--- title: Stephen Colbert Does 20 Pushups for Troops for GiveThem20 description: Stephen Colbert did 20 pushups to support veterans and troops as part of the GiveThem20 campaign canonical: https://time.com/3941946/stephen-colbert-pushups-troops/ author: Olivia B. Waxman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-30T18:55:22.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:43:41.353Z og:title: Stephen Colbert Does 20 Pushups for Troops for GiveThem20 og:description: Stephen Colbert did 20 pushups to support veterans and troops as part of the GiveThem20 campaign og:url: https://time.com/3941946/stephen-colbert-pushups-troops/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Stephen Colbert Does 20 Pushups for Troops for GiveThem20 twitter:description: Stephen Colbert did 20 pushups to support veterans and troops as part of the GiveThem20 campaign twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Watch Stephen Colbert Do 20 Pushups to Support Veterans ## Video: The Best of Stephen Colbert [Watch (HLS stream): The Best of Stephen Colbert](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/PNJDP9f3.m3u8) (4:30)  _Published 2014-04-10. The next host of_  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Jun 30, 2015 6:55 PM UTC  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Jun 30, 2015 6:55 PM UTC Comedian Stephen Colbert, future host of the _The Late Show With Stephen Colbert_, accepted former _Daily Show_ co-star and HBO host John Oliver’s challenge to do 20 pushups in support of American veterans. Note, and chuckle at, the piece of paper pinned to a bulletin board that says “THINGS TO SUPPORT: -Troops -Veterans -Lumbar”. The late-night host is the latest celebrity to participate in the [#GiveThem20](http://givethem20.org/popular) campaign, which challenges Americans to do pushups or sit-ups to support veterans. Other stars that have promoted the cause include Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, Rob Riggle, Carson Daly, Will Arnett and the Rockettes. ### See 13 Stephen Colbert Cameos You Might Have Missed  The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - Lake-town Spy Todd Eyre—Warner Bros.  Exit 57 - Various Characters (pictured top left) Comedy Central  Dana Carvey Show - Various Characters ABC  Strangers With Candy - Chuck Noblet Comedy Central  Missing Persons - Chet Davies ABC  Saturday Night Live - Ace, The Ambiguously Gay Duo (pictured left) NBC  Spin City - Frank ABC  Simpsons - Colby Krause (pictured right) Fox  Curb Your Enthusiasm - Tourist HBO  American Dad! - Dr. R. Dandliker (pictured left) Fox  Bewitched - Stu Robinson (pictured left) Columbia  Mr. Peabody & Sherman - Paul Peterson 20th Century Fox  Monsters vs Aliens - President Hathaway Dreamworks ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3941946/stephen-colbert-pushups-troops/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3941946/stephen-colbert-pushups-troops/"},"headline":"Watch Stephen Colbert Do 20 Pushups to Support Veterans","datePublished":"2015-06-30T18:55:22.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:43:41.353Z","description":"John Oliver made him do it","url":"https://time.com/3941946/stephen-colbert-pushups-troops/","keywords":["Newsfeed","celebrities"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. 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