Danny DeVito
© AFP Michal Cizek

KARLOVY VARY, Czech Republic (AFP) - "Don't try to make me cry," pleaded the diminutive Hollywood actor as he fought back tears during a standing ovation for his achievements as an actor, producer and director in more than 100 films since 1968.

True to his reputation as a comedian, DeVito grabbed his crystal award and congratulated himself that "at least I can have a bit of exercise" with "this big ball."

"I adore making films, it is the thing I enjoy the most in the world apart from cooking pasta," DeVito admitted a day earlier during a press conference.

The 63-year-old actor enjoyed lavishing the press with numerous anecdotes about his Hollywood life, including how he used his celebrity to dodge fines from transport police and how "Milos Forman cooks very well, but he eats everything that moves," and how "Arnold Schwarzenegger is bitten every night by the vampire of politics."

DeVito's latest comedy, "The Good Night", directed by his brother in law. Jake Paltrow, was one of the films competing for the festival's main award, won by the Icelandic film "Myrin" by Baltasar Kormakur.

The Karlovy Vary event, launched in 1946, is recognised as the biggest film festival in Central Europe.

©AFP