trow125

I grew up in the Wolverine State and my dad's an alum, and trust me, nobody says "Michigan" unless they mean the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. "Michigan State" is always "Michigan State." Hey, I thought Dee's Wicked Witch impersonation wasn't bad! Though I hope we get an anecdote, and not another impression, on Monday.

There were certainly a lot of Christmas decorations up on the final show of the year (Dec. 18) -- more than were on that week's previous episodes. I don't know that I'd call it a "holiday show," though. I found myself really missing the annual retelling of the Lone Ranger story and the meatball tossing contest. As for Darlene Love, I thought she'd said she was no longer going to perform "Christmas Baby (Please Come Home)" on TV after Dave retired, but I read that she did perform it on "The View" this year. Who knows, perhaps in time Stephen will develop his own yuletide traditions. (I also miss "The Blitzkrieg on Grinchitude" from the "Report"!)

NYT review: For Larry Wilmore, a Wagging Finger Replaces a Wink on ‘The Nightly Show’

Oh my gosh, I'm glad I'm not the only one who was riveted by Joel's hair in the clips. He had some serious receding hairline a few years ago so he must have done something. (My guess: a hair transplant. Fun fact: one of my best friends' ex-husband used to go to the same hair clinic as Joe Biden.) Best part of the finale for me was hearing Joel's comments about the Kardashians: "big ass and a sex tape" and "dead behind the eyes sisters," since apparently E! didn't let him say those things after the Ks became their biggest stars. So it was a nice F you to the network as well.

Set your DVRs for Sunday's "Face the Nation," since Stephen will be a guest. (CBS cross-promotion!)

Toll road is definitely two words, which is why it wasn't accepted. Was sorry to see Liz go so soon, but it was a fantastic game!

According to TheJeopardyFan.com, "Priscilla Ball, after winning her first game in 2009, fell ill and was unable to continue her run. She returned a few months later and won a second game." Not sure if you were thinking of her or somebody else, but it looks like the contestant did get a second chance in this case. I hope the new champ, Liz, continues to do well. A smart, likable contestant with no annoying mannerisms? I'm rooting for her!!

When I heard on the radio this morning that Lindsey Graham had dropped out, my first thought was, darn, no Hungry for Power Games until Jan. 4. Who knows, maybe we'll have another tribute or two by then.

From former NYT TV reporter and late-night expert Bill Carter: How Jimmy Fallon Crushed Stephen Colbert (and Everyone Else in Late Night)

Sorry that the show won't be able to report on this since they're off now 'til Jan. 4, but the Zadroga Act passed and the first responders' health care has been extended 75 years. Hooray! I can't decide which Ben Carson impression I prefer: Trevor's or Jay Pharaoh's on "SNL." They're both great!

Were one or two of the men in Jordan's Trump focus group Latino? I thought they might be. I loved "Who said it: Donald Trump or a racist sandwich?" I've seen a bunch of those "Who said it: Trump or Mr. Burns?" or "Trump or Voldemort?" type quizzes floating around the Internet but this was the best one yet. BTW the Zadroga Bill is closer to passage: "Money for the program will be included in the omnibus legislation to keep the government funded that is expected to easily pass." If that happens today or tomorrow, I would love for Jon to come back and take a victory lap before the show goes on holiday break!

After Funches Week, Doug was the next logical contestant for a full week of shows. He's already appeared on more @M episodes than anybody else (even Funches). Now, if they do Sklar Week, I'm tuning out.

Friday, Dec. 18 Actor Mandy Patinkin; CEO and co-founder of Periscope Kayvon Beykpour; musical performance by Leon Bridges Monday, Dec. 21 Spike Lee; Andy Cohen; interview with and musical performance by Carly Simon (OAD: 11/24/15) Tuesday, Dec. 22 Sylvester Stallone; Ted Koppel; NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Kyle Busch; musical performance by My Morning Jacket (OAD: 11/23/15) Wednesday, Dec. 23 Bruce Willis; Author Michael Lewis; Professor Andrew Delbanco; musical performance by Lizzo (OAD: 12/10/15) Thursday, Dec. 24 Pre-empted for Christmas Eve Religious Services Friday, Dec. 25 Jane Fonda; interview with and musical performance by Andrew Lloyd Webber; Brandon Niederauer sitting in with Jon Batiste and Stay Human (OAD: 11/19/15) Monday, Dec. 28 Michael Caine; Larry Wilmore; musical performance by Boots; Vulfpeck sitting in with Jon Batiste and Stay Human (OAD: 11/20/15) Tuesday, Dec. 29 Jennifer Lawrence; Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin; musical performance by Sleater-Kinney (OAD: 12/14/15) Wednesday, Dec. 30 The cast of “Downton Abbey”: Michelle Dockery, Hugh Bonneville and Allen Leech; Writer and director Adam McKay; musical performance by Kurt Vile (OAD: 12/9/15) Thursday, Dec. 31 Sharon Stone; Justin Theroux; musical performance by James Taylor (OAD: 11/18/15) Friday, Jan. 1 Steve Carell; interview with and musical performance by Jennifer Hudson from the Broadway production of “The Color Purple” (OAD: 12/7/15)

