You know him for his wit and humor, but did you know that he holds a doctorate degree in Fine Arts?
In 2011, Business Insider has it that he gave the commencement speech at his alma mater, Northwestern University.
Like Kanye West and other artists that received a doctorate degree, they poked fun and proudly announced that they have officially become doctors. Colbert did the same. In 2006, he aired a sketch during an episode of The Colbert Report that poked fun of the "Dr." title he received from Knox College.
He originally wanted to be an actor but he switched to improv when he attended Northwestern University. At a young age, his parents focused on intelligence and his observation of the negative stereotypes of Southerners led him to train himself to suppress his Southern accent, being a South Carolina native. To avoid that stereotype, he taught himself to imitate the speech of American news anchors.
He involved himself in theater and performance arts when he was young. He attended the Charleston's Episcopal Porter-Gaud School. There he participated in several school plays and also wrote in his school's newspaper.
He wanted to study marine biology but he had inner ear damage. It was enough damage that hindered him from taking up scuba diving - one of the things he needed to do as a marine biologist. He was accepted to Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia and studied philosophy while participating in plays. He then transferred. When he enrolled at Northwestern University, he took it as an opportunity to reinvent himself in a new place because no one knew him. He took theater as a major and graduated from Northwestern's School of Communication in 1986.
Now, he is known for his works from The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. He is a favorite of Comedy Central. He is also named as one of Time's 100 most influential people both in 2006 and 2012.
Watch Colbert's funny speech at the University of Virginia below:
