Star of Veep, Julia Louis-Dreyfus has been chosen to join the long line of distinguished comedians that were selected as recipients of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.
“Like Mark Twain, Julia has enriched American culture with her iconic, unforgettable, and outright hilarious brand of humor,” Kennedy Center president Deborah F. Rutter said. “Over four decades, her wildly original characters and her gift for physical comedy have left us in stitches.”
Past laureates of the honor include Whoopi Goldberg (2001), Lily Tomlin (2003), Steve Martin (2005), Billy Crystal (2007), Tina Fey (2010), Will Ferrell (2011), Ellen DeGeneres (2012), Jay Leno (2014), Eddie Murphy (2015), Bill Murray (2016), and David Letterman (2016).
Funny lady that she is, Louis-Dreyfus accepted the honor with a touch of humor.
“Merely to join the list of distinguished recipients of this award would be honor enough, but, as a student of both American history and literature, the fact that Mr. Twain himself will be presenting the award to me in person is particularly gratifying.”
The 11-time Emmy winner will receive the award at the Kennedy Center on October 21.
Veep, currently on hiatus, is set to return in 2019.
