Obama honors Ellen DeGeneres, Tom Hanks, more with Presidential Medal of Freedom

President Barack Obama awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 21 recipients Tuesday afternoon.

Among the honorees were “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, actors Tom Hanks and Robert De Niro and business leaders Bill and Melinda Gates.

“The Presidential Medal of Freedom is not just our nation’s highest civilian honor — it’s a tribute to the idea that all of us, no matter where we come from, have the opportunity to change this country for the better,” Obama said in a news release announcing the recipients.

Obama has awarded more Medals of Freedom than any other president, according to The Washington Post.

Here is the full list of recipients:

-NBA player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

-Former Blackfeet Tribal community leader Elouise Cobell (posthumous)

-Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres

-Actor Robert De Niro

-Physicist Richard Garwin

-Business leaders Bill and Melinda Gates

-Architect Frank Gehry

-Mathematician and computer scientist Margaret H. Hamilton

-Actor Tom Hanks

-Former Navy Rear Admiral Grace Hopper posthumously (posthumous)