Washington — On an evening when half a dozen individuals made jokes about this being the last-ever Mark Twain Prize, Conan O’Brien made positive the ceremony on the John F. Kennedy Middle for the Performing Arts ended on a excessive observe.
O’Brien accepted the award for lifetime achievement in comedy Sunday night time whereas acknowledging the backstage turmoil that hangs over the way forward for the cultural heart in Washington.
O’Brien, 61, was named the twenty sixth recipient of the Mark Twain Prize in mid-January.
Kevin Wolf / AP
Final month, Mr. Trump dissolved the Kennedy Middle’s board of administrators and named himself chairman. The new board consists of political allies like White Home chief of employees Susie Wiles, longtime senior Trump aide Dan Scavino, second girl Usha Vance and Fox Information host Laura Ingraham.
On Sunday, O’Brien particularly thanked Rubenstein and Rutter — drawing an prolonged spherical of applause — in addition to Kennedy Middle staffers who, he stated, have been “fearful about what the long run would possibly deliver.”
He stated the instance of Mark Twain’s personal life and profession was notably resonant at this second in American historical past.
“Twain hated bullies. … He punched up, not down, and he deeply empathized with the weak,” O’Brien stated. “Twain liked America, however he knew it was deeply flawed.”
A Mark Twain impersonator then emerged from the viewers. After a back-and-forth debate with O’Brien, he joined him on stage and the pair sluggish danced for some time. They have been then joined by a dozen extra Twain impersonators and former Twain Prize recipient Adam Sandler for a raucous rendition of Neil Younger’s “Rockin within the Free World.”
Barbs aimed toward Trump’s Kennedy Middle adjustments
That musical ending capped off an evening when the unsure destiny of the Kennedy Middle itself was woven by the a number of tributes and testimonials to O’Brien.
“I believe it could be insane to not tackle the elephant within the room,” comedian Nikki Glaser stated on the pink carpet earlier than the ceremony. “It is within the air tonight. This night time is about Conan, however it may be each.”
As soon as the festivities started, Stephen Colbert joked that the Kennedy Middle had introduced two new board members: Bashar Assad, the ousted president of Syria, and Skeletor, a fictional supervillain.
John Mulaney quipped that your complete constructing would quickly be renamed “the Roy Cohn Pavilion” after considered one of Trump’s mentors. And Sarah Silverman made a number of Trump jokes that have been too vulgar to print.
Mr. Trump, in asserting the Kennedy Middle adjustments, posted on his Reality Social social media platform that those that have been dismissed “don’t share our Imaginative and prescient for a Golden Age in Arts and Tradition.”
How that imaginative and prescient takes form stays to be seen, however Mr. Trump has spoken about eager to e-book extra Broadway reveals there and floated the concept of granting Kennedy Middle Honors standing to actor Sylvester Stallone and singer-songwriter Paul Anka.
Conan O’Brien’s comedy honored
Into this maelstrom stepped O’Brien, whose comedic persona has not often been notably political.
The comedian has all the time tended extra towards goofiness and self-deprecation. However he has additionally leaned into delicate societal points at instances.
In 2011, O’Brien officiated a homosexual wedding ceremony dwell on his present, overseeing the wedding of his longtime costume designer Scott Cronick and his companion David Gorshein.
O’Brien vaulted into the highlight from near-total obscurity in 1993 when he was chosen to interchange David Letterman as host of “Late Evening” regardless of no vital on-camera expertise. The previous Harvard Lampoon editor had spent the earlier years as a author for “Saturday Evening Reside” and “The Simpsons,” showing on digicam solely as an occasional background additional in “SNL” skits.
He went on to host “Late Evening” for 16 years, longer than another host. O’Brien was later tapped to interchange Jay Leno as host of “The Tonight Present,” however that experiment resulted in public failure. After seven months of declining scores, NBC executives introduced Leno again for a brand new present that might bump “The Tonight Present” again. O’Brien refused to simply accept the transfer, resulting in a public spat that ended with a multimillion-dollar payout for O’Brien and his employees to exit the community in early 2010.
O’Brien went on to host one other speak present on the cable station TBS, whereas launching profitable podcasts and journey reveals.
He’s presently on a late-career elder statesman scorching streak. His journey sequence, “Conan O’Brien Should Go,” drew fashionable and demanding acclaim, with a second season coming. His latest gig internet hosting the Academy Awards was so properly acquired that the producers introduced they’re bringing him again subsequent 12 months.
Within the wake of Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Middle, a number of artists, together with the producers of “Hamilton” and actress and author Issa Rae, introduced they have been canceling appearances on the venue.
Others have chosen to carry out whereas making their sentiments recognized from the stage. Comedian W. Kamau Bell straight addressed the controversy in his efficiency simply days after the shake-up. Earlier this month, cellist Erin Murphy Snedecor ended her set with a efficiency of the Woody Guthrie protest anthem “All You Fascists Sure to Lose.”
Different comedians receiving the lifetime achievement award embrace each Letterman and Leno, together with George Carlin, Whoopi Goldberg, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett, Invoice Murray and Dave Chappelle.
The ceremony will likely be streamed on Netflix on Could 4.
