TONY KUSHNER JOKES HE FEELS LIKE A FRAUD BEFORE BEING HONORED AT INAUGURAL ARTHUR MILLER FOUNDATION GALA

Tony Kushner joked that he felt like a fraud to be mentioned in the same breath as Arthur Miller.

The Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright was honored by the Arthur Miller Foundation with its Humanitarian Award Monday night (22 OCT. 2018) in New York.

Guests at the starry inaugural gala included Steven Spielberg, Nathan Lane, Liam Neeson, and Alec Baldwin.

Kushner spoke briefly about the honor before heading inside.

"I feel like a fraud. But it's great. I mean it feels wonderful. He was one of my heroes. So, the connection feels amazing," Kushner said.  

Baldwin served as the evening's host and said he sees Kushner as more than just a great writer.

"He's a great New Yorker. I admire Kushner. When we were in the height of the doing Trump on Saturday Night Live the first season of that in 2016. I was at Dean and Deluca, and my assistant was with me. And Kushner said to me, 'Is this you taster?' Like I got someone tasting my food, so I don't get poisoned by the Trump administration. And he's very clever, he's very funny," Baldwin said.

Baldwin continued:

"Everybody says that Kushner is one of the smartest people in the world. He's probably one the smartest people ever, you know. So, it makes sense to give him an award from one the name of one great writer to another."

Actor Nathan Lane, who took home a Tony award earlier this year for his role as Roy Cohn in the revival of "Angels in America" sees Kushner as a visionary.

"He was just incredibly prescient about where we were headed back in the Reagan days and now where we've wound up. And how we're still having a lot of the same arguments. He also gives you hope at the end of the play. Hope, for as the character of Harper says, for a kind of painful progress. So, you know I hope, I hope that's the case. Maybe we have to go through this to get to something better," Lane said.

Foundation co-chair Rebecca Miller and daughter of Arthur Miller called Kushner the perfect recipient of the inaugural Humanitarian award.

"Tony is really the perfect person to receive our first honor in this way. He is a great playwright and also a great human being, and incredibly caring. And I think he shares some of my father's love of humanity. I think that's very - it radiates out of Tony," Miller said.

The Arthur Miller Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing access and equity to theater education in New York City public schools. Besides Miller, other co-chairs include Kate Capshaw and Spielberg.

And that's a familiar face to Kushner, since they have been working together on the director's upcoming version of "West Side Story."

"It's been wonderful. He's a dear friend and amazing collaborator and I feel really honored working on a Steven Spielberg movie every time I do it. I'm very excited about what we're doing now with 'West Side Story.' I think that it's going to be something new and thrilling. So, it's always a great joy to work with Steven. He's an amazing man," Kushner said.

The event will raise funds for the Foundation's theater education programs.

New York, 22 October 2018

1. Exterior, City Winery

2. Medium, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw enter red carpet

3. Various of Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw posing for photographers

4. Group photo (left to right) Rebecca Miller, Steven Spielberg, Kate Capshaw, Tony Kushner, and Mark Harris

5. Medium, Rebecca Miller, Steven Spielberg, and Kate Capshaw posing for photographers

6. Medium, Rebecca Miller and Liam Neeson posing for photographers

7. Medium, Liam Neeson posing for photographers

8. Various, Tony Kushner posing for photographers

9. Medium, Tony Kushner talking to reporter

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Tony Kushner/Playwright, on being honored:

"I feel like a fraud. But it's great. I mean it feels wonderful. He was one of my heroes. So, the connection feels amazing."

11. Various, Alec Baldwin, Hilaria Baldwin with daughter Carmen Gabriela Baldwin

12. Medium, Alec Baldwin talking to reporter

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Alec Baldwin/Actor, on Tony Kushner:

"You know, Kushner is someone who not only a great writer and a great screenwriter, he's a great New Yorker. I admire Kushner. When we were in the height of the doing Trump on Saturday Night Live the first season of that in 2016. I was at Dean and Deluca, and my assistant was with me. And Kushner said to me, 'Is this you taster?' Like I got someone tasting my food, so I don't get poisoned by the Trump administration. And he's very clever, he's very funny. Whenever you see him – God, what I wouldn't give to have him on my talk show because I just admire him endlessly. I mean everybody says that Kushner is one of the smartest people in the world. He's probably one the smartest people ever, you know. So, it makes sense to give him an award."

14. Alec Baldwin greets Nathan Lane and gives him a kiss on the cheek

15. Nathan Lane talking to reporter

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Nathan Lane/Actor, on Tony Kushner's vision:

"You know, he just - at least in terms of 'Angels,' he was just incredibly prescient about where we were headed back in the Reagan days and now where we've wound up. And how we're still having a lot of the same arguments. He also gives you hope at the end of the play. Hope, for as the character of Harper says, for a kind of painful progress. So, you know I hope, I hope that's the case. Maybe we have to go through this to get to something better."

17. Rebecca Miller talking to reporter

18. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Miller/Writer-Director, on honoring Kushner:

"Tony is really the perfect person to receive our first honor in this way. He is a great playwright and also a great human being, and incredibly caring. And I think he shares some of my father's love of humanity. I think that's very - it radiates out of Tony."

19. Nathan Lane talking to reporter

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Nathan Lane/Actor, on Tony Kushner working with Spielberg:

"He's one of our greatest directors, so it's not surprising that he was drawn to one of our greatest writers. So now they just have to give me a job."

21. Tony Kushner talking to reporter

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Tony Kushner/Playwright, on working with Steven Spielberg:

"It's been wonderful. He's a dear friend and amazing collaborator and I feel really honored working on a Steven Spielberg movie every time I do it. I'm very excited about what we're doing now with 'West Side Story.' I think that it's going to be something new and thrilling. So, it's always a great joy to work with Steven. He's an amazing man."

23. Wide of Steven Spielberg

Alec Baldwin was arrested Friday after allegedly punching a man in the face during a dispute over a parking spot outside his New York City home, authorities said.

Police said the actor claimed he had a family member holding the spot for him as he attempted to park his black Cadillac Escalade around 1:30 p.m. (1730 GMT) when a man driving a black Saab station wagon pulled up and took it.

Police said the men were arguing and pushed each other before Baldwin, 60, turned violent.

Baldwin was taken into custody and is expected to face an assault charge.

He's being processed at a nearby precinct in Manhattan's Greenwich Village neighborhood.

The driver of the station wagon, 49, was taken to a hospital with jaw pain, police said.

A representative for Baldwin did not immediately respond to a message requesting comment.

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2. Various of Alec Baldwin and Hilaria Baldwin posing on the Emmys red carpet

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3. Wide of Alec and Hilaria Baldwin with their daughter Carmen on a red carpet

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4. Various of Alec and Hilaria Baldwin arriving at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's annual fall gala

Actor Alec Baldwin has been arrested for allegedly punching someone during a dispute over a New York City parking spot.

Police say the actor was taken into custody just before 2 p.m. Friday (2 November 2018) in Manhattan's West Village neighborhood.

A representative for Baldwin did not immediately respond to a message requesting comment.

ARCHIVE: New York - 7 November 2017

1. Various of Alec and Hilaria Baldwin arriving at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's annual fall gala

ARCHIVE: New York - 17 September 2017

2. Various of Alec Baldwin and Hilaria Baldwin posing on the Emmys red carpet

ARCHIVE: New York - 22 October 2018

3. Wide of Alec and Hilaria Baldwin with their daughter Carmen on a red carpet

ARCHIVE: New York - 2 November 2015

4. Various of Alec and Hilaria Baldwin arriving at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's annual fall gala