Whatever Happened To Craig Kilborn?
He might never have been the biggest name in late night, nor the most well-known sportscaster, but Craig Kilborn might be the most under-appreciated name in both categories. In the early 1990s, Kilborn — alongside the likes of Rich Eisen, Keith Olbermann, and Dan Patrick — changed the face of ESPN forever as a frequent co-host of the morning sports talk show "SportsCenter," where he became known for his deadpan wit and unmistakable snark.
Not content with being limited to talking sports on TV, Kilborn moved on from ESPN to become the first host of the groundbreaking comedy news program "The Daily Show." And while Jon Stewart will always be more closely associated with the history of that series, it's Kilborn who set the bar and developed its tongue-in-cheek look at current events. Departing after an ever-so-brief run as a political pundit, Kilborn scored another late night gig and hosted "The Late Late Show" years before it became a smash hit under the stewardship of Craig Ferguson and, later, James Corden.
Often overlooked, Kilborn has had an unlikely career with plenty of ups and downs, but even some of his biggest fans may be wondering where he's been all these years. Disappearing for years at a time, he's stayed away from the gossip pages and hasn't had a lot of high-profile projects. He hasn't been completely absent, though, so let's take a look at what he's been up to.
Craig Kilborn stepped away from Hollywood
After he spurned Comedy Central and paved the way for Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show," some may have expected comedian Craig Kilborn to regret his decision to leave the hit news parody program. He managed to defy the doubters, though, never regretting his decision. He bounced back quickly, too, and wound up hosting more than 1900 episodes of "The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn," where he replaced outgoing host Tom Snyder. But once again, Kilborn did the unthinkable, walking away from the show after six seasons despite solid ratings and good reviews. When he departed, he didn't just leave behind a late night talk show host gig, either. He stepped away from Hollywood almost entirely.
Between 2005 and 2009, Kilborn was practically a recluse, making only a scant few on-screen appearances. Later, he talked about what it was like being out of the limelight following his departure from "The Late Late Show," after which he was replaced by Craig Ferguson. "I enjoyed retirement the right way — linguine con vongole, red wine and plenty of truffle cheese," he told the L.A. Times in 2010. "It was my Orson Welles stage," he joked, remarking on his lethargic lifestyle following his move away from the stage, where he relaxed and enjoyed himself. But eventually, he went back to his old self, claiming to have shed 15 pounds and more than ready to get back to work in front of the camera once again.
Craig Kilborn was bored with late night comedy
When Craig Kilborn left "The Late Late Show" after 2004, there were probably some who thought he'd move directly to another late night gig, given his success, or that he might even host his own hard-hitting news program like his former ESPN co-host Keith Olbermann. That never happened, though, and Kilborn instead seemed to fade from the limelight. The once wildly popular host became more or less a footnote in the history of late night TV. After five years away from being in front of the camera, the former host explained why he didn't take on a new gig.
"I didn't leave to do anything else, I left to leave," he told the L.A. Times in 2010. In fact, he never really did enjoy his time running the "Late Late Show," and he knew fairly early on that he wasn't going to stick with it forever. "I thought late-night was crowded ... the formats repetitive," Kilborn told the outlet. "I achieved my goals, and it wasn't all it was cracked up to be." More than that, though, he just didn't find it all that exciting, at least if you were to ask his head writer and producer Mike Gibbons, who was also interviewed by the Times. "He was totally bored. He'd much rather do his comedy and not deal with three guests a night promoting their wares."
Still, Kilborn had a knack for the camera, and he couldn't stay away forever.
He tried to launch a new talk show in 2010
In 2010, Craig Kilborn decided to return to Hollywood, coming back to the small screen with a new job as a TV host for his own series. Rather than take over an existing program as he did with "The Late Late Show," however, this time he arrived with a brand new talk show called "The Craig Kilborn File." This new show wound up being less about interviewing celebrities promoting their latest project, and more like a sarcastic political commentary show — a mix between his first stint on "The Daily Show" and something like "Politically Incorrect."
Initially launching in a trial capacity in the summer of 2010, the series was planned to expand nationwide the following year. Joining Kilborn as on-screen talent was Christine Lakin, who came to fame in the early '90s on the sitcom "Step by Step." The show was designed to mock current events while getting real about political issues with a roundtable discussion that included comedians, scholars, and other entertainers.
