Apparently, Dave Chappelle will have the last laugh after all.

According to the organizers of HBO's inaugural Comedy Festival, scheduled for Nov. 17-19 in Las Vegas, the comedian is set to return to the spotlight to close out the event.

Chappelle, who made headlines after he disappeared during production of the third season of Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show, has recently been performing stand-up routines in small comedy clubs--a lifestyle he claims to prefer over the pressures of superstardom.

"I like that particular kind of attention. People don't know what it's like standing up there on stage, when you have a wall of people smiling at you," Chappelle told the Cincinnati Enquirer in a recent interview.

"Most people don't know what it's like to stand up there and speak their mind. I have a venue to do that. I get paid to do that. It's not like I'm doing heavy lifting up there. It's not like I'm solving the world's problems. It's like I'm hanging out with a bunch of people and it's cool."

Before he takes the stage for closing ceremonies, Chappelle will be preceded at the Comedy Festival by numerous comic peers, including Larry David, George Lopez, Bill Maher, Dennis Miller, Chris Rock, Ray Romano, Garry Shandling and Jon Stewart.

The newly created festival is meant to complement HBO's annual U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen.

Jerry Seinfeld, the man famed for creating a show about nothing, has been selected to receive the festival's highest honor--the first ever The Comedian award, given to the artist that has most influenced and furthered the art of comedy.

The award ceremony will feature a 60-minute question and answer session with Seinfeld and fellow stand-up masters Rock and Shandling, and will include clips from the documentary The Comedian, Seinfeld and other highlights from the comic's career.

"The extraordinary breadth of talent that is performing at the festival is a comedy fan's dream," said Bob Crestani, CEO of the Comedy Festival, in a statement. "I am proud that we are presenting Jerry Seinfeld with our first annual the Comedian award. From stand-up to television to film and now animation, Jerry epitomizes the spirit of the award as an artist that has furthered the art of comedy."

The festival is being jointly produced by HBO and AEG Live and sponsored by TBS. Over three days, more than 50 performances will take place in nine venues at Caesars Palace and the Flamingo Las Vegas, including live stand-up, sketch comedy and film, as well as special events and screenings.

The festival lineup reads as a veritable who's who of comedy, meaning that just about every comic worth his or her laughs is set to make an appearance at the three-day laugh-in.

The event will open with a two-hour TBS special called Earth to America!, designed to raise awareness about global warming. Laurie David will host the special, joined by her husband, Larry David, Jack Black, Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Ferrell, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Martin, Martin Short, Ben Stiller, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Senator John McCain, among others. TBS will broadcast the special Nov. 20.

Other highlights include a rare West Coast standup routine at Caesar's Palace by fake news anchor extraordinaire Stewart. Lewis Black and Dave Attell are also set to co-headline a show at the Palace, where Dane Cook and Lopez will host their own shows.

Maher is set to host a late-night For Adults Only show, with Gilbert Gottfried and Sarah Silverman appearing as guests. Miller is slated to tape an hourlong special for HBO and Susie Essman will serve as host of a "Women with Attitude" showcase, with a yet-to-be determined lineup.

Meanwhile, for those thinking that comedy's gone to the dogs, well, it has. Triumph the Insult Comic Dog is taking charge of his very own late-night variety show at the event.

Tickets for the Comedy Festival go on sale Sept. 25 via Ticketmaster and Sept. 30 through the festival's Website, thecomedyfestival.com.