Last night, Dr. Anthony Fauci made his first Late Show appearance in a special “coronaversary” episode of Stephen Colbert.
During much of his meeting with the dawn host, the White House Chief Medical Counselor – and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases – was seriously questioned about the Covid-19 pandemic and the way back to some form of normality , offering his ideas, as the main immunologist in the country.
Naturally, however, Colbert made sure to ask Fauci some funny questions about softball, covering everything from the birth of the verb ‘Fauci-ing’ to when he can once again “hit the club”.
At one point, Fauci was asked which vaccine he preferred, between Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. “I would choose the one that was most available to me,” he said. “All three are highly effective.”
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“Which one delivers Bill Gates’ brain control microchip most effectively?” Colbert then joked – to which Fauci replied: “Well, there are a few: a microchip of mine and a microchip of Bill. It depends on which one you want. “
Later in the conversation, the host asked Fauci how he felt with all the attention he received, over the past year, when he became “America’s most trusted doctor.”
“Well, I certainly want to be trusted,” he said. “I don’t necessarily dwell on the attention I receive.”
Colbert then brought a photo of the doctor on the cover of In Style magazine, also noting that he had been nominated for People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive distinction. “Wasn’t that pleasant?” he asked himself.
“Well, Stephen, in short, was an interesting concept,” admitted Fauci. “[But] when you realize how far you are from the truth, being a somewhat realistic person, I then go back to my work. “
Subsequently, Colbert raised the question that we were all asking ourselves. “Can we still use ‘I’m quarantined’ as an excuse to get out of plans we don’t want to be part of, even when things are back to normal?” he asked.
“I think you can, if you want,” Fauci joked. “But you will be running out of time soon.”
Finally, the host asked the medical expert about the idea behind his Godfather motto, as advisor to seven presidents. Fauci explained that he adopted the stance of Michael Corleone, of Al Pacino, as a model of his conduct, because he understood that the public could feel inclined to make negative comments about him, whenever he gained prominence. In this type of scenario, he simply reminded himself: “It is not personal. It is strictly business. “
Naturally, the reference to Francis Ford Coppola’s gangster saga left Colbert wondering, “Have you ever fantasized about throwing a horse’s head on Rand Paul’s bed?”
“No, no, no,” said Fauci. “But I think he can [have] I dreamed of doing it another way, with me. “
Last night’s episode of The Late Show marked the anniversary of the last show of the CBS program at Ed Sullivan Theater. On March 12, 2020, the program briefly stopped production due to the pandemic, returning to air on March 30, with shows delivered from Colbert’s home. The show would eventually resume production in the studio – albeit on a smaller set – on August 10.
Colbert’s “coronaverary” episode followed a special episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! launched on March 11, which marked, in Kimmel’s words, the anniversary of our “national incarceration”.
To see the comical jokes between Colbert and Fauci, click on the clips above and below.