De Niro, Brooks, Springsteen Lauded at Kennedy Center Honors

Over 300 guests, including Hollywood stars and politicians, were on hand to celebrate five artists for their notable accomplishments in the arts

Mel Brooks, Robert De Niro and Bruce Springsteen partied Washington, D.C.-style this weekend with President Barack Obama.

And they didn't have to party-crash to do it. 

The über-talented trio, along with jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck and opera singer Grace Bumbry, were acknowledged for their notable artistic accomplishments during the Kennedy Center Honors Saturday evening, according to the Washington Post. 

The ceremony recognizes those who have defined American culture through the arts as a living memorial to John F. Kennedy. 

Jack Black, Matthew Broderick, Edward Norton, Ben Stiller, Sting, Martin Scorsese, and Philip Seymour Hoffman were among the nearly 300 guests in attendance. 

The president and a slew of Washington power players were on hand as well. 

After noting that the honored artists were "indeed the best" during the event, the president gave Springsteen an even bigger compliment by saying, "Only a handful of people have tapped the full power of music to tell the American story…one of those people is Bruce Springsteen. I'm the president, but he's the Boss." 

Thank goodness the Boss showed up in the right city for the ceremony.   

The Kennedy Center Honors airs nationwide Dec. 29 on CBS.