WATCH: Stephen Colbert's beautiful tribute to his mother, Lorna

Stephen Colbert doesn't break character very often, not on The Colbert Report or even when testifying before Congress on campaign finance. Family seems to be the exception. He briefly ditched his conservative-pundit shtick to stump for his sister, Elizabeth Colbert Busch, who went on to lose a House race to former Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.). And on Wednesday night, he started his show with a very genuine, very moving eulogy for his mother, Lorna Colbert, who died last week at age 92.

It's the kind of tribute any one of us would be honored to receive. Colbert gives a brief sketch of Lorna Colbert's life, but the most touching parts are those that a newspaper obituary can't capture: A child's remembrance of his mother. From her teaching her children pratfalls by fainting on the kitchen floor to her dinner antics to her favorite prayer, Colbert paints a loving picture of a loving mom.

"I know that it may sound greedy to want more days with a person who lived so long," Colbert says. "But the fact that my mother was 92 does not diminish, it only magnifies, the enormity of the room whose door has now quietly shut." He ends the eulogy with a sentiment his mother — who trained as an actress — would surely understand: The show must go on. Watch the entire show below, but Colbert gets one more tribute to his mother in during his sign-off. Watch:

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up

Here's the entire show: