At Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro each appeared on stage to give special tributes to Francis Ford Coppola, while Al Pacino called him a trailblazer willing to break the first rule of Hollywood: Never put your own money in your movie projects.

Not Fade Away” closed out the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony on Sunday, just as honorees The Grateful Dead had used Buddy Holly’s ode to enduring love to close out hundreds of concerts over the years.

With the exception of a joke by comedian David Letterman that the Kennedy Center was trying to fit as many Honours ceremonies in as possible before Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, politics took a back seat for the show itself.

The group was recognized at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony Dec. 8 for their lifetime contribution to American culture through performing arts. Sunday night also honored blues-rock-how-could-you-possibly-categorize-her legend Bonnie Raitt;

Francis Ford Coppola, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Bobby Weir, Bonnie Raitt, Arturo Sandoval and Michelle Ebanks attend a reception for the Kennedy Center honorees at the White House in Washington, U.

Guests, stars and honorees spoke on the red carpet of the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 8.

Celebrities, cultural icons and a few surprise guests are gathering for the annual Kennedy Center Honors celebration in Washington

There will be personalized tributes with performances and testimonials from fellow artists during the gala at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.