CBS pays licensing fee for Stephen Colbert’s parting ‘Peanuts’ joke

CBS paid a licensing fee to Lee Mendelson Film Productions for using Vince Guaraldi's 'Linus and Lucy' music on the finale of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,' with proceeds donated to World Central Kitchen. The joke referenced the publisher's litigious reputation, and the show ended after 33 years amid reported $40 million annual losses and a change in ownership.

Getting your Trinity Audio //trinityaudio.ai player ready...Funnyman Stephen Colbert got one last laugh https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/05/22/late-show-stephen-colbert-finale-best-moments/ at CBS by using music from “Peanuts” while joking that the publisher who owns those rights is famously litigious. “Oh no, I hope this doesn’t cost CBS any money,” he joked https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ieBbMpGavr4&t=2s as his house band played a snippet from the “Peanuts” tune “Linus and Lucy,” by composer Vince Guaraldi, on the May 21 finale of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” The upbeat jazz composition, with its boppy piano riff, is what most people think of as the “Peanuts” theme song. Lee Mendelson Film Productions, Inc. LMFP , which controls Guaraldi’s music, said Tuesday that it had entered into “a licensing agreement with CBS for the use of Guaraldi’s ‘Linus and Lucy’ in the final broadcast of Colbert’s program.” A company statement added that proceeds from its deal with CBS is being donated to the nonprofit organization World Central Kitchen headed by Chef José Andrés. Colbert’s penultimate show included a $2.5 million donation https://latenighter.com/news/late-show-auction-total-donation-world-central-kitchen/ to that charity, which feeds people in need due to natural disasters or humanitarian crisis. The money was raised through an auction of “Late Show” memorabilia. “LMFP found the music’s use on ‘The Late Show’ funny and entertaining, and is proud to support World Central Kitchen’s mission,” the company’s chairman said. LMFP has recently taken legal action against companies and government agencies that infringe upon its artists’ rights. The production company added that it enforces licensing protection to remind anyone who uses its music in a commercial setting that permission to do so is required. CBS said its decision to end “The Late Show” https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/cbs-studios/shows/the-late-show-with-stephen-colbert/releases/ after 33 years on the air was because the program was reportedly losing $40 million annually. Critics suggest the network’s 2025 acquisition by Paramount Skydance Corporation, which has a friendly relationship with President Trump, was a factor, with the new owner happy to take one of the administration’s harshest critics off its airwaves.