Live from D.C., it’s Saturday night!

Seth Meyers, used to lampooning Washington politicians as head writer of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” has the unenviable task of trying to make those same leaders laugh Saturday as the featured entertainment at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner.

The New Hampshire native says he’s been warned about the challenge ahead of him, but that he thinks he’ll thread the needle just fine.

“It may be a tough room. But as someone who follows politics, I think it’s really exciting to go into a room where people are incredibly well-informed,” he told C-SPAN this week. “You can probably make jokes about the minutiae of politics that wouldn’t work on Saturday Night Live.”


Meyers’ comedy act is one highlight of the evening, second only perhaps to President Obama’s turn to make jokes at the expense of his rivals, and likely even his own administration.

At the recent Gridiron Club Dinner, one of Obama’s biggest laugh lines was when he asked the emcee to play “Born in the USA” after he had been introduced with the traditional “Hail to the Chief.” The release of his long-form birth certificate is sure to be a laugh line Saturday, especially with Donald Trump in the audience.

The black tie affair at the Washington Hilton has always been one of the highlights of the Beltway social scene, bringing together the city’s political press corps and the officials they cover. But in recent years it’s become an attraction for some of the biggest stars in Hollywood.

This year, some of the celebrities expected to attend include Courtney Cox, Jon Hamm, Kate Hudson, Sean Penn, Paul Rudd and Jane Lynch.


Aside from the dinner itself, the weekend includes a number of pre- and after-parties hosted by both media companies and lobbying interests like the Motion Picture Assn. of America.

michael.memoli@latimes.com