Behind the Scenes at 'The Colbert Report'

Aug. 16, 2011— -- It had already been a long day by the time Susan Rice, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, arrived in "The Colbert Show" studio shortly before 7:00 pm yesterday.

Numerous meetings throughout the day on issues like Libya, Syria, and Sudan had chewed up much of the time she hoped to use to prepare for her first appearance on the show. Adding to the pressure, the show planned to feature her in two segments, something it has only done with a handful of guests.

Asked if she's ready for the interview she looked up from her briefing notes and confidently replied "I will be."

Later she would admit she had no time to prepare other than watching some recent episodes."There's not much time to do a lot of prep on a typical day like today," she told ABC News in the green room after the show.

Stephen Colbert, the host of the Comedy Central show bounded out of his dressing room next door where he was huddling with his team of writers and producers.

"Hello!" he exclaimed, flashing the same mischievous grin that is the hallmark of his on-air alter ego, the faux-right wing commentator. He walked into Rice's room and introduced himself."Madame Ambassador, hi, Stephen Colbert, great to meet you," he said warmly as the two chatted about the upcoming interview.

Minutes later he was prancing around the set of his show as an audience of 160 fans cheered him on. He did a lap of high fives around the room for good measure, soaking up the sort of cheering messianic welcome his egotistical character relishes. Not entirely in character yet, a more mild-mannered Colbert chatted with the audience before the taping began.

"Any questions to humanize me before I say these horrible things?" he asked. A dozen hands shot up immediately.

The audience had already been waiting in the studio for nearly two hours by the time the Colbert took the stage. Many had been waiting outside for hours longer, weathering a torrential downpour that soaked Manhattan earlier in the afternoon.

What is his favorite Tom Hanks movie, one young man asks? "That's a very… reasonable question," Colbert replied, hesitating for comedic effect. He finally settled on Forrest Gump. And how can a young actor make a living wage in improv, another inquired?