Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres was awarded the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center last night. A number of celebs attended the event, including her wife Portia de Rossi, Jimmy Kimmel and John Krasinski. Celebrities such as Whoopi Goldberg, Bill Crystal, Bill Cosby, Tiny Fey and Will Ferrell are among those who previously won the award. “I just want to make people happy and make people laugh,” Ellen said, in accepting the prize. “I’m flattered. It’s fantastic. Of course I think, ‘What took so long?'” Singer Jason Mraz, who was also at the event, revealed, “She’s the same backstage as she is on stage, and that’s why you love to watch her.” Comedian Sean Hayes added that Ellen has “changed America,” in representing the gay community. “You’ve changed the world. We didn’t have a voice until there was you.” Ellen publicly came out as a lesbian in 1997 and is now the host of the popular The Ellen DeGeneres Show. ~Luxy Hariharan