New York Army National Guard Soldiers to Appear on "Colbert Report"

Stephen Colbert Will Ride in an Armored Vehicle Driven by Soldiers from Rhinebeck, Fort Johnson, and Cherry Valley, New York

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Staff Sgt. Kent Theobald ( left) and Specialist Jeffrey Vucich in Iraq. (Courtesy Staff Sgt. Kent Theobald)

LATHAM, NY (09/07/2010)(readMedia)-- Three Soldiers from the New York Army National Guard's 206th Military Police Company will be featured on special edition of the Comedy Central Show "The Colbert Report" which is set to air on Sept. 8.

Staff Sgt. Kent Theobald from Fort Johnson; Sgt. Joshua Flint from Cherry Valley; and Specialist Jeffrey Vucich from Rhinebeck, will ferry Stephen Colbert up to the doors of his studio in an M1117 Armored Security Vehicle like those operated by Military Police units in Iraq. The skit will open the fake news reports salute to American service personnel who served in Iraq.

The three Soldiers from the Latham-based Military Police Company, returned from a 10-month deployment to Iraq in June.

Another 10 members of the New York Army National Guard from the Westchester County-based 53rd Troop Command and New York City's 1st Battalion 69th Infantry, will be part of the studio audience.

Titled Been There, Won That: The Returnification of the American-Do Troopscape!, the episode of the Colbert program will feature an audience composed of Iraq veterans and feature Gen. Raymond Odierno, who recently turned over the top American command in Iraq to Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, and Vice President Joseph Biden.

The program airs at 11:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

The New York Army National Guard was invited to participate in the special program by producers of the program who wanted to feature local Soldiers and veterans on the show and in the studio audience.

The 206th Military Police Company deployed 180 Soldiers to Iraq in September of 2009. The unit provided security during the Iraqi elections in March, and trained Iraqi police officers.

While the unit is headquartered in Latham, its members come from across the state. Military Police units are trained to provide security and act as the Army's police force. Many members of the 206th Military Police Company are police officers in civilian life.