A question from an audience member prompted Stephen Colbert to tell a truly beautiful story about how he knew his wife was the woman he was going to marry.

Before “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” tapes episodes, the host comes out for an audience warmup and takes a few questions. On July 4, a member of the audience asked a very personal question.

“When you met the woman who is now your wife, how did you know she was the one?” someone asked.

“Oh, man, I will — how long do we have?” Colbert joked. Then he launched into a story that involved a relationship ultimatum, a heart-to-heart with his mother, an opera by Philip Glass and Allen Ginsberg, an out-of-print poet named Chuck Sullivan and Robert Fagles’ translation of “The Odyssey.”


The story ends happily: Colbert and his wife, Evelyn McGee-Colbert, have been married since 1993. The couple have three children, John, Peter and Madeleine.

Everyone’s meet-cute is, by definition, cute. But this one is particularly endearing. Watch:

May all our relationships be blessed by the sneeze of truth.


“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” airs weeknights on CBS at 11:35.

Tell Jessica your meet-cute on Twitter @jessica_roy.

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