Jan.27, 2010
CHARLESTON -- Can you feel the history? Beginning January 26, interested buyers now have an opportunity to own a slice of ‘The Colbert Report’. Due to a switch to high-definition broadcasting, the original set of the Comedy Central show was taken down to make way for new items. In addition to an auction for Stephen Colbert’s interview table benefiting the American Red Cross and Season Four portrait of Colbert benefiting the Yellow Ribbon Fund, proceeds from the auction of his famous C-shaped desk will benefit the Dr. James W. Colbert Endowed Chair at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).
Interested buyers began bidding at 11:30 p.m. on January 26 through the show’s website: http://www.colbertnation.com/colbert-report-charity-auction. Bidding will close at 11:30 p.m. on February 1. In addition to the desk itself, the winning bidder will receive a signed certificate of authenticity from Stephen Colbert.
Stephen Colbert’s association with MUSC began as a young boy when he would accompany his father, Dr. James W. Colbert, to work from time to time. Dr. Colbert joined MUSC in 1969 to oversee the school’s academic and research programs, in the newly created position of vice president for academic affairs. Layton McCurdy, M.D., dean emeritus of the MUSC College of Medicine, described him as a “transformative figure” who helped the university adopt the traditions of academic medicine, a doctrine that seeks to improve patient care through continual medical research and education.
Dr. Colbert is also known for his role in negotiating a peaceful resolution to a volatile and racially divisive hospital workers strike that placed Charleston and MUSC on the front line of the nation’s civil rights movement in 1969. He died in a plane crash in Charlotte, N.C. on September 11, 1974, with two of his sons, Peter and Paul. In spring 2009, the MUSC Board of Trustees voted to name its education center and library in memory of Dr. Colbert.
About MUSC
Founded in 1824 in Charleston, The Medical University of South Carolina is the oldest medical school in the South. Today, MUSC continues the tradition of excellence in education, research, and patient care. MUSC educates and trains more than 3,000 students and residents, and has nearly 11,000 employees, including 1,500 faculty members. As the largest non-federal employer in Charleston, the university and its affiliates have collective annual budgets in excess of $1.6 billion. MUSC operates a 750-bed medical center, which includes a nationally recognized Children's Hospital and a leading Institute of Psychiatry. For more information on academic information or clinical services, visit www.musc.edu or www.muschealth.com.
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