WASHINGTON (AP) — A star-studded lineup of comedians including Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle,George Lopez, Kathy Griffin and Arsenio Hall honored Eddie Murphy as an “American icon.”
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts presented the comedian Sunday with the Mark Twain Prize, the nation’s top prize for humor.
The evening’s most emotional tribute came from Saturday Night Live alum Tracy Morgan, who received a standing ovation from the audience. He called Murphy his “comedic hero.”
Morgan survived a serious car crash last year that left him in a coma. Morgan said Murphy was the first person to call him on the phone and make him laugh after the tragic accident that killed a passenger in the limo and seriously injured two others
“He’s the reason I’m in comedy. He’s the reason I have a job. He’s the reason I have a career,” Morgan said.
Among the other SNL alumni who paid tribute to Murphy were Jay Pharoah, Kevin Nealon andJoe Piscopo.
“Some people are just blessed with talent, and with Eddie, it was just luck,” Nealon ribbed.
Nealon said Murphy saved SNL from slumping ratings in the 1980s, and he hoped he could also save the Kennedy Center from becoming the Trump Center.
“I can see the slot machines in the lobby,” joked Nealon, who starred with Murphy in Daddy Day Care.
Trevor Noah, who took over hosting The Daily Show in September, said he was introduced to the comedian after viewing Coming to America.
Murphy called the prize a “tremendous honor,” but asked the center to clear up any confusion over the prize for future recipients.
“Actually, it’s an award, but they call it a prize,” he said. “Usually when there’s a prize, there’s money.”
In referring to Cosby, Murphy joked that you know you’ve messed up “when they want you to give your trophy back.”
“Bill has one of these. Did you all make him give it back?” he asked, as quoted by the Washington Post, before performing an impersonation of Cosby refusing to give back his award.
“I would like to talk to some of the people who feel like I should give back my motherf—-in’ trophies.”
Putting on his best “Pudding Pop” voice, well known from his 1987 standup film Eddie Murphy Raw, the comedian continued, “You may have heard recently that I allegedly put the pill in the people’s stomach … If I ever see or meet this Hannibal Buress in person I am going to try and kill this man!”
Murphy previously revealed to the Washington Post that he turned down the opportunity to mock Cosby for SNL‘s 40th anniversary episode because he found “nothing funny about it.”
The humor prize honors those who influence society in the tradition of Samuel Clemens, the writer and satirist known as Mark Twain. Past honorees include Jay Leno, Carol Burnett, Tina Fey, Whoopi Goldberg, Ellen DeGeneres, Will Ferrell and Richard Pryor.
Murphy gained national attention when he joined the SNL cast in 1980 at the age of 19. He went on to become the most commercially successful African-American actor in film history and one of the industry’s Top 5 box office performers overall, the Kennedy Center said. Murphy’s films have been among Hollywood’s highest-grossing comedies, including 48 Hours, Trading Places, Dr. Dolittle and Coming to America.
The tribute will be broadcast Nov. 23 on PBS.
- The Associated Presss
