Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor

*Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor*
Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor
Genre	variety special
Directed by	Chris Robinson
Starring	Dave Chappelle ; Aziz Ansari ; Neal Brennan ; Michael Che ; Bradley Cooper ; Morgan Freeman ; Tiffany Haddish ; Colin Jost ; Lorne Michaels ; Eddie Murphy ; Jon Stewart ; Sarah Silverman
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Producers	Michael B. Matuza ; Chris Robinson ; Matthew Winer
Editors	Jon Alloway ; Steven Bognar ; Chester Contaoi ; Brian Forbes ; Brad Gilson ; Pi Ware
Running time	90 minutes
Original release
Network	PBS
Release	October 27, 2019

Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor was a ceremony presented on October 27, 2019. The show honored comedian Dave Chappelle who was being awarded with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor which was presented at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C.^[1]^[2] Those who helped celebrate his accomplishments included Neal Brennan, Jon Stewart, Lorne Michaels, Aziz Ansari, Sarah Silverman, Bradley Cooper, and Morgan Freeman.

The event was filmed and shown on PBS as well as the streaming service Netflix in 2020. The broadcast of the ceremony was unique, because footage of the ceremony was interspersed with footage of Chappelle performing standup in various comedy clubs. The special earned two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Variety Special and Outstanding Picture Editing For Variety Programming.

Summary

In order of appearance:

Musical guests

Reception

The New York Times critic praised the show writing but added "The ceremony did little to explain the breaking point in Mr. Chappelle’s career and life. In highlight reels of Mr. Chappelle’s comedy, there was often at least a decade-long gap between jokes or scenes, highlighting his older, more challenging, more thrilling skit-based humor against his more recent and uneventful stand-up comedy."^[3] USA Today gave a mixed review to the special declaring, "Chappelle’s punchlines don’t hit without controversy," specifically pointing out his defense of Louis C.K., downplaying of the allegations against Michael Jackson, and his comments regarding the Trans community.^[4]

Release

The program was broadcast on PBS stations on Tuesday, January 7, 2020. It was also released on Netflix later in 2020.

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2020	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Variety Special	Rick Austin, Dalton Delan, David Jammy, Deborah F. Rutter, Kristen Wong, Chris Convy, Chris Robinson, Michael B. Matuza, Matthew Winer	Nominated	^[5]
2020	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Picture Editing For Variety Programming	Brad Gilson, Chester G Contaoi, Jon Alloway, Pi Ware, Brian Forbes	Nominated	^[5]

References

^ "2019 Winner The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor". The Kennedy Center Honors. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
^ "'The Best Part Of The First Amendment': Dave Chappelle Accepts Mark Twain Prize". NPR. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
^ Weiland, Noah (28 October 2019). "Dave Chappelle, Subversive and Charming, Wins Mark Twain Prize for Comedy". The New York Times. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
^ "Dave Chappelle defends humor, reflects on 'terrifying' comeback in Mark Twain special". USA Today. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
^ "Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize For American Humor". Emmy Awards. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

[1] "2019 Winner The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor". The Kennedy Center Honors. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

[2] "'The Best Part Of The First Amendment': Dave Chappelle Accepts Mark Twain Prize". NPR. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

[3] Weiland, Noah (28 October 2019). "Dave Chappelle, Subversive and Charming, Wins Mark Twain Prize for Comedy". The New York Times. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

[4] "Dave Chappelle defends humor, reflects on 'terrifying' comeback in Mark Twain special". USA Today. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

[5] "Dave Chappelle: The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize For American Humor". Emmy Awards. Retrieved June 23, 2022.

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