Stephen Colbert kicked off Tuesday night’s episode of The Late Show with a dose of optimism.
“Normal life is somewhere out there waiting for us,” the late night host said during his opening monologue.
The source of Colbert’s coronavirus-era excitement? More promising news about Covid-19 vaccines. During his segment Colbert explained that Merck will team with competitor Johnson & Johnson to up the nation’s supply of one-shot vaccinations, meaning that all adults in the U.S. can receive their immunizations by the end of May, according to President Joe Biden’s plan.
“I could kiss that man…by the end of May,” Colbert quipped.
In addition to vaccine news, Colbert recapped some of the current headlines turning heads this week – including those surrounding Dr. Seuss books. After the Virginia School System removed the notable author-illustrator’s works from their “Read Across America” program as they contain “strong racial undertones,” Dr. Seuss Enterprises announced that six titles – And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, If I Ran the Zoo, McElligot’s Pool, On Beyond Zebra!, Scrambled Eggs Super!, and The Cat’s Quizzer – will no longer be published.
While some readers see the Virginia School System and Dr. Seuss Enterprises’ actions as “cancelling” the famous author, Colbert commended the move to phase out the problematic works.
“It’s a responsible move on their part,” he said. “They recognize the impact these images have on readers, especially kids, and they’re trying to fix it because Dr. Seuss books should be fun for all people.”
Colbert ended his opening monologue reading a list of books by Black authors that readers should check out – from Matthew A. Cherry’s Hair Love to Misty Copeland’s Firebird.
See Colbert’s full opening monologue above.