Douglas Sees Life Flash By in AFI Tribute : Film: After surviving a helicopter crash just a few weeks ago, the veteran actor happily accepts the Life Achievement Award.

“Several weeks ago I was in a helicopter crash. They say that life flashes before you like a movie, but I was knocked out. I didn’t see one thing. Thank God, I got a second chance to see it tonight.”

These were Kirk Douglas’ opening remarks in accepting the American Film Institute’s 19th annual Life Achievement Award Thursday night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel after an hour and half of tributes from friends and colleagues, interspersed with the usual carefully selected film clips.

By now, AFI tributes have become ritualized, in format and in their fulsome cue-carded praise of the honorees, but there was real pleasure in observing Douglas enjoy himself so thoroughly, with such open, honest gratification. From the moment he strode in to a standing ovation, he made it clear that his recent injuries had not diminished his vigor nor his remarkably youthful appearance, which belies his 74 years.

Douglas is a star of mythic proportions whose rags-to-riches personal saga has always informed the roles he plays with such intensity and passion. He is the kind of Hollywood golden-era star-actor who tends to absorb his characters within his fiery, utterly distinctive personality rather than lose himself within them.

Yet the clips, spanning nearly 45 years, attest to how consistently effective he has been, whether playing a tormented Van Gogh in Vincente Minnelli’s “Lust for Life,” a ruthless producer in Minnelli’s “The Bad and the Beautiful,” a hungry fighter in the star-making “Champion,” which was produced by Stanley Kramer and directed by Mark Robson, or a principled colonel in Stanley Kubrick’s anti-war classic “Paths of Glory.”

“He has brought a fierce spark of life to every part imaginable,” remarked George Stevens Jr., AFI founder and co-chairman and the evening’s producer. “He has a special gift to show us the flaws in his heroes and the virtues in every heel.”

Hosted by his son Michael, the tribute, written by Bob Shrum and directed by Louis J. Horvitz, was especially rich in associations. Lauren Bacall recalled her early friendship with him and her bringing him to the attention of producer Hal Wallis, who promptly brought him to Hollywood from the New York theater; Bacall was subsequently to star with him in “Young Man With a Horn.”

Karl Malden told of meeting Douglas in summer stock in 1940--and then co-starring with Michael Douglas decades later in the TV series “Streets of San Francisco.” Danny DeVito made his screen debut in the 1973 “Scalawag,” which Douglas also directed; recently, DeVito directed Michael Douglas in “The War of the Roses.”

There was praise from Tom Cruise, a funny impersonation from Dana Carvey (who appeared with Douglas in “Tough Guys”) and gracious words from leading ladies Patricia Neal (“In Harm’s Way”), Angie Dickinson (“Cast a Giant Shadow”) and Jean Simmons (“Spartacus,” glimpsed in clips from its recent restoration). The most heartfelt remarks came from Richard Harris, who said that when they worked together (in the 1965 “Heroes of Telemark”) Douglas didn’t like him “because I tried to act like him; he was my hero” but that didn’t stop Douglas from recommending Harris for “Camelot” over Richard Burton.

“If it were not for you, I would not be standing here tonight,” said Harris.

Sylvester Stallone was in good form both in person and on screen in the upcoming “Oscar,” in which Douglas plays his father in a notably vigorous and comic deathbed scene. Douglas later reminded the audience that he bowed out of the first “Rambo” because he felt strongly that his character, subsequently played by Richard Crenna, should kill off Rambo, his creation. “I was right artistically,” Douglas maintained still, but admitted that that would have cost Stallone millions in the sequels.

In accepting his lifetime achievement trophy, Douglas spoke with pride of his four sons and grandson and remarked that his wife, Anne, “deserves 75% of it” and wished his ailing, frequent co-star Burt Lancaster a return to good health. “Burt once said of me that I was the first to admit that I am a difficult man--and that he was the second to admit it.”

Before the tribute, which will air on CBS in May, got under way, Charlton Heston presented director David Lynch with the first Franklin J. Schaffner AFI alumni award.