Stephen Colbert explains comic roots:

Comedy Central star Stephen Colbert says the deaths of his father and brothers in a plane crash started him on a career path toward comedy at an early age.




I think I did my best to cheer mom up, the star of The Colbert Report says in an interview airing Sunday night on CBS' 60 Minutes.

After they died, nothing seemed that important to me. ... I would certainly say I was detached from what was normal behavior of children around me, he said. It didn't make much sense. None of it seemed very important.

So starting at the age of 10, Colbert began to hone his ability to mock just about anything with a straight face.

Acceptance, or blind acceptance -- of authority is not easy for me, says Colbert. Nothing is sacred -- not religion, nor the media, nor politicians.