Ellen Gray: Mayor Nutter reports for 'Colbert' duty

THE COLBERT REPORT. 11:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, Comedy Central.

JUST A HUNDRED days into his first term, Philadelphia's mayor probably didn't go on Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" last night in search of the now-famous "Colbert Bump," and he won't get it.

But he didn't get roughed up, either.

"Here to defend his indefensible policies is Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter," announced host Stephen Colbert to a crowd of some 900 people at the University of Pennsylvania's Zellerbach Theatre at the first of four local tapings.

Nutter, a Penn grad on his own turf, got a rock star's welcome, as did nearly everyone from singer John Legend - another Penn grad - to local actor Ralph Archbold, portraying Ben Franklin, or, as Colbert called him, "the Ed McMahon of the 18th century."

The most over-the-top welcome was reserved, of course, for Colbert, whose first road trip brought him the largest in-person audience ever for the "Report," which normally is taped in a studio that holds a little more than a hundred.

"What are you trying to accomplish with these anti-gun laws?" demanded Colbert, as his cable-news persona took aim at Nutter's attempts to regulate gun sales inside the city.

"We don't like people getting shot," replied Nutter genially.

The mayor, playing it straight - as all Colbert guests should - refused to go along with the suggestion that the same thing could be accomplished by arming all the citizenry.

"Stephen, you're absolutely wrong," Nutter told his host.

"I rarely hear that," said Colbert.

Here, like many of the non-fake news shows, for the Pennsylvania primary, "The Colbert Report" is expecting Michelle Obama tonight, and Gov. Rendell tomorrow.

Colbert's other guest, MSNBC's (and Philadelphia's) Chris Matthews, hinted that the show may also land Hillary Clinton, leading the host to change the subject. (He's said he hopes both Barack Obama and Clinton would drop by, but nothing had been announced as of last night.)

Colbert, after criticizing his guest for claiming to have given Obama a bump by having him on "Hardball" - "bumps are my thing, get . . . the Matthews Mound or something" - seemed more interested in pressing Matthews for an announcement that he'd be running against Arlen Specter for Senate in 2010.

Matthews may have refused to play along, but you couldn't call him coy, exactly.

"Some kids want to be a fireman," he told Colbert. "I want to be a senator." *

Send e-mail to graye@phillynews.com.