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David Letterman awarded Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
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Honoree David Letterman does an interview at the 20th Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, on Sunday. (AFP/Andrew Caballero-Reynolds)
D
avid Letterman's talk show legacy was celebrated on Sunday at the John F. Kennedy Center in the United States, as the former late-night host accepted the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, one of comedy’s top honors.
As reported by Rolling Stone those on hand to honor Letterman included Bill Murray, Jimmy Kimmel, Eddie Vedder, former The Late Show bandleader Paul Shaffer and more.
"No one from his generation influenced American comedy more," Kimmel said of Letterman.
Steve Martin, Jon Mulaney, and via video, former first lady Michelle Obama also paid tribute.
In 1978, Letterman made an appearance on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, which catapulted his own career path as a late-night television host.
Letterman has been hailed as one of the most innovative and influential broadcasters in television history, according to a statement on the PBS website (http://www.pbs.org/mark-twain-prize/home/), the US-based station that would broadcast a taping of the event on Nov. 20.
"Because of this award, I am now the most humorous person in the world," Letterman said upon receiving the prize. He ended his speech by quoting Mark Twain.
"I'm going to wrap this up now with a quote and I hope I get it correct and it has to do with patriotism. And Mark Twain's definition of patriotism is this: ‘Patriotism is supporting your country all the time and your government when it deserves it’.”
Seventy-year-old Letterman retired in 2015, marking the end of the longest-running US late-night broadcaster, surpassing his mentor Johnny Carson.
Letterman was on the air for 33 years and accumulatively hosted 6,028 episodes, spanning across NBC's Late Night and The Late Show on CBS.
Read also: Letterman leaving retirement to host Netflix TV series
In August this year, the late-night television king announced he was coming out of retirement to host an upcoming Netflix series that is set to premiere next year.
As a writer, producer and performer, Letterman is one of the most-nominated people in Emmy Award history, with 52 nominations, resulting in 10 wins. Letterman is also a Peabody-Award winner and a Kennedy Center Honoree. (liz/asw)
