Star of Seinfeld feted by friends on Mark Twain Prize red carpet
WASHINGTON: Celebrities walking the red carpet before the ceremony at the Kennedy Center at which Julia Louis-Dreyfus was to collect the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor took turns fleeing from reporters and chatting them up to sing the comedian’s praises.
Keegan-Michael Key streaked past - no interviews, please, just photos. Same for Lisa Kudrow. And Tina Fey took only a brief turn before the gaggle.
But then came some of the chattier folks, and they confirmed our FOMO-fuelled suspicions: Yep, all the fun, famous people really are hanging out without us. Most of the artists who strolled the red carpet were actual pals of JLD’s, and their praise of her had the ring of familiar sincerity that you can’t just read off a teleprompter.
Singer- songwriter Jack Johnson, who said he’s a family friend of Louis-Dreyfus, likened performing on the Kennedy Center stage to playing a wedding. So no pressure, right?
No worries, said comic and ‘Silicon Valley’ actor Kumail Nanjiani, who assured us that the evening’s honoree was no diva. “Julia is very normal,” he said. “She’s a very normal, smart person.”
And actor Tony Hale was all too happy to gush about his ‘Veep’ co- star, whom he likes enough to show up for the kind of black-tie to- do he says he often avoids - apparently this is a Big Deal to him. “I could not wait to get here this weekend,” he said. “For someone as deserving as Julia, this is an absolute joy to watch.”
But it was arguably the most famous of all the talent assembled, Louis-Dreyfus’s ‘Seinfeld’ co- star Jerry Seinfeld, who lingered the longest, holding forth for just about every reporter in the scrum. On his chemistry between her Elaine character and his Jerry, he chalked it up to fate. “Magic happens or it doesn’t happen,” he said. “The trick is to know it when you see it.”
And he offered the sweetest description of the quartet of actors who comprised the on- screen pals of ‘Seinfeld’, including their fellow co- stars Jason Alexander and Michael Richards. “We were in love with each other, the four of us,” he said. “We each thought the
Magic happens or it doesn’t happen. The trick is to know it when you see it. We were in love with each other, the four of us. We each thought the others were fantastic. Jerry Seinfeld, on Louis Dreyfus and two other on-screen pals of ‘Seinfeld’
others were fantastic.”
Finally, Louis-Dreyfus arrived to wrap up the pre- show show, looking regal in a navy gown. Although she appeared serene and bantered with reporters about politics and Washington memories ( local friends, including her Holton-Arms School drama teacher, Judy White, were in the audience), she confessed to being not quite at ease.
Asked about what was next for her after beating cancer and starring in a succession of hit shows, she indicated she had more immediate concerns. “I’ve gotta get through tonight,” she said. She joked that the night was so surreal, she was afraid that the Kennedy Center would change its mind, even as the hour for the curtain- raising neared. “There’s still time,” she told a reporter.