September 12th, 2012
05:04 PM ET
Dustin Hoffman, Letterman to receive Kennedy Center HonorsThis year's Kennedy Center Honors will recognize the achievements of seven artists across disciplines, from acting to comedy to dance. Dustin Hoffman, David Letterman, Buddy Guy, ballerina Natalia Makarova, and Led Zeppelin members John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant will be honored this December for their "lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts," the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced Wednesday.
"With their extraordinary talent, creativity and tenacity, the seven 2012 Kennedy Center Honorees have contributed significantly to the cultural life of our nation and the world," Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein said in a statement. Bluesman Buddy Guy, Rubenstein said, "is a titan of the blues and has been a tremendous influence on virtually everyone who has picked up an electric guitar in the last half century." Meanwhile, acting legend Hoffman has displayed an "unyielding commitment" while portraying a "wide variety of roles" has made him "one of the most versatile and iconoclastic actors of this or any other generation," Rubenstein added. "David Letterman is one of the most influential personalities in the history of television, entertaining an entire generation of late-night viewers with his unconventional wit and charm; Natalia Makarova's profound artistry has ignited the stages of the world's greatest ballet companies and continues to pass the torch to the next generation of dancers; and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant transformed the sound of rock and roll with their lyricism and innovative song structures, infusing blues into the sound of rock and roll and laying the foundation for countless rock bands," he concluded. The honorees will receive their Kennedy Center Honors medallions at a State Dinner hosted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and then on December 2 they'll join the President and the First Lady for the annual gala. President Obama and First Lady Michelle will receive the seven honorees, among others, at the White House before the festivities move to the Kennedy Center Opera House, where the group will be recognized with plenty of performances and tributes from their artistic peers. |
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Only John Paul Jones need apply
All shills for Obama of course they will get in.
do you understand me?
see my dish at 10am...baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
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they are great guys
This is a great group of honorees! I'm probably most excited to see Buddy Guy on here but all are very deserving.
I'm surprised Hoffman hasn't already gotten it – he's a master. As for Letterman, talk show hosts today owe more to him than they do Johnny Carson. Johnny's the king and was certainly Dave's hero but Letterman redefined the format back in the 80s. And he's still funnier than any other host working today.
I'm only sorry that Buddy Guy and Led Zeppelin won't be performing. Oh well, should be great.
dave must just as amused as we are. johnny carson did receive and honor and well deserved..david letterman - gosh darn just give the honor to him for pete's sake. lol
The first ten years of the Kennedy Center Honors were the years of worthy honorees who deserved to be recognized. Now that they were all honored, the Kennedy Center Honors are now picking just anybody whose achievements are less than half of these predecessors-because they have to pick 5 or 6 of them EVERY YEAR!!!
The committee consulted with the Nobel Peace Prize committee and decided to award Letterman. What a joke, the guy hasn't been funny since Johnny Carson was alive.
Your opinion. I disagree.
Hey Dutch,
Are you sure your real name isnt Jay Leno?????????
dave must be laughing is ass off about this!
if you don't like boo you don't have to shout! lol
To Boo,
If you're an idiot, then you have a name like Boo.
In the words of Gilbert Gotfried, "YOU FOOL!!!!"
David is still funny but the Kennedy Center Honors David Letterman? I could see him making fun of himself about this.
One thing about David is he does not take himself seriously at all. lol
This whole "award" thing is a bunch of nonsense.. How much more ego-pumping empty recognition do these idiots need?
letterman who in the hell said he is funny he sucks and so dose his show and who in there right mine pick him honors are you crazy really is that the worest you can pick
Seriously, who chose these people? Letterman!?? Not impressed by any of them.
I couldn't agree with you more. David Letterman used to be funny, but has turned into nothing more than an angry old man.
Not impressed by Dustin Hoffman and Natalia Makarova? You're insipid.
Maybe you don't find him funny, but he cracks my family up nightly. He's a riot if you get his sense of humor, which obviously you don't.
Letterman bashers need to grow a spine. Go watch Leno instead. I grew up on Letterman...he's a survivor.
Hopefully this award is a hint to leave. Liked you Dave but you have been on a way too long
Letterman has been a wonderful and talented entertainer for many years.
You need to get out more. Letterman hasn't been funny in years.
