Performers and presenters included Alec Baldwin, Jeff Beck, Jack Black, Jason Bonham, Tracy Chapman, Gary Clark, Jr., Alina Cojocaru, Billy Connolly, Angel Corella, Robert De Niro, Tina Fey, Foo Fighters, Morgan Freeman, Marcelo Gomes, David Hallberg, Beth Hart, Judith Jamison, Julie Kent, Kid Rock, Jimmy Kimmel, Lenny Kravitz, Laura Osnes, Veronika Part, Tiler Peck, Grace Ann Pierce, Bonnie Raitt, Ray Romano, Liev Schreiber, Jimmie Vaughan, Naomi Watts, Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson.
The starry evening will be broadcast on CBS Dec. 26 as a two-hour primetime special beginning at 9 PM ET.
Details of the event, according to a statement from the Kennedy Center, follow:
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President and Mrs. Barack Obama were seated with the honorees in the Presidential Box of the Opera House at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, after hosting the traditional White House reception for the honorees. Host Caroline Kennedy opened the festivities by quoting poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, who said, “Congratulate yourselves if you have done something strange and extravagant and broken the monotony of a decorous age.” Kennedy then said, “Tonight we salute Honorees who, through their artistry and daring, have banished monotony and provided extravagant pleasure and joy to audiences the world over. On the signature wall behind me are the names of those who have gone before. To this splendid company we now add our Class of 2012.”
She continued, “With primal sounds at once beautiful and dangerous, these English lads built a band that gave new dimension to rock, and earned from an admiring world a ‘Whole Lotta Love’; a tall drink of water from Indiana who aspired to be Johnny, and earned a late night throne for a guy named Dave; a Louisiana sharecropper’s son who made his way to ‘Sweet Home Chicago’ and became America’s champion of the blues; a lithe beauty from St. Petersburg whose passion and elegance filled movement with meaning, giving new excitement to the words ‘Prima Ballerina’; as a ‘Graduate,’ a ‘Midnight Cowboy,’ a ‘Little Big Man,’ a ‘Rain Man’ and even as a ‘Tootsie,’ this actor redefined the movies’ idea of a leading man. These are our 2012 Kennedy Center Honorees.”
Academy Award and Golden Globe Award-winning actor and 2009 Kennedy Center Honoree Robert De Niro began the tribute to his longtime friend, multiple Academy Award, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor Dustin Hoffman, stating, “Dustin Hoffman is a world-class, spectacular, colossal… pain in the ass. Before Dustin burst on the scene, it was pretty much okay for movie stars to show up, read their lines, and, if the director insisted, act a little. It worked. There were good movies and good performances; everyone was happy. Then Dustin came along and ‘just had to get everything right.’ He made a statement that what the actor does is important… and it was inspiring. It inspired me. It inspired me to become a pain in the ass, too. Suddenly, we all ‘just had to get everything right.’”
Scottish comedian, musician and actor Billy Connolly, who starred in Dustin Hoffman’s directorial debut, “Quartet,” continued Hoffman’s tribute. “In ‘Tootsie,’ Dustin Hoffman played a driven, meticulous actor. It is said that in looking for inspiration for that character, Dustin found it in… Dustin Hoffman. Dustin persuaded director Sidney Pollack to let him stage an improvised acting class taught by his character. In the scene, the perennially out-of-work actor conducts an acting class for other perennially out-of-work actors.”
Tony Award-winning, Golden Globe and Emmy nominated actor Liev Schreiber, along with his wife, Academy Award-nominated actress Naomi Watts, then continued the tribute. Said Shreiber, “When Dustin and I first met on the set of Barry Levinson’s ‘Sphere’ nearly 15 years ago, he told me that I had a big head. He went on to qualify this remark by saying ‘It’s a good thing… if only your nose weren’t so large as well.’ Really, Dustin? …Watching Dustin, I saw what acting could be. At its best. I’d never seen anyone create characters like that before – so incredibly life-like and detailed, yet still, somehow… something more than real. I had to do that. I had to act like Dustin Hoffman. Not just me. All of us. You… and Ratso Rizzo… and all those other dirty movies you made, redefined acting for a new generation… so thank you, Dustin. I love you very much.”
