WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 Adam Sandler placed his hand on the bronze bust of Mark Twain and speculated that it 鈥渙ne day might be the weapon used to bludgeon me in my sleep."
A host of comedic and entertainment royalty gathered at Washington鈥檚 Kennedy Center as Sandler was presented with the .
Presenters including Drew Barrymore, Conan O鈥橞rien, Chris Rock, Jennifer Aniston, Steve Buscemi, Dana Carvey, and Luis Guzm谩n gave testimonials to Sandler's creative longevity, while poking occasional fun at his uneven movie output and tendency to cast all his friends in his movies.
Sandler's longtime writing and production partner Tim Herlihy joked that the pair were responsible for 鈥31 motion pictures with a combined Rotten Tomatoes score of 59.鈥
Buscemi, known largely for dramatic and often violent roles, portrayed a string of comedic characters in Sandler movies.
鈥淗e takes his comedy very seriously. I laugh hard at everything I do with him,鈥 he said.
Buscemi also singled out Sandler's musical comedy, including 鈥淭he Chanukah Song," which became a multiplatinum hit. 鈥淗is comedy songs alone deserve this reward,鈥 he said.
Judd Apatow, Sandler's roommate during their early days in Los Angeles, recalled a young Sandler's boundless confidence and obvious talent.
鈥淭he moment you met him, you knew Adam was going to be a big star,鈥 Apatow said. 鈥淎nd so did Adam.鈥
To highlight Sandler's seemingly limitless comedic energy, Apatow played an old video he recorded of a young Sandler prank-calling a local deli in his spare time to try out different comedic voices.
At the end of the night, Sandler, who's from Manchester, New Hampshire, paid tribute to his parents and siblings for arming him with 鈥渢hat weird irrational confidence thing that I guess I still have.鈥
Sandler, 56, first came to national attention as a cast member on 鈥淪aturday Night Live.鈥 After being fired from the cast following a five-year stint, Sandler launched a wildly successful movie career that has spanned more than 30 films, grossing over $3 billion worldwide.
Sandler's top hits include 鈥淗appy Gilmore,鈥 鈥淭he Wedding Singer鈥 and 鈥淵ou Don't Mess with the Zohan.鈥 Although primarily known for slapstick comedy and overgrown man-child characters, he has excelled in multiple dramatic roles in films such as "Punch Drunk Love" and 鈥淯ncut Gems.鈥
Guzman, who co-starred in 鈥淧unch Drunk Love,鈥 admitted he originally thought Sandler was 鈥渙ut of his depth鈥 in a dramatic role scripted by auteur director Paul Thomas Anderson. But he came away impressed and praised Sandler's 鈥渢otal commitment to something that was so far our of his element.鈥
Other comedians who received the lifetime achievement award include inaugural honoree Richard Pryor in 1998, Whoopi Goldberg, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett and Dave Chapelle. Bill Cosby, the 2009 recipient, saw his Mark Twain Prize rescinded in 2019 amid multiple allegations of sexual assault.
The comedy institution "SNL" has provided more than its share of the 24 Mark Twain recipients. Sandler is the seventh cast member to receive the prize, joining Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell, Billy Crystal, Eddie Murphy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Show creator and producer Lorne Michaels won in 2004.
The ceremony will be broadcast nationally on CNN on March 26.
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This story was first published on March 19, 2023. It was updated on March 20, 2023, to correct the names of two previous recipients of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. They are Will Ferrell, not Will Farrell, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, not Julia Louise-Dreyfus.
