David Letterman is finally ending his career hosting late night television after over thirty years and 6,000 episodes. Letterman has been a prominent figure on television since his 1982 debut and has surpassed Johnny Carson as the longest-serving late-night-talk-show host in television history as of last year. A week after Letterman’s announcement, CBS officially announced that Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report will be taking Letterman’s chair shortly after his departure.

Letterman began his career as a radio talk show host and weatherman for the local television station in Indianapolis.  Known for his offbeat humor in both positions, he moved to Los Angeles in 1975 with the hopes of becoming a comedy writer. He quickly gained recognition for his writing and dry humor, and his career took off. In following years, Letterman was picked up by Johnny Carson, debuted Late Night with David Letterman on NBC in 1982, started the Late Show with David Letterman on CBS in 1993. This show received critical praise and was nominated for 67 Emmy Awards over the past twenty years and won twelve awards.

On the night of Letterman’s retirement announcement, Chairman and CEO of CBS Les Moonves shared his thoughts on the announcement.

“For 21 years, David Letterman has graced our Network’s air in late night with wit, gravitas, and brilliance unique in the history of our medium. During that time, Dave has given television audiences thousands of hours of comedic entertainment, the sharpest interviews in late night, and brilliant moments of candor and perspective around national events,” Moonves stated.

During the taping of his announcement episode, Letterman stated how grateful he is towards everyone who has made the show with him.

“I just want to reiterate my thanks for the support from the network, all of the people who have worked here, all of the people in the theater, all the people on the staff, everybody at home, thank you very much,” Letterman said.

When Stephen Colbert was announced as Letterman’s replacement, some were curious how he would take on the role. Known for being a correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and anchor of The Colbert Report, Colbert has history in fictional news. In 1997 the “Stephen Colbert” character, played by Colbert, was introduced to The Daily Show. Created as a parody of cable news anchors, “Stephen Colbert” communicated his right-wing personal views and developed a fictitious back-story.  After eight successful years as a correspondent on The Daily Show, Comedy Central gave Colbert his own show in 2005. Colbert remains in character for The Colbert Report and has developed “Colbert” over the years and hopes his guests call out his character’s ignorance.

“Don’t let me get away with anything. Don’t try to play my game. Be real. Be passionate. Hold your ideas. Give me resistance. Give me traction I can work against,” Colbert advises.

The Colbert Report is one of the highest-rated series on Comedy Central and has received three Emmy nominations. In the past few years, Colbert was an entertainer at the White House Correspondent’s Association Dinner in 2006, named one of Time’s most influential people in 2006 and 2012, and has had his book, I Am America (And So Can You!) on the New York Times Best Seller List. After seventeen successful years of playing “Colbert,” Colbert has announced when he takes over The Late Show he will not use his satirical right-wing persona.

With both Letterman’s career as a late-night host and Colbert’s on-screen persona coming to an end, next year’s switch at CBS will be a spectacle to witness. Earlier this week when Colbert appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, Letterman went on to tell him that he looks right at home. The torch is ready to be passed down as Colbert plans to respect Letterman’s legacy in making such an entertaining and long-lasting television series, while still making the show his own.