TINA FEY WINS THE MARK TWAIN HUMOR PRIZE
Ecstatic congratulations go out to TINA…
The woman known for her impression of Sarah Palin on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE will win the nation’s top humor prize this year from THE KENNEDY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS.
TINA FEY joins the ranks of STEVE MARTIN, LILY TOMLIN, WHOOPI GOLDBERG, BOB NEWHART, LORNE MICHAELS, RICHARD PRYOR, GEORGE CARLIN and others who have won the MARK TWAIN PRIZE FOR AMERICAN HUMOR, the center announced today.
TINA will be the youngest recipient in the award’s history.
“I am truly thrilled to receive this honour,” TINA said in a written statement. “I assume Betty White was disqualified for steroid use.”
TINA returned to SNL earlier this month when BETTY WHITE drew rave reviews as host of the legendary late night program.
Some of the biggest names in comedy will honour TINA when the prize is awarded NOVEMBER 9 in Washington, D.C. The show will be taped for television broadcast later.
TINA got her start with Chicago’s Second City improv group and became the first woman to be head writer on SNL during nine seasons as a cast member and coanchor of WEEKEND UPDATE.
Those years set her apart and changed the show, commented Mark Krantz, an executive producer of the Mark Twain prize.
“It’s that job as a head writer on a show that’s been a traditionally male oriented show.” He also remarked that TINA’S work “kind of broke the ceiling for many, many women in comedy, let alone that particular show.”
She created NBC’s EMMY winning comedy series 30 ROCK. TINA has also appeared in several hit movies, including MEAN GIRLS (which she also wrote). Her film DATE NIGHT (with STEVE CARELL) is currently playing in theatres.
TINA is currently working on her first book, a humorous memoir due out next year. She lives in New York with her husband JEFF RICHMOND and their daughter.
This isn’t the first recognition of her work. TINA was voted THE ASSOCIATED PRESS’ ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR in 2008 by newspaper editors and broadcasters across the country after her Palin impression during the presidential campaign.
Ms. Fey has more EMMYS, GOLDEN GLOBES and SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS than she can hold in two arms. And she’s been one of PEOPLE magazine’s MOST BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE – not once but four times.
“She’s politically conscious. She’s a writer. She’s a filmmaker. She’s a producer. She’s a performer,” Mark Krantz stated.
“Her body of work is as inclusive and far reaching as anyone else’s…and she’s just funny.”
It’s too soon to know who will perform in TINA’S honour. The producers will likely invite many familiar faces, including people she has worked with, those who influenced her work and those she has influenced.
The prize honours people who have made an impact on society similar to Mark Twain, who was a satirist, commentator and storyteller. This is the 13th year it’s been awarded.
THE KENNEDY CENTER board chooses the winner with recommendations from former Twain honorees, the show’s producers and others.
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