A forerunner to the likes of "The Colbert Report" with Kilborn's own flair, "The Craig Kilborn File" had a lot of promise, but it seems that the world wasn't quite ready for it. The series only lasted for a few weeks. Still, Kilborn knew it was a risky move when he started it, telling the L.A. Times even before it launched that he wouldn't be bothered if it didn't work out. "All I ever wanted to be was an old man with a dog," Kilborn said.
He's made a handful of TV appearances over the years
After "The Craig Kilborn File" failed to catch on, the writer and TV host once again disappeared, happy to go back to living a private life away from Hollywood. This time, however, Kilborn didn't seem as reluctant to come back in front of the cameras, and over the years, he's turned up in a few places around the TV dial.
In 2011, Kilborn popped in on the Zachary Levi action-comedy series "Chuck" in an episode titled "Chuck Versus the Zoom." The premiere episode of the show's final season, the story sees Chuck on a mission to steal back a priceless vase taken by a renowned thief, played by sci-fi legend Mark Hamill. Along the way, Chuck also finds himself up against a mysterious man named Roger Bale, played by Craig Kilborn, who has an agenda of his own.
A few years later, Kilborn lent his voice to the character of Michael Morgan, the CEO of the fast food restaurant chain Chicken-4-Dayz in "BoJack Horseman." There he's interviewed by TV anchorman Tom Jumbo-Grumbo, who's voiced by Kilborn's former "SportsCenter" co-host Keith Olbermann. Not long after, Kilborn made another TV appearance, joining the cast of "Workaholics" in an episode titled "The Party Gawds," which sees the gang hosting parties for an energy drink company. In 2020, Kilborn showed up on TV again, this time playing Dr. Sharpe in an episode of the short-lived sitcom "United We Fall."
Kilborn has popped up in a couple of movies, too
As mentioned earlier, during his years between "The Late Late Show" and "The Kilborn File," Craig Kilborn made just a few appearances on screen. Well, most of those came on the big screen, and while his theatrical resume isn't that robust, it does include a few interesting projects. The first is "Cursed," a much-maligned Wes Craven horror movie from 2005, written by "Scream" scribe Kevin Williamson, in which Kilborn plays himself.
Next up was a small part in Disney's 2006 remake of "The Shaggy Dog" starring Tim Allen," the same year Kilborn showed up in the Rob Schneider and David Spade comedy "The Benchwarmers." In that off-the-wall sports movie, Kilborn plays Jerry McDowell, a little league coach who bullies Schneider's nerdy Gus Matthews. He turned up next in "Full of It", a TV movie comedy that aired on ABC Family in 2007, which is most notable for starring Kate Mara.
It was quite a few years before Kilborn returned to the silver screen. His next credit came in 2014, with him playing the similarly named "Kilborn" in the action spoof "The Extendables" alongside Brian Thompson and Marisa Ramirez. His most recent movie role came in "The Bronze," a sports comedy with Melissa Rauch ("Night Court"), Gary Cole ("Office Space"), and Cecily Strong ("Saturday Night Live"), in which he appropriately plays the role of a sports announcer.
Kilborn has been spending time relaxing out of the limelight
If Craig Kilborn hasn't been acting much over the last two decades and hasn't written much or hosted any major TV shows in that time either, you might be wondering exactly what he has been up to. Well, if you really want to know, there's nobody better to tell you about it than Kilborn himself. In 2015, he sat down with the L.A. Times once more, this time being interviewed by himself, and it was just as odd as it sounds. During the hard-hitting expose, Kilborn asked Kilborn what he'd been up to during his days off the screen, with Kilborn telling Kilborn that he was enjoying his quiet time.
"I've been thoroughly enjoying myself," Kilborn said to Kilborn the interviewer. "I live in a lovely 1920s English manor that I take considerable pleasure in restoring. I'm presently collecting cut-velvet swatches as I prep for floor-to-ceiling drapes. And on weekends I still make grand entrances through my pocket doors." Though his tongue was firmly planted in his cheek, Kilborn really has been enjoying his time living under the radar with his longtime partner Cherry Alayra. "It's a magical life," he told the Inquirer in 2019. "We watch old movies, hike, I cook for her, she'll surprise me with a new charcoal vest — we're sympatico."
And he has absolutely no regrets. "I have this unique sensibility, much of it built on refined taste, and my outlet is my personal life," he explained in the aforementioned interview with himself. "I'm comfortable being the guy who walked away."
