Denzel Washington (Morgan Freeman Tribute) - 2008 Kennedy Center Honors

(Announcer) Ladies and gentlemen, Denzel Washington. (Music and appluse) (Washington) I was a young man, I was just out of acting school, and I got a job with the New York Shakespeare Festival in in the park. They were doing a play called “Coriolanus” and Morgan Freeman was playing the lead, and I had a scene where I had this three hit sword fight with Morgan and, of course, I thought the play was all about my character so I went up to Morgan and I said you know I think maybe I could, you know, wound you and cut, slice and, you know, so Morgan looked at me with that that look, like the one he has now, with that Morgan Freeman gaze, you know the one I'm talking about that serious look and he said to me first of all, what's your name?

I said you don't know me, I'm Denzel. He said all right Denzel, we click the swords three times – click, click, click -- I stab you, you fall down, and you die. (Laughter) Quickly.

I had the opportunity to appear with him again in the film “Glory. ” What I saw was an actor with a God-given sense of timing, perfect ear for nuance, this great man that I've been fortunate to know and call a friend for 29 years now. He lives on the same patch of land in Mississippi that his grandparents worked, sails his own boat by himself to the Bahamas, flies his own plane by himself around the country.

Morgan Freeman is very much his own man. He now has his own motion picture production company, it's called Revelation Entertainment. Revelation’s motto is enlighten, express heart, glorify the human experience.

Well my friend, not only is that what you've been doing your whole career, but in my humble opinion that is who you are. I'm proud to know you and proud to honor you.