Mo 12/14: Jesse Joyce, Esther Ku, Al Jackson Tu 12/15: Andrew Santino, Meaghan Rath, Jak Knight We 12/16: Nick Swardson, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Justin Long Th 12/17: Moshe Kasher, Tom Lennon, "Weird Al" Yankovic

I was disappointed when I saw that Trump had been booked on "Kelly & Michael," and I was even more disappointed when I saw that he's going to be on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" next week. At least it seems highly unlikely that he'll ever appear on TDS after Trevor Noah's "he wants to bang his daughter!" segment. The only thing that might actually help is if all the other candidates demand equal time and the talk shows realize that if they want the ratings/controversy that come with Trump, they'll also have to welcome Jeb!, John Kasich, Martin O'Malley, etc.

The "Inside Edition" montage was so funny I watched it twice and decided to keep the episode on my DVR. A few years ago, there were several "basic cable clip shows," including "The Dish" (Style's Soup spin-off featuring Danielle Fishel) and Current TV's "Infomania." I fear the clip-show genre has finally come to an end. I love seeing the clips, so I'm sad to see them all gone now (or all gone after Dec. 18).

The new "Jewish correspondent," Adam Lowitt, has been with the show since 2002. I agree that he did a great job.

12/14: Andy Cohen (host & executive producer of Bravo’s “Then and Now with Andy Cohen”) 12/15: Pusha T (hip hop artist – promoting album “King Push — Darkest Before Dawn: The Prequel”) 12/16: Will Smith (actor – promoting movie “Concussion”) 12/17: Will Ferrell (actor – promoting movie “Daddy’s Home”) Weeks of 12/21 & 12/28: DARK!

The show ran about 5 minutes long. Not sure if you can watch stuff on the CC web site in Canada [link], but if so, it's worth fast-forwarding to the Moment of Zen, 'cause it was pretty cute to watch Trevor & Jon's interaction.

Or perhaps a clip from one of my all time favorite TDS segments, Ed Helms' All Star Salute to Getting Hit in the Nuts.

Tu 12/8: Maria Bamford, Steve Agee, Dan Telfer We 12/9: Randy Liedtke, April Richardson, Chris Fairbanks Th 12/10: Alice Wetterlund, Jermaine Fowler, Adam Conover Mo 12/14: Jesse Joyce, Al Jackson Tu 12/15: Andrew Santino, Ginger Gonzaga We 12/16: David Koechner Th 12/17: Moshe Kasher, Tom Lennon Then the show will go on its holiday break and return on Jan. 4 with Doug Benson Week -- four days o'Doug.

I really enjoyed last night's show (I'm glad I stayed up late 'cause "The Daily Show" ran about 5 minutes over!). I thought the panel was very funny. Brian Posehn is one of my faves; I wasn't familiar with Rick Overton but I liked him a lot, and I was glad Chris kept him around for FTW. It was kind of sweet when he said Rick was his first friend in comedy. And #InternetTheBeatles is the best HTW they've had in a while.

Thursday, Dec. 10 Bruce Willis; Author Michael Lewis; musical performance by Lizzo Friday, Dec. 11 Lin-Manuel Miranda; Actor Ike Barinholtz; musical performance by Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings Monday, Dec. 14 Jennifer Lawrence; Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin; musical performance by Sleater Kinney Tuesday, Dec. 15 Quentin Tarantino; Actor Jonathan Groff; musical performance by Squeeze Wednesday, Dec. 16 Robert DeNiro; Author Daniel Gilbert; Henry Rollins Thursday, Dec. 17 Michael Moore; U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power; Actor Michael C. Hall; musical performance from the cast of the Broadway musical “Lazarus” Friday, Dec. 18 Actor Mandy Patinkin; musical performance by Leon Bridges