In less than a few days when late night talk show host David Letterman retires from over 30 years of making people laugh late at night, American television network CBS has picked a replacement: Stephen Colbert.

From hosting on cable-based channel Comedy Central the "Stephen Colbert Reports," a parody news magazine program, Colbert moves up into network television on CBS anytime in 2015 after Letterman decides on the date he steps down.

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Colbert, 49, signed into an initial five-year contract with CBS to transition the "Late Show" into the next generation late night talk shows currently dominated by younger hosts like Jimmy Kimmel on ABC, and of late, Jimmy Fallon on NBC's long-running "The Tonight Show."

CBS President Les Moonves and Chairperson Nina Tasker were quick to the draw and ended the long and painful speculation on who would be sitting at the main chair inside the famous "Ed Sullivan Theater" in New York City.

It is uncertain if Colbert and CBS will still hold out in New York or move the program to West coast.

It is also uncertain what format and new styles will be used by a usually conservative Colbert when he premiers on "Late Night" next year.

Late night talk has become more competitive, with younger hosts and social networking to up their ratings.

Colbert, by tradition, is conservative but is expected to loosen up a bit and make that intellectual style of joke more comprehensible to a wider and younger audience.

Colbert's colleague at Comedy Central, Jon Stewart, says the world will yet see the other side of Colbert and believes that he can carry on the legacy of Letterman.

No less than Letterman himself welcomed the CBS decision and immediately tweeted a statement, "Stephen has always been a real friend to me. I'm very excited for him, and I'm flattered that CBS chose him. I also happen to know they wanted another guy with glasses."

Moonves, the CBS chief executive, praised Letterman for creating a legacy on "Late Show" and added that Colbert's selection was a testimony to CBS' commitment to good late night programming.

Since Letterman announced his retirement on April 3, social media went abuzz on who would take over.

There were talks that a woman will be given a shot at late night while others thought of an acerbic radio jock, Howard Stern, as a crunchy replacement to a quirky Letterman, but pundits had Colbert at 3 to 1 of bagging the prize.

The CBS' efficient and quick action was opposite the often turbulent change of baton on NBC's "The Tonight Show."

Two decades ago, a younger David Letterman was selected by former "Tonight Show" host Johnny Carson's as his personally anointed replacement when his retirement came, but NBC instead picked a comedy circuit regular Jay Leno as their host.

Letterman who was hosting "Late Night" after Carson's program jumped ship and from 30 Rock, he and his staff, including long-time collaborator and friend musician Paul Schaeffer, walked across to the CBS Building in 1992 and launched "Late Show," opposite "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

In recent years, when Leno's time was up in 2009, he was replaced by then "Late Night" host Conan O'Brien who was later kicked out of the show in less than a year for falling ratings.

NBC called back Leno until this year when "Saturday Night Live" alumnus Jimmy Fallon finally took over.