I would suspect it will be Twain. He and Colbert are not in the same league. That said, Colbert is comparable to the great TV talk show hosts of all time. Definitely better than Johnny Carson IMO or even Letterman who I like a lot. Funnier than John Stewart. And Saturday Night Live. There was a time a few years ago, when the old SNL crew were box office gold (Chase, Belushi, Akroyd, Murray, Murphy). Where are they today? Not making A-list comedies. Has Colbert had a career as long as Bob Hope? Is he as well-known? I believe Hope would have liked Colbert. And what about Lucy Ball or Phyllis Diller? Is Colbert even as well-known as they were? Or Will Rogers was in his day? They all had major studio support Colbert lacks. His humor is topical and quickly dates itself as insider jokes no longer resonate. He hasn't made a Howard Stern type movie to help propel his career or sink it.
If Twain was being compared to Dave Barry, you could at least say they both wrote for the newspapers. Again, not what Colbert does. I think you are right Twain would love Colbert though. Probably give him a nickname or purposely mispronounce his name. I could easily visualize Colbert's persona as a character-type from a Twain novel. Like Tom Sawyer's brother Sid. Or the Dauphin from Huck Finn. Or some shady riverboat gambler that Twain would have heaved off the boat at Natchez for cheating at cards.
He also loved people who would do what Colbert does. The deadpan humor, the seemingly lighthearted pokes that draw blood. Twain invented that. He was notorious for writing very snarky letters to the editor. I wish Mark Twain was here today to post on DU.
I would be more likely to compare Twain to Michael Moore before I'd choose Colbert. But Twain would probably think they were both a hoot.
on edit: Adding one more person. Garrison Keillor.
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