Obama awards 24 honours for arts and humanities
Star Wars producer George Lucas and musician Allen Toussaint among those receiving accolades
US President Barack Obama awarded the nation's highest honours in the arts and humanities to two dozen people - among them Joan Didion, Tony Kushner, George Lucas and Elaine May - whose work, he said, represented "a lasting contribution to American life".
In a White House ceremony on Wednesday, the president praised the recipients of the National Medal of Arts and the National Humanities Medal for teaching us "about ourselves and our world" and for making a difference in his own life.
"This is just fun for me, because I feel like I know you all because I have enjoyed your performances, and your writings have fundamentally changed me," Obama said.
The National Medal of Arts, given annually, is regarded as the nation's ultimate award for artists, art patrons and groups. Since its inception in 1984, more than 300 people have been honoured.
The current winners include men and women who contribute to the fine arts, writing, music, film, dance, theatre, sculpture and architecture.
Among them was Allen Toussaint, the 75-year-old composer, producer and performer from New Orleans, famed for his influential album Southern Nights.