Stephen Colbert defies corporate lawyers by reviving his alter ego again (sort of)

Fans of “The Colbert Report� were ecstatic over the return of “Stephen Colbert,� the blowhard pundit, last week on CBS’ “The Late Show.�

But as quotation-mark-free Colbert explained Wednesday night, one group is not so pleased: namely, corporate lawyers at another unnamed company, who objected to the use of a character they believe is their intellectual property.

The claim was surprising “because I never considered that guy much of an intellectual,� Colbert joked. Left with no choice, he announced that the character Stephen Colbert, host of “The Colbert Report,� would never be seen again.

“The Colbert Report� aired on Comedy Central, a cable channel owned by Viacom. Both CBS and Viacom are controlled by media mogul Sumner Redstone. Comedy Central declined to comment.

“What can I do? The lawyers have spoken,� Colbert said over audience boos. “I cannot reasonably argue I own my face or name.�

But evidently it takes more than a cease and desist letter to intimidate Colbert. In a twist ripped straight out of “The Patty Duke Show,� he then welcomed “Stephen Colbert’s identical twin cousin, Stephen Colbert,� live via satellite from Philadelphia.

Just to keep the in-house counsel at CBS extra busy this summer, Colbert introduced a new segment called “The Werd,� in which he riffed on voters’ dislike of both presidential candidates and poked fun at Scott Baio.

Behold the legal acrobatics in the clip above.

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UPDATES:

12:35 p.m.: Story was updated with a no comment from Comedy Central.

This story was originally published at 12 p.m.