Jon Stewart bids farewell with Colbert, Springsteen

Associated Press

NEW YORK

Jon Stewart said goodbye to “The Daily Show” on Thursday, America’s foremost satirist of politicians and the media ushered out with a reunion of the many colleagues that he worked with during 16 years as host.

“Guess what? Stewart said at the show’s opening. “I’ve got big news. This is it.”

He began by pretending to report on Thursday’s Republican presidential debate – which actually happened after the taping – but said he didn’t have enough remaining correspondents to talk about all the candidates. There followed a long succession of personalities, such as Aasif Mandvi, John Hodgman, Steve Carell and more, who had gotten their starts at Comedy Central.

He’d been away from the show for more than a decade, but Carell said that “becoming an international superstar is just something I did while awaiting my next assignment.”

Stewart, 52, announced last winter that he was getting restless and it was time to move on. Trevor Noah replaces him as host next month.

Armed with a razor-sharp wit and research team adept at finding video evidence of hypocrisy or unintentional comedy among the nation’s establishment, Stewart turned a sleepy basic-cable entertainment show into a powerful cultural platform. Those who scored a ticket to the 6 p.m. taping were sworn to secrecy.

“From start to finish, it was fantastic,” said audience member Randy Gunnell, 29, of Westchester, N.Y. “It was emotional, people crying all over the place.”

Stewart was joined by former correspondent Stephen Colbert. And Bruce Springsteen, who’s appeared on the show multiple times, played a set.

The ending was an unusual one, said Michelle Light who also was in the audience.

“It was definitely not a regular show. It was not at all the show where you are going to see all the headline news and he’s doing his normal shtick,” said Light, of New York. “They sort of hinted and gave you a nibble ... and then it was on to everything else to sort of commemorate this last moment.”

Stewart had spent years skewering the nation’s establishment, but had turned the spotlight on himself during his penultimate show Wednesday, noting how institutions he had supposedly eviscerated were stronger than ever.

“The world is demonstrably worse than when I started,” Stewart wailed. “Have I caused this?”

His only solace was that his beloved New York Mets were in first place on the day of his last show.

Fellow comic Louis C.K., his guest Wednesday, noted that Stewart was able to keep his show fresh and funny for a long time, keeping up with the world’s changes. “It really is one of the great comedy accomplishments of all time,” he said.

Stewart’s fans will be forced to navigate the first presidential election since 1996 without his commentary, a loss that felt particularly acute with Thursday’s GOP debate.

It’s the third major farewell for a late-night television personality in eight months. Stewart’s Comedy Central colleague, Stephen Colbert, ended “The Colbert Report” in December. David Letterman signed off from CBS in May, to be replaced this fall by Colbert.