Adam Sandler scores Mark Twain Prize for lifetime in comedy

Adam Sandler has contributed a lot to comedy.

When actor-comedian Adam Sandler wins the Mark Twain Award for American Humor at the Kennedy Center on Sunday night, he will be feted by comedy and entertainment greats.

The 56-year-old Sandler initially gained widespread recognition as a cast member of "Saturday Night Live." After being let go from the cast after a five-year run, Sandler began a career in movies that has spanned more than 30 films and earned over $3 billion globally.

"Adam Sandler has entertained audiences for over three decades with his films, music, and his tenure as a fan favourite cast member on ‘SNL,’" Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter said in December.

"Adam has created characters that have made us laugh, cry, and cry from laughing."

"Happy Gilmore," "The Wedding Singer," and "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" are some of Sandler's best-known songs.

Although Sandler is best known for his slapstick humour and characters that are overgrown man-children, he has also excelled in a number of sombre parts, like those in the movies "Punch Drunk Love" and "Uncut Gems."

The  Mark Twain Award night

A night of testimonies and video tributes, frequently starring former award winners, is held to honour Mark Twain awardees. Richard Pryor, who received the honour for the first time in 1998, Whoopi Goldberg, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett, and Dave Chapelle are among the other comedians who have received lifetime achievement awards.

Due to several claims of sexual assault, Bill Cosby, the Mark Twain Award winner from 2009, had his award cancelled in 2019.

More than its fair share of the 24 Mark Twain winners have come from the venerable "SNL" comedy troupe; Sandler is the seventh cast member to receive the honour, joining Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Will Farrell, Billy Crystal, Eddie Murphy, and Julia Louise-Dreyfus. The 2004 winner was show creator and producer Lorne Michaels.