Double Buble! -- Michael Buble, at Club Bud in Vancouver, Talks about The Colbert Report Taping; Dares The World To Criticize Canada!

I gather for most Canadians, running into Michael Buble once is a big deal.

Saturday night at Club Bud in Vancouver (a client) afforded me an encore, er, "Double Buble" encounter on the heels of filming him (and snagging the least legible celebrity autograph since meeting Ennio Morricone in Torino) backstage at The Colbert Report taping in Vancouver.

If you have not yet seen that Stephen Colbert and Michael Buble video, it's right here.

Buble impressed me -- he is quite calm and really made time to speak with fans at both Vancouver sightings. Observing his other red carpet interviews, one could sense that Buble is bursting with Canadian pride. He commented several times on the massive crowds throughout downtown.

According to Buble, he dined with NBC's Tom Brokaw and Lorne Michaels just the night before singing dueling national anthems with Colbert -- not surprising that Colbert earned Buble's praise as "a class act."

I was surprised that toward the end of our conversation at Club Bud, Buble seemed to be throwing down a dare to, um, just about everyone outside of Canada!

Backstage at The Colbert Report Olympic Edition

Per my post last night, a colleague and I set out Wednesday morning on behalf of several clients.

Our mission was a success, but more details on that will have to wait until next week's air dates for "The Colbert Report" Olympic shows filmed in Vancouver.

Mr. Colbert was great! We made eye contact twice, and that gleam in his eye on TV twinkles even brighter in person (perhaps it was the sunlight reflecting off the "Iceholes" in attendance).

His crowd interactions met deafening applause at every step. It was cool that someone in the audience of thousands brought their Vancouver Olympic Torch and loaned it to Colbert for the show's opening lines.

I was so pleased to also see Canadian singer Michael Buble, as well as "Miracle On Ice" Miracle Worker Mike Eruzione (who shared a very brief impromptu interview shown in the video) and NBC Sports legend Bob Costas (has it really been 21 years since his broadcasts from the Seoul Olympics?). This was not the first time encountering these stars (Buble was in Atlanta recently, Eruzione appeared at Olympic pin trading in Park City, Utah, in 2002, and Costas was steps away in the Bird's Nest at Beijing's Olympic Closing Ceremony), but it was perhaps the most fun!

Enjoy the video!

Olympic Heroes Squared

Today I witnessed two heroes of speedskating, and both experiences left me breathless.

This afternoon at the Richmond Olympic Oval, Team USA speedskater Shani Davis won the gold in the 1000m race (astounding!), while this morning, U.S. Speedskating sponsor Stephen Colbert played to a staggering outdoor crowd gathered for "The Colbert Report" taping on the banks of False Creek in Vancouver.

I don't want to spoil the surprises that Colbert unleashed on the show taped to air next week, but let's just say that Mr. Colbert was absolutely hilarious both on stage and backstage, where my Edelman colleague Shari and I were staked out to deliver some client news and information to Colbert's producers (we happened to also visit with two of several attending media there, too, including LA Times reporter/Olympic blogger Mr. Chris Erskine and Ms. Tiffany Campbell, doing the online thing for The Seattle Times).

As an Olympic fan and a Colbert Nation member, I am in awe of the Colbert team of writers for their creativity and for their hard work. We're heading back tomorrow to delivery the next batch of client details, and hopefully there will be time to post photos, videos and more details from Feb. 17, a day of Olympic heroes.

Congratulations, Shani Davis! What an amazing race!

Poll: Colbert vs. Vonn -- Sexiest SI Cover

Which Sports Illustrated cover star is sexier? Olympian Lindsey Vonn, or would-be-Olympic speedskater Stephen Colbert?

Both SI cover stars are obviously competitive and have legions of fans, so which fan base will answer the call and vote for the "Sexiest SI Cover" for the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games? The Colbert Nation? The U.S. Ski Team?

Drag your mouse over to the right side of the screen to vote in this Olympic blog poll now through next week.

Funniest comment posted in favor of either cover athlete will earn a blog pin by mail (mind your manners in the comments, please). Happy voting!

