The Last Laugh and the Long Memory

Cultural moments can be cataclysmic.

Watching the final evening of Stephen Colbert’s late night show felt like that way.

For years, Stephen Colbert offered something rare: intelligence wrapped in humor, compassion wrapped in satire, and a nightly reminder that wit and humanity still matter. Through turbulent years in America, through uncertainty and isolation, millions gathered around his voice because he helped people exhale. He helped people laugh. He reminded audiences that joy and thoughtfulness can exist side by side.

And joy matters as deeply as truth-telling.

Joy fuels creativity. Joy keeps the spirit supple. Joy carries people through difficult seasons and somehow transforms endurance into celebration. A shared laugh, a beautiful song, a ridiculous moment, a gathering of friends, a mountain bike ride beneath tall pines, music echoing through a room, a film project finally coming together after decades… these experiences become the texture of a meaningful life.

Which brings me to why I have spent the past forty years, on and off, editing THE MAKING OF CALIFORNIA BIG HUNKS.

At first glance, some may see it simply as a cult 1985 dance video and behind-the-scenes documentary. But while revisiting the footage, I realized it carries something timeless: exuberance. Playfulness. Freedom. Creative adventure. Young artists making something wildly entertaining simply because it delighted them.

Back then, we were armed with VHS cameras, bold ideas, music, laughter, and the thrill of experimentation. Every frame carried energy. Every shoot felt like possibility unfolding in real time. Watching the footage today, I can still feel that electricity.

Working on this film now feels surprisingly poignant.

As the years move forward, preserving joy, laughter and beauty becomes essential. Sensuality, humor, music, friendship, and creative spontaneity enrich human life. They connect us to one another. They remind us to stay open hearted and curious.

The older I get, the more convinced I become that joy may be the finest part of living.

Joy is what remains glowing in memory decades later. It’s what people gather around. It’s what keeps us creating.

Maybe that’s why the completion of THE MAKING OF CALIFORNIA BIG HUNKS thrills me so. Beneath the humor and nostalgia lies something enduring: the simple human desire to celebrate being alive.

Which is also why Stephen Colbert’s final show felt so emotional.

For so many people, Stephen became part of the rhythm of modern life. Evening after evening, he invited audiences to laugh, reflect, stay engaged, and keep their hearts intact through years that often felt bewildering and heavy. He understood something essential: humor is one of humanity’s great sustaining forces.

That spirit lives on long after the curtain falls.

It lives in late-night monologues that helped people through difficult days.

It lives in music, films, poetry, and stories created simply to bring delight.

It lives in old VHS footage rediscovered decades later.

It lives in artists and audiences who continue choosing joy, curiosity, laughter, and connection.

And thankfully, there are still many of us out here carrying that light forward.

So now, in honor of Stephen Colbert and everyone who continues choosing joy in turbulent times, I’m sharing the trailer for THE MAKING OF CALIFORNIA BIG HUNKS, a film stitched together from four decades of memories, music, friendship, laughter, and lovingly preserved VHS chaos.

Because joy is worth preserving.

And sharing.