Letterman? Are you kidding me? What a joke these awards are.
damaged goods
Houses of the Holy
L E D Z E P P E L I N
Jimmy Page – Robert Plant – John Paul Jones – John Bonham
glad for dustin .. he has never really been honored, he has done some great acting. david letterman has been around for a long time..a life time achievement award for him...whatever...lolol
LED ZEPPELIN
Elton John also has a Kennedy Honor.
same ...
Hey Stupid Yanks-The Led Zeppelin members are British. Only Americans can be Democrat or Republican and like most people on this planet they don't care about Yankee politcs. Get your heads out of the sand or wherever you stuck it. Not everything is politics. Grow up and do some fancy book learnin'.
Hey m o r o n...Paul McCartney received this honor last year. Led Zeppelin won't be the first British citizens to get this award. Either talk about something you know something about or shut up.
He never said Zepplin was the first. Read honey! And get off my name, I was posting – albeit not frequently – before you.
If you are an Obama supporter, then you get the award. Oprah, Springsteen, and now Letterman. Why not Leno or Clint ? I llok forward to the program every year but the choices clearly are influenced by politics. Maybe next year, everyone at MSNBC will get an award.
Clint Eastwood already received the honor...in 2000. So that would be why he didn't get picked AGAIN this year. Jay Leno has about 2 decades less time in the field.
Don't politicize bloody everything.
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar...
And if you're an idiot, you make a comment like yours. THIS HONOR IS NOT POLITICAL.
I don't honor David Letterman. There is a man far more deserving; a man who is a far better person, who has done far more for other human beings, and his name is Richard Simmons. I have a thousand times more respect for Richard Simmons than I do for David Letterman and I'm glad Mr. Simmons has finally chosen to shun David Letterman's show.
wasnt simmons who shunned letterman
dave had had enough
helping people lose weight great but he is just a little to sweet for my taste(actually way to sweet)
Dustine needs alot of exposure.
Congratulations to two fabulously talented men. Each one should be acknowledged for his own unique style.
Davel Letterman committed adultery with people who worked for him, then made jokes about it when he was exposed for it. Some talent. Some accomplishment. Imagine how a conservative host would have been treated for the same stunt.
Sam Nations – so I guess you're a perfect, flawless human being. Letterman is being honored for his show....NOT FOR HIS PERSONAL LIFE. Grow up!
It's nice to see people like Boo – who are apparently void of any decency and integrity – mock anyone who points out lack of morals or values in celebrities. It shows how you and Dave and others who have no use for decent morality – all live in the same world. Ooooh, he's famous, so he's great. Really pathetic. But I'll expect another defensive rant from you now.
Well, old Newt had several affairs, and you conservatives wanted him to be president. You didn't throw that trash out, did you? How about Rush & his many marriages. Spouting his continual hate all the time, but you all got him on a pedestal, don't you? Why do you have to drag politics into everything? This is an honor that is bestowed on people of all political persuasions. Grow the heck up!
The problem with Sam Nations reply is not his take on Letterman's affairs, but simply how incorrect the statement is. Yes he had affairs. Clearly you didn't see the episode where he went public with it. It was anything but an attempt at humor. If there's anything about Letterman that doesn't get enough publicity it is his sincerity, whether in discussing this matter, his health and respect for his physicians, or discussing the passing of his dear friends (Carson, Zevon, etc). Any jokes he has ever made in reference to the affairs since are self-deprecating stabs at his own mistakes, no slights at anyone else involved.
David Letterman and Dustin Hoffman are liberal Democrats..... No surprises here...
Who cares. Let's see you accomplish what these guys have. You people have to label everything.
The reason these two men are democrats is that Republicans generally are not interested in the arts. One usually doesn't make a good living in the arts, and even then it is difficult and there is no job security. Comedy specifically is about bursting the bubble of pretentiousness of those who think they are powerful, so naturally it is generally a Democrat becoming a comedian with the big, fat, full-of-themselves Republicans as targets.
It's a small wonder conservatives have to politicize this – they specialize in idiotic whining. It's "achievement in the arts" that is being recognized – for folks who have had a long career entertaining others. Pretty straightforward. If you honestly believe that there's a conspiracy here, you aren't bright enough to make a meaningful post. Pull your head out.
Yes and stupid pet tricks and Larry Bud Mellman were high achievements in high art
What has Letterman offered except more and more bashing of conservative politics?
What have you done but whine, complain and play the victim.
True his show has become muc more politicial guess that happens when the hipster isnt that hip anymore
Congratulations