He's guest hosted the Artie Lange Show
Radio shock jock fans will no doubt know the name Artie Lange, as will fans of the '90s comedy "Dirty Work" with the late Norm McDonald. A frequent guest and sometimes co-host of the legendary "Howard Stern Show," Lange finally got his own program on satellite radio in 2011. A mix of sports talk and general raucous comedy from the foul-mouthed comedian, it garnered a healthy following of its own. In November 2013, though, when Lange was unavailable to play host for a few episodes, he called upon Craig Kilborn to fill in for him.
During Kilborn's three episodes hosting the show, the former late night anchor was able to sit down and conduct interviews with a number of celebrities on a wide range of topics. Some of his notable guests included singer-songwriter Dana Fuchs (who made her acting debut in Julie Taymor's "Across the Universe"), Comedian Nate Bargatze, actor and model Damaris Lewis ("BlacKkKlansman," "Titans"), actor Ilana Becker ("Girl Code"), and "Flight of the Conchords" veteran Rhys Darby, among others.
Though Kilborn only hosted for three installments, it was his first time back behind the mic hosting a big-time talk show in years, and he garnered good reviews from fans for the fill-in gig.
He briefly became a social media star
Even with a brief guest hosting gig on satellite radio and a couple of cameos on television, Craig Kilborn continued spending most of the early 2010s out of the spotlight. As the decade rolled on, though, he found himself getting noticed in a way that he probably didn't expect thanks to his delayed arrival on social media. In particular, he began posting actively on Instagram and garnered some media attention for his online activity. In 2019, The Philadelphia Inquirer covered his unexpected re-emergence on the social media platform, where he was posting amusing videos with the help of his girlfriend Cherry Alayra.
"They're just so funny the way he does it. Subtle, yet over the top at the same time," said Steve Levy, a former Kilborn co-host during his ESPN days. "He is the sole reason I joined Instagram." Gus Ramsey, another former ESPN colleague, echoed the sentiment. "I think they're so quintessential Craig," he said. "They're the kind of things that if he could've found a way, he would have used them to lead into Yankees-Red Sox highlights."
But why did Kilborn decide to start a new life on Instagram? "I joined Instagram for my nieces," he told the Inquirer. "I showed them pictures of me wearing a blazer and a vest, holding a martini and they said, 'You have to be on Instagram.' I do as I'm told."
Craig Kilborn launched his own YouTube Podcast in 2021
Once Craig Kilborn found some success on social media, he didn't stop. Enjoying the newfound attention he was receiving on Instagram, the former late night host decided the time was right to return to the masses with another show of his own. However, this one isn't on TV or even satellite radio. Keeping with the times, Kilborn launched his own podcast on YouTube called "The Life Gorgeous."
First announced to fans on "The Rich Eisen Show" in June 2022, his new series launched a month later on its own YouTube channel, "The Craig Kilborn Podcast." Kilborn initially described the show with his customary dry humor, calling it "A celebration of living the right way, the magic of crumble blue cheese, and enjoying one chilled martini a week" in an inaugural video.
In the series, Kilborn spends time in his stately home interviewing friends and colleagues remotely. His inaugural guest was Ryen Russillo, a sports journalist and host of ESPN Radio College GameDay, and about once a week, Kilborn uploads a new episode of "The Life Gorgeous." Each episode sees him talking to new guests — like "Family Guy" head writer Alec Sulkin, Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch, and Yankees great Alex Rodriguez — as well as answering bags and bags of fan mail from his loyal listeners.
He's finally opened up
Ready to re-enter the public eye, Craig Kilborn's return in 2022 with his own YouTube podcast left him fielding plenty of interview requests. And after decades of remaining relatively mum on his past, the former ESPN host finally opened up about his turbulent career, speaking frankly about walking away from multiple high-profile jobs. He'd spoken before about his disinterest in hosting and being bored with late night, but after nearly 20 years, Kilborn was really ready to give the dirty details on how it all went down.
"Back then in the 90s, there was a big difference between network and cable," he told Barstool Sports in 2022. "I wanted to do a network show, I wanted to do a traditional late night show, not a news parody." Clearly unhappy from the start, Kilborn talked openly about his problems at Comedy Central. "'The Daily Show' is easily the most dysfunctional place I've worked," he said. "I wanted to get the hell out of there. And I wanted to get the hell out of ESPN as well, because I wanted to do a late night show. So the only one that for me was the, you know, crazy one to walk away from or whatever was the CBS one," referring of course to "The Late Late Show."