BOSTON (AP) — In death as in life, Massachusetts Sen. Edward Kennedy on Friday brought together political rivals, this time to celebrate his ferocious sense of humor and unwavering dedication to family and country.

A who’s who of politics gathered at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston for the more than three-hour tribute featuring spirited musical performances, hearty laughter and calls to continue to fight for Kennedy’s last political wish, health coverage for all Americans.

Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona called Kennedy “the best ally you could have’’ when they agreed on issues, and Sen. Orrin Hatch, another Republican colleague, said he’d battled like a brother with Kennedy for 33 years and “loved every minute of it.’’ “I miss fighting in public and joking with him in the background. I miss all the things we could do together,’’ Hatch said. He recalled that Kennedy once dressed as an Elvis impersonator at a staff holiday party, would frequently blow cigar smoke in his direction during their early years of political committee debates, and “just knew how to push people’s buttons.’’

The speakers, many of whom worked for years with Kennedy in the Senate, shared stories of his congeniality and knack for compromise as they recalled his congressional successes and the ones he had yet to achieve, most notably the struggle for health care reform, when he died this week of a brain tumor at age 77.

His closest friend in the Senate, Democrat Christopher Dodd, of Connecticut, made note of the relationships he developed across the aisle, and singled out Hatch and McCain. “It is to their great credit that they so often supported Teddy’s efforts. And, I say in some jest, it is to Teddy’s great credit that he so rarely supported theirs,’’ Dodd said to an eruption of laughter.