that it is a hybrid between the two theories, though "the designers aren't necessarily that intelligent." The evolution aspect, Wright explains, comes with the online world where your creations are pitted against everyone else's -- it's like "competing gods on the playing field of the world," they conclude. Watch near the end where Wright almost gets Colbert to break character by "confessing" he is almost fluent in Sim-lish, the language of The Sims. Newsweek's N'Gai Croal, who described the designer as polymathic (that means he's edumucated), followed Wright to the set to get some behind-the-scenes perspective of the interview and reveals some insight into Wright's gaming habits, like that he doesn't like MMOs because of the "rote treadmill" of leveling characters. Spore, according to Wright, is on track for a release the second half of 2007 and is currently in Pre-Alpha Five phase, which means five months until alpha phase, which means there are some lucky EA employees playing the full version of Spore right now. The full Colbert Report interview is embedded after the break.
Dan Rather talks to Stephen Colbert about tonight's HDNet premiere
Dan Rather Reports premieres tonight on HDNet, and the man himself appeared on The Colbert Report to talk about the show. Check out the clip on Colbert On Demand for information on how Colbert himself has switched entirely to HDTVs -- the old ones have been composted -- and asks Dan hard hitting questions like "Do we really want to see the world in crisp detail?". The show (Rather's not Colbert's) begins tonight at 8 p.m. EST, we'll see if high-def brings the commitment to accuracy, fairness and guts the lead reporter says it will.[Via digg]
Colbert's green screen gaming
Last night, Stephen Colbert announced the winner of his Green Screen Challenge. The champion entry was "Freedom Fighter," a video game where Colbert had to save patriotic eagles from the evil bullets of Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Continue reading for the winning video, as well as a runner-up that struck a chord in our hearts. While not on YouTube, we suggest you check out this video (.mov file) from "George L." It's a great idea, but pretty amateurish in execution, if you ask us.
The many sides of Steve Wozniak
We all know this Woz quite well...The prankster who still laughs at fart jokes and plays Segway Polo. The guy who admitted, in the email accompanying the above picture, which was taken backstage before his recent appearance on The Colbert Report by the friend of an acquaintance of mine: I suggested that one of us should do rabbit ears and Colbert declined so I did it. That part may make it less funny but it's true. I also left a sticker in the green room bathroom that is in OSHA style and colors with a picture of a butt with a poof coming out, and the words "Let's keep the air fresh." I hope it's still there.But then there's the sensitive and impressively humble Woz. The Woz who responds to an insulting and juvenile question like this one, from Ask MetaFilter, with a disarming and brutally honest answer like this: "...I don't mind if people don't like me as long as it's for things I am. There's plenty to find there. I do try to remain the person I would have wanted to become, from when I was 10 and when I was 20. Even after something like Apple I managed to remain close to the same person, doing things I would have done had Apple never come about, like getting my degree and teaching and much more." [read the entire thing for proper context, it's short]Steve Wozniak is a class act. 'Nuff said.Thanks to phi for the Ask MeFi link.
Found Footage: Colbert + iPod
Some of you may be aware that Stephen Colbert, the holder of the Truthiness, is having a green screen contest. The above video is one entrant into the contest (though the videos are supposed to feature Stephen fighting an alien, we here at TUAW cast our vote for this one).[via TVSquad]
Stephen Colbert frags Steven Johnson
Steven Johnson, author of the excellent book Everything Bad is Good for You, made an appearance on Stephen Colbert's faux-news show last night to talk about "how today's popular culture is actually making us smarter." Johnson writes on his blog: "... [Colbert] wasn't too over-the-top with his O'Reilly imitation in our chat last night. He played it a bit straighter than I had expected, which made the conversation a little easier. The interesting twist was that he chose not to do the 'you're destroying the youth of America' rant that you might have expected him to do; in fact, his major in character joke was that he agreed with my argument that books are a waste of time. (By the way, if you're just coming to the site for the first time, that's not my argument at all, of course.)"Almost one year ago (to the day!) Johnson appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (video) pushing the same book and the same message. We're suckers for his argument (not that books are a waste of time, the other one: that video games aren't a waste of time), so we don't mind one bit. He name drops games like Civilization IV and Spore as games that are emblematic of his thesis that today's games are increasingly complicated. I don't know about you, Steven, but I can't stop playing UNO on Xbox Live Arcade. Not sure that counts though ...More on Steven Johnson:Why we should take games seriouslyAn open letter to senator ClintonVideo Games Are Good for You, Except When They're Just Bad(Update: video is embedded after the break. Thanks, daneo!)
