Just two weeks before he hosts his final episode of CBS’ Late Show, The Hollywood Reporter cover star Stephen Colbert was the toast of the evening at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel Boulud’s Daniel on Thursday night in Manhattan.
Colbert hugged his colleague Gayle King shortly after both arrived. As King posed for photos on the red carpet, Colbert jumped in and joined her for a couple of playful shots. Later, he posed solo, flashing some of his best male model-like stares, before he was spotted chatting with other guests near the bar, then making his way into the main party room. There, he held court and could be seen deep in conversation with Rita Wilson as well as catching up with Andy Cohen, THR editor-in-chief Maer Roshan and Boulud, with whom Colbert had an appropriately warm moment near the fondue station.
From left: Andy Cohen, Maer Roshan and Stephen Colbert at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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King sung Colbert’s praises to THR on the red carpet, saying: “I love everything about him. I’ve been on his show a couple of times. The wit that he has, the intelligence that he has, there’s nobody like him. And I can’t wait to see what he does in his next chapter because we all know Stephen ain’t done.”
King was ready to party, briefly dancing to “Losing You,” by Solange, as she left the red carpet and made her way to the party area. She later was spotted catching up with Billy Eichner and Rosanna Scotto.
From left: Rosanna Scotto, Gayle King and Billy Eichner at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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Wilson and Eichner also spoke at length about their admiration for Colbert, with Wilson admitting that despite their friendship, she’d never appeared on his show.
“The timing has never been right because there are these rules, so if you do one show, you can’t do another show,” she said. “But I know Stephen a little bit personally, and he is a man of integrity, and I am deeply in awe of his faith. And he is funny, man. He is just so funny. You can’t not have that humor in the world. But I think he’ll continue to go out there and be exactly who he is, for all of our good fortune.”
After their long conversation Thursday night, perhaps something is in the works.
Stephen Colbert and Rita Wilson at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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Also teasing a future version of an older project was Carson Daly, who told THR, “We’re working on a TRL thing that may come down the line.”
Elsewhere in the restaurant, Dan Abrams and Van Jones were spotted deep in conversation with MS NOW president Rebecca Kutler. And Hot Ones’ Sean Evans showed some love to Meadowlark podcaster Pablo S. Torre, giving him a huge hug to congratulate him on his Pulitzer Prize win in audio reporting for his Pablo Torre Finds Out (PTFO) podcast.
From left: Rachel Adler, Pablo S. Torre, Sean Evans and Mark McGrath at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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Earlier on the red carpet, Today’s Daly, representing for the NBC morning show, caught up with Cohen, and newly appointed Vogue editor Chloe Malle showed off her punctuality, arriving right as the party began, at 6:30 p.m.
Chloe Malle at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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CBS Evening News host Tony Dokoupil and his MS NOW anchor wife, Katy Tur, arrived roughly an hour in, and Tur later was seen with a group that included Eichner and MS NOW’s Ari Melber.
Katy Tur and Tony Dokoupil at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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Sara Moonves at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
Jamie McCarthy/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images
Other luminaries who made the scene at the event, presented by A+E Global Media and History Channel and held in conjunction with the publication of THR’s 11th list of the 50 Most Powerful People in New York Media and taking place for the first time since 2022, include Vanity Fair’s Mark Guiducci, who attended with his partner, Shawn McCreesh, of the New York Times’ White House team, part of a Times contingent that also included Marc Lacey and Carolyn Ryan; Semafor’s Ben Smith; Fox News Channel’s Jessica Tarlov; Instagram’s Eva Chen; Hannah Bronfman; CNN’s Abby Phillip; Evan Ross Katz; W Magazine’s Sara Moonves and Lynn Hirschberg; Roxane Gay; The Daily’s Rachel Abrams; WSJ. Magazine’s Sarah Ball; HBO executive producer Michael J. Fuchs; and “Sex and the City” columnist Candace Bushnell.
Bravo chairman Frances Berwick, who attended with Cohen, spoke about preparing to give Kathy Hilton an icon award at an upcoming event, while elsewhere, the A&E team, including comms chief Michael Feeney, still was riding high from their HistoryTalks event in Philadelphia with all of the living former presidents.
Candace Bushnell at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
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The packed event at the Upper East Side restaurant saw guests nearly shoulder to shoulder in the foyer as they made their way toward the main dining room — converted into more of a cocktail party setup for the evening — where they caught up with their fellow media all-stars as they enjoyed passed canapes and desserts as well as a cheese and fondue station. Inside the intimate, dimly lit venue, tables were topped with white tablecloths and candles as well as, of course, THR’s New York issue. Photos from the issue rotated across video screens inside the restaurant.
Melber was among those who praised the “incredible food.”
“You go to New York parties, and they’re wonderful. A lot of times the food is not the focus,” he said. “THR has done this here at Daniel, which is one of the most renowned restaurants in the country, and they didn’t skimp on the appetizers.”
The event was deejayed by Harley Viera-Newton, with Boulud himself joining her behind the turntables for a portion of the evening. Guests were treated to a decade-spanning collection of upbeat hits like Blondie’s “Heart of Glass,” Mark Ronson and Lily Allen’s “Oh My God,” Anita Ward’s “Ring My Bell,” Olivia Dean’s “Man I Need” and The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven.”
Daniel Boulud joins DJ Harley Viera-Newton behind the turntables at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
Mike Coppola/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images
As the evening wound down, many of the TV media stars had left, particularly the morning show hosts, but Kamala Harris’ stepdaughter, Ella Emhoff, was still excitedly greeting other guests.
Ella Emhoff at THR’s Most Powerful People in New York Media party, presented by History Channel, at Daniel.
Jamie McCarthy/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images
Brande Victorian, Alex Weprin, Julian Sancton and Lacey Rose contributed to this report.