Watts continued, “About 15 years ago, I got a call. I was invited to meet Dustin Hoffman for a film he was directing. I was not allowed to read the script in advance, so I felt completely unprepared to meet the master. The man I grew up watching, the giant, the real deal. I had a 30-minute slot, I was there for five hours. But that’s Dustin. For the first hour all I did was worry – what did he want? What was the movie about? Was I right for the character? Would my car get towed? Finally, I settled down and quickly realized this was a rare and extraordinary opportunity. I read some scenes – as he hovered over me with his smoky voice and laser instincts… What I learned in those few hours with Dustin was more valuable to me than a lifetime of acting classes. In a sense, it was the most important audition of my life.” The tribute then concluded with Tony-nominated singer Laura Osnes singing a special rendition of the classic song, “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Your Face.”
Photo by Joseph Marzullo/WENN |
photo by Joseph Marzullo/WENN |
Emmy Award-winning comedian Jimmy Kimmel next spoke of Letterman as one of his idols. “When I turned 16, I blew out the candles on a “Late Night with David Letterman” cake; my first car had a L8NITE vanity plate; I drew pictures of Dave on the cover of all of my textbooks; I started a ‘Late Night with David Letterman’ club in high school… to me, it wasn’t just a TV show. …I don’t remember the first time I watched Dave’s show, but I do remember the feeling I got when I found it. It was as if someone was doing a show specifically for me. I had never seen anything like it. Dave was funny in a way I’d never seen anyone be funny before. I stayed up until 1:30 AM every single night to watch him. I wanted to be David Letterman. All my friends wanted to be David Letterman. Ironically, the only person who didn’t want to be David Letterman – is David Letterman. And that’s a shame because you, Dave, are the funniest, the smartest, the weirdest, the coolest, the best one ever. Not only did I learn how to do… everything from Dave – the reason I have a show of my own is because the executives at ABC saw me when I was a guest on his show.”
Multiple Emmy Award winner and Golden Globe-nominated actor and comedian Ray Romano, who got his start as a comedian and actor through the help of David Letterman, said, “Being on Letterman was like winning the World Series. If you wanna win the World Series, do you quit if you lose the first game? No. You’re down one game to zero you don’t quit, you keep going. Do you quit when you’re down 1-0 in debates? No. You keep going and you become the President of the United States,” gesturing to President Obama. He then continued, “I remember the next morning, I was in my house with my wife in Queens, and I sat there at the breakfast table and I was like, ‘That was… awesome. What do I do now?’ …I sometimes wonder where I would be if I hadn’t been on David Letterman’s show. I would still be doing stand-up, because it’s what I love. I’m sure I’d be on the road working. Every now and then I’d have to do Kimmel. It would be okay, I guess. But I know one thing; I’d still be trying to get on. I wouldn’t give up. And that’s what somebody as good as Dave does. In any profession, you need someone like Dave to make you want to be better.”
Next, Golden Globe-nominated actor Jack Black introduced the tribute to multiple Grammy Award-winning, legendary rock band Led Zeppelin, saying, “Led Zeppelin… the greatest rock and roll band of all time… yeah, I said it. Better than the Beatles. Better than the Stones… even better than Tenacious D. That’s not opinion… that’s fact. If you don’t agree with me, it’s because you never did the Zeppelin marathon. That’s when you sit your ass down and listen to all nine Zepp albums in a row… What makes them so special is the contrast of power and beauty. Heavenly melodies intermingled with hellish rifts of thunder. The first time I heard Zepp was in high school. My body was changing and my mind was opening to new possibilities when Derek Skanky made me a mix tape of his favorite Zepp jams. They quickly became my favorite band. Throughout the years, I’ve explored all kinds of genres and styles… but it’s always come back to the Zepp.”
Black continued, “Sometimes I worry that they might’ve been the last great chapter in rock. Who will pick up the torch and lead a new generation into heavy metal Valhalla? Sadly, no living rockers possess the alchemy and black magic required for such a task… Until then, we have the blessed gift of Led Zeppelin’s box set to lift our spirits and soothe our souls. They say that Led Zeppelin sold their souls to Satan… come on guys, you know you did. There is no other way to explain your ungodly talent. I just want to say thank you… because while you suffer in the burning pit of Hell, the human race will cherish your heavenly jams till the end of time. A small price to pay. We love you. Best band ever.”
The tribute to Led Zeppelin commenced with an exciting performance of “Moby Dick” by the Rob Mathes Band. Next, multiple Grammy Award winner Lenny Kravitz performed “Whole Lotta Love,” followed by a medley of “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” and “Ramble On,” sung by five-time Grammy Award nominee Kid Rock. Then, multiple Grammy Award-winning rock band Foo Fighters took the stage to perform “Black Dog” and “Rock and Roll.” Finally, Jason Bonham, the son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, along with Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson from the rock band Heart, rocked the house with an amazing performance of “Stairway to Heaven” that brought the evening to its rousing conclusion.