By Dan McCue
Staff Writer

Much of the talk at the 33rd annual South Carolina International Trade Conference, held here in Charleston on May 22-24, centered on cargo logistics, globalization, transportation security and the future of the ocean carrier industry.

But if there could be said to have been a single draw to the event—which had a record 514 attendees this year—it was no doubt the homecoming of Charleston native and Comedy Central star Stephen Colbert, who delivered the keynote address during the world trade luncheon at the Charleston Place Hotel.

Colbert, host of the hugely successful nightly satire “The Colbert Report” is the brother of Elizabeth Colbert-Busch, director of sales and marketing for Orient Oversea Container Line and just coincidentally, general chairperson for the conference.

So what’s it like to be the brother of Colbert-Busch?

“It’s an honor,” Colbert chuckled days before the conference, during a break from preparing for his show New York. “I’m so proud of her … just to think that someone in my family is involved in business.

“I call her whenever I have a contract negotiation and ask, ‘What do I do here?’ ‘How much do I leave on the table?’ ‘Where do I stick to my guns and where do I back off?’ She’s always full of good wisdom.”

Colbert’s appearance was his first in Charleston since the early 1980s, when he performed in theatrical productions during the Spoleto Festival.

Since that time, he’s fashioned a niche for himself as an actor best known for his comedy, or as Colbert himself said, “I kind of act at comedy.”

Along the way, he helped the “Daily Show with Jon Stewart” win numerous Emmy and Peabody awards, and contributed to America (The Book): A Citizens Guide to Democracy Inaction.

And all the while, he’s done so in the guise of a character, named Stephen Colbert, whom he says, “has trouble with people who think they know more about anything than he does just because they have expertise.”

Funny stuff. But could he make international trade funny?

Talking a page from the tiresome, overly caffeinated news pundits he satirizes on television, Colbert promised luncheon attendees that he would “speak at great length and with great authority on a subject I know nothing about,” and he did not disappoint.

Named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world for this year, Colbert reasoned that by simple mathematical deduction the honor gives him the right to speak for 65 million individuals, based on a global population of 6.5 billion.

“For all intents and purposes, I represent Iran,” he said.

“Don’t shoot,” he added.

Staying on topic, he observed that he appears on the magazine’s cover between former “Today Show” host Katie Couric and U2’s Bono —“A sexy little sandwich,” he said.

On China, a country very much on people’s minds at the conference, Colbert observed, “China’s economy is booming,” and offered, “It’s time we learned about capitalism from these communists.”

Also on his mind were the nation’s porous borders. Colbert quickly dismissed the argument that “immigrants built this country” as outdated. “It’s built now,” he said. “I think we finished in the mid-70s. At this point, it’s a touch-up and repair job.”

Colbert told the Business Journal that his childhood in Charleston, where he grew up in a Catholic household of 11 children—eight boys and three girls—was a significant influence on the character he plays today.

“Certainly it influenced my character because I’m perfectly comfortable in regimental striped ties and, you know, pinstriped suits. And I also think it helps to add to my subversive nature that I grew up some place where everybody looks the same.”

Colbert, who grew up on James Island and lived on East Bay Street for a time before leaving the area for college and eventually settling in New York, stepped out of character frequently during the trade conference luncheon to say how much he misses the Lowcountry.

This was pointedly obvious toward the end of his speech when he pointed out that his nametag identified him as “Stephen. Stephen Colbert. The Colbert Report. And finally, as a resident of Mount Pleasant.”

“How I wish that were true,” he said.

And, with that, he received a standing ovation.

Dan McCue is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dmccue@charlestonbusiness.com.

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