Comedian Bill Maher received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor Sunday night at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, but there was another person who loomed large over the two-hour event.
He didn’t show up and — until recently — his name adorned the building: President Donald J. Trump.
A little more than two weeks ago, Trump’s name was removed from the arts center’s marble facade because of a judge’s order. A tarp still covers that area, blocking the removal of Trump’s name from public view. The tarp has even become a bit of a tourist attraction; some people came by last night before the festivities to take photos.
During the ceremony, Woody Harrelson, a close friend of Maher’s, and a business partner in a cannabis dispensary in Los Angeles, jokingly referenced the “Trump-Kennedy Center,” then paused.
“Oh right, we fixed that,” Harrelson said, “Not that you’d be able to notice.”
The jokes aimed at the president continued.
During Maher’s acceptance speech, fellow comedian Matt Friend came on stage and did a long Trump impression in which he sparred with Maher, repeated some of Trump’s most disparaging remarks about him and concluded that the award should really be his.
“Why are we giving this low-ratings, lightweight jerk the Mark Twain award?” Friend asked in the voice of Trump.
During the bit, Maher referenced his dinner with Trump at the White House last year, where he had described the president as “gracious and measured.”
“Why can’t you always be that guy?” said Maher.
“Boring, Bill,” Friend responded in character. “Who would want to see that?”
Maher joined 26 earlier recipients of the Mark Twain Prize, which is essentially a lifetime achievement award for American comedy. Past winners include Dave Chapelle, Carol Burnett, Eddie Murphy and Jon Stewart.
Maher noted that his win was especially sweet. He has previously been nominated for a slew of Emmy awards for his current show and has never won.
The ceremony will run on Netflix July 21.
Some of those who roasted him last night, including Jay Leno and Louis C.K., said what makes Maher special in this politically fraught era is that he skewers liberals and conservatives and invites both on his show, HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher. Just this month, Maher hosted Vice President Vance and former Vice President Mike Pence.
In a red carpet chat, Maher told NPR he hoped the award and his approach to comedy would encourage people to step outside their ideological and algorithmic bubbles.
“It’s not just that people live in bubbles, it’s that they want to,” said Maher. “What I think is unique about our show is that we are not afraid to say to people who might be upset about it: “No, what you’re doing is crazy, too.”
At the end of his acceptance speech, Maher referenced famous names who had inspired him.
He cited Toto.
The audience responded with silence and puzzlement.
Maher explained he was talking not about the soft rock group. Instead, he was referring to Dorothy’s dog in the Wizard of Oz.
“That’s because Toto pulls back the curtain and exposes who is phony,” Maher said.
Transcript:
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Bill Maher has received this year’s Mark Twain prize for American Humor. It’s pretty much a lifetime achievement award for comedians, and he accepted last night at the Kennedy Center. The ceremony went ahead without President Trump, the guy whose name used to be on the building. NPR’s Frank Langfitt was at the ceremony last night and is in Studio 31 with us this morning. Frank, good morning.
FRANK LANGFITT, BYLINE: Hey. Good morning, Steve.
INSKEEP: OK. So Bill Maher has made fun of Trump, had a pretty sharp interview with JD Vance the other day, but he also had dinner with Trump at the White House last year. So how did he fit into this story?
LANGFITT: So, really, from even before it started, his name came up. You know, Trump is the chairman of the Kennedy Center and it was announced that Maher was going to get this award. At first the White House denied it, later confirmed it. So I was talking to Maher with other reporters on the red carpet and he joked that he wasn’t even sure how the ceremony might even – might turn out.
BILL MAHER: News about the event has changed many times. You know, it’s happening. It’s not happening. The name of the building changed. I’m not going to believe it till it’s over. Still time for something to go wrong.
INSKEEP: OK. So it did go ahead, but he’s right that the name of the building has changed since he received the award. The Trump administration had to take his name off the building. Any references to that?
LANGFITT: Yeah. It was. And the other thing is, if you remember, about two weeks ago, when they were taking the letters off, they actually put a tarp up first…
INSKEEP: Yeah.
LANGFITT: …So people – so people couldn’t actually see what was going on. That tarp – I was there that night. The tarp also, oddly, is still there as well. And so the Kennedy Center says that this is just in order to maintain the building’s marble facade. But Woody Harrelson was there last night, close friend of Maher’s. He was up on stage and he joked about it, and he said, ironically, sort of, we’re at the Trump Kennedy Center. Oh, right, we fixed that. And then he said, not that you’d be able to notice.
INSKEEP: (Laughter).
LANGFITT: And I got to say, Steve, if that tarp was meant to deflect attention from the removal of Trump’s name, it’s not really working. Even last night, there were people driving by, walking up, taking pictures of it. It’s become sort of this minor tourist attraction.
INSKEEP: Just to be clear, you told us Woody Harrelson’s joke. You did not play a sound of his joke.
LANGFITT: I did not. Netflix is not allowing people to record audio or video of this event. And it’s producing the event and it’s going to be releasing clips a little bit later, and then the special will air later in July.
INSKEEP: Which I think is deserved. It’s a big deal, the Mark Twain award.
LANGFITT: It is.
INSKEEP: Some of the biggest comedians in history – in American history – in recent years have gotten this award. Was there a message in choosing Maher right now?
LANGFITT: I think it was really clear from the red carpet, but then also on stage – and you heard this from some of the speakers – and the idea is that Maher makes fun of liberals, makes fun of conservatives. He also invites both on his HBO show, you know, “Real Time With Bill Maher.” And it’s just like we were mentioning – Vice President JD Vance was on last week, earlier this month, former VP Mike Pence.
INSKEEP: Yeah.
LANGFITT: So I’m talking – I ask Maher what do you hope people would take away from him getting this prize? And this is how he put it.
MAHER: Hopefully, people will take that to mean we’ve had enough of automatically living in our bubble. It’s not just that people live in bubbles. It’s that they want to. What’s our – I think, unique about our show is that we are not afraid to say to people who might be upset about it, no, what you’re doing is crazy, too.
INSKEEP: When he gave his speech, did he give any insights into his comedy or his inspirations for it?
LANGFITT: He did. You know, he mentioned he could cite a lot of people, obviously, somebody like George Carlin. But then he said what he patterned himself on was Toto. And then there was silence in the room. People were really confused. And he explained he was talking about from “The Wizard Of Oz.”
INSKEEP: (Laughter) OK.
LANGFITT: And he said, that’s because Toto pulls back the curtain and exposes who’s phony.
INSKEEP: I was thinking of the ’80s rock group.
LANGFITT: That’s what I thought, too, Steve (laughter).
INSKEEP: Frank, thanks so much.
LANGFITT: Great to be here, man.
INSKEEP: NPR’s Frank Langfitt.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE RUGGED NUGGETS’ “WALKING IN THE RAIN”)