‘The Late Show with Craig Ferguson’ end, James Corden’s premiere date revealed by CBS

Over the next few months, we’re going to see a tremendous amount of transition over at CBS. Not only are we going to be seeing David Letterman handing over the reigns to “The Late Show” to Stephen Colbert, but we’re also going to see James Corden take over for Craig Ferguson on the always-quirky “The Late Late Show.” This is a big gamble for the network, given that you are taking a performer without much of a solid following in America, and giving them one of the largest franchises at that time of the evening. The only one bigger is the “Late Night” franchise on NBC.

Well, we now know exactly what the dates are when it comes to the latter. The final show for Craig’s version of “The Late Late Show” will come on December 19, while Corden will first come on the scene March 9 at 11:37 p.m. Eastern time. This gives him a good chance to really become prepared to take on America, but it’s also a surprisingly-long wait between one host and another.

CBS also announced today that Ben Winston, a longtime friend and producing partner for Corden, will be the executive producer on the show.

In a statement (one that unfortunately does not let us know about Colbert’s status or Letterman’s exit), CBS Entertainment Chairman Nina Tassler had the following to say:

“We’re excited to begin CBS’s next chapter after midnight and introduce James’ wide range of performance talents and fearless creative instincts to American television viewers … He and Ben have been friends for a long time and partnered together on a variety of successful projects. They are a creatively dynamic and very energetic host/producer combination.”

What do you want to see from Corden’s new version of “The Late Late Show”? Share some of your thoughts right now with a comment.