Mark Twain Prize: Friends of Bill Take Over Kennedy Center
By • June 29, 2026 0 1239
A friends-of-Bill cast spanning comedy and culture — including Louis C.K., Whitney Cummings, Matt Friend, Woody Harrelson, Arianna Huffington, Jay Leno, John Mellencamp and Stephen A. Smith — feted honoree Bill Maher at the 27th Annual Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on June 28.
The red carpet in the Hall of Nations was held in advance of the program, a fun-filled evening that kicked off with Huffington asking if this reporter was getting enough sleep. Comments followed by the loquacious Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, whose wife Allison, a Ken Cen board member, brought him as her plus-one. Along the velvet rope, next to us, it was at once hilarious and startling to see Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) chiding the New York Times writer for its anti-Israel opinions and reportage. (Was that off the record?)
Funnyman Bill Maher — famed for HBO’s “Real Time” and, before that, “Politically Incorrect” — walked into the hall, basically asking people to chill and remember that this too (the Trump interference) shall pass. The author of five books, most recently “What This Comedian Said Will Shock You,” was whisked away to be miked up before this fellow Jersey boy could ask a question.
On stage, Kennedy Center trustee Pamella Roland DeVos welcomed all in the Concert Hall with the theme of the performing arts center embodying beauty and creativity. (Who could disagree?)
To begin, Washington-born and bred Whitney Cummings flung a few zingers. Political comedians are like “colorectal” experts. “I actually heard Trump may come tonight but he couldn’t make it. He got caught in sex traffic.” Maher, an “unmarried, childless millionaire” is in a “toxic, committed relationship” with the U.S.A. He offers the “humor to heal left and right. Congratulations!” “Bill is a warrior of free speech.” Still … “No other country could make a Bill Maher.”
Comedian Lous C.K. touted Maher as “a good guy allergic to bullshit,” who threw him a rope during his time as an outcast in the business
Woody Harrelson of “Cheers” said he loves Maher more than those fancy, high-tech Japanese toilets and co-owns a West Hollywood cannabis dispensary with him. “Bill wants Uncle Sam off your back.” As he ended his joke about banks, Harrelson noted “Wells Fargo [presenting sponsor]” was “excepted.” “I admire you, love you brother!”
Sportscaster and commentator Stephen A. Smith said, “Bill keeps it real” and “thinks I should run for president.” Upstream from the mainstream, he noted “the lead dog gets bitten.” “He has the courage to tell truth.”
Arianna Huffington, formerly of Wesley Heights, said she has known Maher since 1993 — “a long deep friendship, incredibly loyal.” She admitted she was a Greek failure at being a matchmaker for him.
“He was cancelled before being cancelled was a thing.”
Tagging him “a mystical atheist,” she turned to Maher and said, “Twain would have loved you.” (You know that 19th-century novelist and satirist Samuel Clemens, who wrote “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and other surprises.)
Jay Leno, formerly the host of “The Tonight Show,” proclaimed Maher to be the authentic “Big Beautiful Bill” in Washington, D.C., and presented him with the Twain Prize.
Soon enough, Trump impersonator Matt Friend jumped on stage and said he deserved the award more than Maher. It was an attempt at comic relief for the president’s issues with Maher and others — what with that tarp on the exterior of the building and Guardsmen from Georgia at the curb and so much more.
Kissing the prize and pointing to the VIP seats, the honoree said, “I respect the f— out of these people!” He profusely thanked his fans, “my audience.” Maher, 70, added he “wasn’t going anywhere.” He also seemed to thank everyone who he knows and has worked with — including “the haters.”
Maher imagines himself as Toto, the dog who pulls back the curtain in “The Wizard of Oz” and asks, “What is true?”
John Mellencamp aptly finished the evening with “Pink Houses” and “Authority Song.”
The Mark Twain Prize presentation will be streamed on Netflix on July 21.
As for the vexing future of the Kennedy Center, Washingtonians will see what is planned fairly soon. At least, the name is now correct.
Matt Friend, Stephen A. Smith, Louis C.K., Whitney Cummings, Bill Maher, John Mellencamp, Ted Sarandos, Arianna Huffington and Woody Harrelson at the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor Gala Performance on June 28 in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
Comedian Whitney Cummings started the tributes for Bill Maher. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
Commentator Stephen A. Smith. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. Photo by Robert Devaney.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick with his wife Allison, a Kennedy Center trustee. Photo by Robert Devaney.
Mark Twain Prize recipient Bill Maher of HBO’s “Real Time” at the Kennedy Center. Photo by Robert Devaney.
Arianna Huffington on stage at the Mark Twain Prize presentation. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
Bill Maher and Jay Leno on stage at the Mark Twain Prize presentation. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
Bill Maher hoists the Mark Twain Prize sculpture. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
John Mellencamp on stage at the Mark Twain Prize presentation. Courtesy the Kennedy Center.