Don We Now Our Sports Illustrated Apparel

Awesome news via the Associated Press: Sports Illustrated's new edition (on newsstands tomorrow) features Stephen Colbert in a U.S. Speedskating uniform!

As noted in previous posts, The Colbert Report and Colbert Nation recently rescued the national governing body for speedskating, raking in more than $250,000 in donations when another title sponsor pulled out of their arrangement.

Kudos to Colbert -- that photo cover is awesome, and I can't wait to read the sports media cover story. Bravo, SI, for celebrating Colbert's contributions to Vancouver 2010 and sport.

Photo via the Associated Press

Colbert Puts Canada On Notice

Apparently on last night's edition of The Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert invited U.S. Speedskater Joey Cheek to help put "Canadian Iceholes" (a.k.a. "syrup suckers!") ON NOTICE in an on-air retaliation for limited access to training options at the Richmond Olympic Oval in Greater Vancouver.

Though I missed the telecast, the online clip tells the tale and is punctuated by one rendition of the Canadian "national anthem" that brought down the house. Fun to see Colbert donning Cheek's gold medal from Torino.

Photo via this blog.

Better Know An NOC: The Colbert Nation!

Last month, on this blog, I added a feature inspired by Comedy Central and The Colbert Report's smart and funny "Better Know A District" segments.

To date, this blog's "Better Know An N.O.C." (national Olympic committee; B.K.A.N.O.C.) visited Aruba and Zimbabwe's national sports teams.

On tonight's edition of The Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert answered the call of U.S. Speedskating's plea for a new sponsor (their main funding source declared bankruptcy and pulled the sponsorship) and The Colbert Nation (!!!) is now the official sponsor of U.S. Speedskating!

The Associated Press' entertainment reporter Jake Coyle appears to have scooped other outlets (save Colbert) with this news.

Like U.S. Speedskating's deep heritage and excellence in the sports world, Stephen Colbert consistently impresses me greatly on many levels, and his award-winning work is outstanding and hilarious. Seeing how Colbert interacted with Olympic speedskating legend Dan Jansen was great fun, and an even better surprise came with the on-the-air sponsorship paperwork signed with U.S. Speedskating's leadership in the studio.

So, as you watch Olympic speedskating heat up the ice now through Vancouver 2010, you better know the newest NOC on the planet: The Colbert Nation (let's make it official via the International Olympic Committee with TCN named as The Colbert Nation's competition acronym?).

On tonight's show we got a peek at U.S. Speedskating's new "Colbert-infused" uniforms -- I can hardly wait to learn The Colbert Nation's national anthem to be played just after "The Star Spangled Banner" when the U.S. wins gold.

Anyone can lend their support to the team by answering U.S. Speedskating's "win a trip to Vancouver" contest now in progress. The Colbert Nation's logo is now part of the contest page on U.S. Speedskating's website, and is sure to be added to the site's main sponsor page soon. Somebody get Stephen Colbert to Milwaukee/West Allis, Wis., on the ice at The Pettit National Ice Center!

Bravo, Stephen! Bravo -- That's The WØRD.

Photo via The Hollywood Gossip website; and photo via Yahoo! News, AP Photo, Comedy Central and Kris Long

One Happy Island

I've been knocking around ideas for the blog.

Inspired by Stephen Colbert's outstanding "Better Know A District" series, here's the first edition of "Better Know An N.O.C."

Premiere "B.K.A.N.O.C." National Olympic Committee: Aruba

The Comite Olimpico Arubano is based in the capital city Oranjestad, which is one of the island's only cities. Still in the running to claim its first Olympic medal, this "One Happy Island" first competed in the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games.

According to the NBC Sports Beijing Olympic sites, Aruba's baseball players qualified to play on The Netherlands' Olympic baseball teams (unfortunately, Netherlands Baseball only reached 7th place in the Beijing Olympic baseball tournament according to this site).

Aruba is a beautiful tropical paradise, with about the most consistently gorgeous weather (I loved the constant breezes, big surf on the deserted eastern shore, and snorkeling). The casinos in the tourist district are a great place to learn (to lose some money at) roulette!

Photo via a fellow Flickr user