Stephen Tyrone Colbert was born on May 13, 1964, in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. He is the youngest of eleven children and has Irish Catholic background.
He studied acting at Northwestern University and performed with the Second City comedy troupe in Chicago before creating the sketch comedy "Exit 57" with fellow cast members Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello for Comedy Central. The show garnered five CableACE nominations for best writing, performing, and comedy series.
After "Exit 57" ended, Colbert was a correspondent on "The Daily Show" from 1997 to 2005, initially billed as "The New Guy." He became the show's longest-running and most diverse correspondent, hosting segments such as "Even Stephen" and "This Week in God."
Colbert helped "The Daily Show" win numerous Emmy and Peabody Awards and contributed to the bestselling book "America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction." His personality, intelligence, and leftist political satire led him to create his own show, "The Colbert Report," a half-hour nightly platform for his tongue-in-cheek take on the issues of the day.
Colbert's other notable credits include serving as a writer and cast member on "The Dana Carvey Show," writing for "Saturday Night Live," and providing the voice of Ace in "Ambiguously Gay Duo." He was also featured on "Mr. Goodwrench" commercials.
Colbert lives in northern New Jersey with his wife and three children.