Conan O’Brien Closes Contentious Mark Twain Prize Ceremony on a High Note

On an evening where several individuals joked about it potentially being the final Mark Twain Prize event, Conan O’Brien ensured the ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts concluded with a memorable flourish.
O’Brien accepted the award for lifetime achievement in comedy on Sunday night, acknowledging the backstage tension surrounding the Kennedy Center’s future in Washington.
O’Brien, 61, was named the 26th recipient of the Mark Twain Prize in mid-January, approximately three weeks before President Donald Trump’s controversial overhaul of the Kennedy Center, which involved ousting longtime president Deborah Rutter and board chairman David Rubenstein.
Trump dismissed the existing board of trustees and replaced them with loyalists, who subsequently elected him as chairman.
During his acceptance speech on Sunday, O’Brien specifically thanked Rubenstein and Rutter, eliciting prolonged applause, and also acknowledged Kennedy Center staff members who he said were “worried about what the future might bring.”
He emphasized that Mark Twain’s own life and career were particularly relevant during this period in American history.
“Twain despised bullies. … He advocated for the marginalized, not the powerful,” O’Brien said. “Twain loved America, but he recognized its deep imperfections.”
A Mark Twain impersonator then emerged from the audience. Following a playful exchange with O’Brien, he joined him on stage, and the two engaged in a slow dance. They were then joined by a dozen more Twain impersonators and previous Twain Prize recipient Adam Sandler for a lively rendition of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”
This musical finale capped off an evening where the Kennedy Center’s uncertain future was a recurring theme throughout the tributes to O’Brien.
“I think it would be irresponsible not to address the elephant in the room,” comedian Nikki Glaser said on the red carpet before the ceremony. “It’s palpable tonight. This night is about Conan, but it can acknowledge both.”
Following Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center, several artists, including the producers of “Hamilton” and actress and writer Issa Rae, announced they were canceling their scheduled appearances at the venue.
Others chose to perform while expressing their views from the stage. Leftist comedian W. Kamau Bell directly addressed the controversy in his performance shortly after the shake-up. Earlier this month, cellist Erin Murphy Snedecor concluded her set with a performance of the Woody Guthrie protest anthem “All You Fascists Bound to Lose.”
Previous recipients of the lifetime achievement award include David Letterman, Jay Leno, George Carlin, Whoopi Goldberg, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett, Bill Murray, and Dave Chappelle.
The ceremony will be available for streaming on Netflix on May 4.