[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
[December 3, 1995]
[Pages 1840-1841]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at the Kennedy Center Honors Reception
December 3, 1995

    I am delighted to see you here. I am delighted to see you here on 
this, what is really the first day of our Christmas season. It is true 
that Hillary saw these decorations a couple of hours ago, but I went up 
and crashed. You saw them all before I did. [Laughter]
    This is a happy time at the White House, and this is an appropriate 
way to begin. As all of you know, we've just come home from Europe, from 
a trip to London, Belfast, Dublin, to see our forces in Germany, and to 
Madrid.
    I was especially moved again, as I think every person who goes to 
Ireland is, by the incredible power of the art of Ireland. The Irish 
playwright John Millington Synge wrote of artists that they know the 
stars, the flowers, and the birds and converse with the mountains, 
moors, and ferns. Today we honor five such artists, and I am delighted 
to see so many more in the audience tonight joining us.
    I think all of us know that our Nation and our world are in a period 
of profound change, perhaps the most sweeping period of change in the 
way we work and live and relate to one another in a hundred years. We 
know that there is an enormous amount of possibility in this period and 
still a great deal to trouble the soul. At such a time we have to do 
everything we can to imagine the right kind of future and to remember 
what is best and constant about human nature throughout all ages. And so 
at this time we need our artists in a special way, in a profound way. 
And so, especially at this Christmas season, I welcome all of you to the 
White House.
    Joseph Jacques d'Amboise was a natural athlete and a tough street 
kid in New York City. He discovered his true gift one day when he took 
his sister to ballet class and discovered the new sport of dance. Ever 
since that day, he has taken ballet into the neighborhoods and 
consciousness of America in a way that no other performer has. He has 
made ballet strong as well as beautiful through his performances in 
``Carousel,'' ``Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,'' and ``Stars and 
Stripes,'' a distinctively American ballet created especially for him. 
He danced until he was 50, which may be young in some careers, but not 
in ballet; I'm not so sure it's young in others as well. [Laughter] 
Today we thank you for sharing your talents by teaching dance to a whole 
new generation of performers. We thank you for your work as a performer

[[Page 1841]]

and choreographer and for giving new dimension to the world of ballet.
    Marilyn Horne made her professional debut at the age of 4 when she 
sang at a fundraiser for President Roosevelt. That's Franklin 
Roosevelt--[laughter]--and it was very late in his term of service. 
[Laughter] Showing good judgment in art and politics, she still had a 
glitch or two in the road. Her career didn't exactly take off in a 
straight line. In fact, she was rejected from her grade school glee club 
because her voice was too powerful. By age 17, however, she was back on 
track giving a solo recital in the Hollywood Bowl and dubbing the music 
for the title role in the film ``Carmen Jones.'' She went on to form a 
legendary partnership with Joan Sutherland, to record remarkable 
Christmas carols and, most of all, to light up the opera houses of the 
world with a spirit as magnificent as her songs. And today as she 
continues to perform, she is passing on her sheer love of music and her 
generous spirit.
    In addition, Marilyn, to thanking you on behalf of the American 
people, let me thank you again for your several years of friendship to 
me and to Hillary and for gracing our Inauguration with your beautiful 
voice.
    Thank you.
    Riley B. King was known during his days on Memphis's Beale Street as 
``the blues boy.'' Eventually he became known to all America simply as 
B.B. King. For generations of Americans the music and the man are 
synonymous. Like nearly everyone else my age, I grew up listening to 
``Three O'Clock Blues.'' B.B. King was a troubadour on the American 
road. He spent decades touring, perfecting, and inventing. The sounds he 
created became the soul of a new music, with Jerry Garcia, Eric Clapton, 
and the Rolling Stones all modeling their music after his. He has 
traveled the world to represent our country and set hands clapping from 
London to Lagos. He still averages--listen to this--275 performances a 
year. Music is his life, and yes, the blues is B.B. King.
    When Sidney Poitier left Cat Island in the Bahamas for Miami at the 
age of 15, he was stunned at the signs of segregation, signs that read 
``colored'' and ``white.'' More than any other person, he would remove 
those signs from the world of film. He broke these barriers by sheer 
force of his powerful presence on screen. From the start, he was a 
leading man, and his performances have become landmarks in America's 
consciousness of itself. When he filmed ``Cry, the Beloved Country,'' he 
had to enter South Africa as an indentured servant to the director. But 
we are all grateful to him and in his service for the way he has graced 
the screen with films like ``To Sir, With Love,'' ``Guess Who's Coming 
to Dinner,'' ``A Raisin in the Sun,'' and many, many others. He has 
captivated us with his performances and reminded us that excellence 
comes in all colors. Thank you for entertaining and educating America 
with dignity, strength, and grace, Sidney Poitier.
    Marvin Neil Simon's humor distills the essence of his life and our 
lives, sometimes whether we like it or not. [Laughter] He has written 
the lines behind the laughs of Phil Silvers, Victor Borge, Buddy 
Hackett, and Jackie Gleason. He collaborated with Sid Caesar on what 
many people hailed as the best show ever on television. He has written a 
string of magnificent hit plays unprecedented in the history of the 
American theater. Audiences found them so funny that at first, that few 
people noticed the gentle, deep, and sometimes sharp truths behind the 
comedy. Felix and Oscar became American archetypes. We saw what it was 
to grow up in ``Brighton Beach Memoirs'' and to grow older in ``The 
Sunshine Boys.'' We saw flaws and foibles and faults, but always, 
through them all, the indomitability of the human spirit. Neil Simon 
takes his work seriously, but he challenges us and himself never to take 
ourselves too seriously. Thank you for the wit and the wisdom.
    Today we meet at the summit of five lives of artistic grace and 
greatness. Jacques d'Amboise, Marilyn Horne, B.B. King, Sidney Poitier 
and Neil Simon, we are pleased to honor all of you for your work. But 
more importantly, we honor you for your spirit and your heart.
    Thank you, and congratulations.

Note: The President spoke at 6:03 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House.