CBS canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, ending its original late night run. Comics Unleashed will take its place but the network isn't done with the format.

As Stephen Colbert signs off May 21, his exit closes a 33-year CBS franchise—and marks the end of one late-night era built on ritual, the desk and the band

"Late Show" cancellation could force badly needed innovation for a format that has gone stale. Late night TV should embrace these five strategies for reinvention.