The 59th Annual Primetime Emmy Nominations: I Knew This Would Happen
That’s Why I Took Emmy Nomination Day Off—To Recover from the Trauma
Despite all the welcome new faces and shows evident among yesterday’s Emmy nominees, there was still a very depressing aftertaste produced by the glaring lack of certain other faces and shows in the elite top categories. Lost scored supporting actor nods for Michael Emerson and Terry O’Quinn, although no other actors or actresses were nominated from that series or Battlestar Galactica, Dexter, Friday Night Lights, and The Wire.
I could easily throw back Hugh Laurie, James Spader, and Kiefer Sutherland in the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series category, if only someone would give me James Callis (Battlestar Galactica), Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights), Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Lennie James (Jericho), and Dominic West (The Wire) in return.
Moreover, it would have been nice—and fitting—if voters had paid due respect to two-time Best Actress Oscar nominee Mary McDonnell (Battlestar Galactica), as well. She’s no lightweight, and her performance in Battlestar has been consistently excellent since day one of the series—certainly worthy of Outstanding Lead Actress recognition after all these years.
Aside from The Sopranos, I would also wipe out every Outstanding Drama Series nominee and replace them with Battlestar Galactica, Dexter, Lost, Friday Night Lights, and The Wire. But Boston Legal, Grey’s Anatomy, Heroes, and House? I actually watch those shows and still don’t agree with their nomination.
Take last fall’s newcomer Heroes. I am a devout fan of the series; yet, I have in no way ever deluded myself into believing that it qualifies as an outstanding drama or anything else. Entertaining escapism? Yes. Exciting? Often. Creative? Definitely. But dramatically superior? Not in a million years. That voters deemed it and the other shows outstanding is an unfunny joke and only reveals that the people who determine the chosen few are too swayed by mass appeal. As we’ll no doubt be hearing over and over until long after the awards are actually presented on September 16, “Do the Academy voters even watch TV?”
Some of the good stuff that I personally care about includes:
- HBO’s movie Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, the most nominated contender with 17 nods.
- The Grey’s Anatomy ladies taking over the Drama Supporting Actress category, with Katherine Heigl, Sandra Oh, and Chandra Wilson all nominated.
- Masi Oka busting out a Supporting Actor nom for Heroes. Will he win, though? Well, with nominations like some of this year’s, anything could happen, I suppose.
- Jenna Fischer getting much-deserved kudos for her Office work in the Comedy Supporting Actress category, as well as my girl Vanessa Williams of Ugly Betty villainy.
- Tom Selleck sprucing up the Mini-Series or Movie Lead Actor category for Jesse Stone: Sea Change, not to mention my favorite actress Helen Mirren doing the same in the female version for Prime Suspect: The Final Act.
- Best Actor Oscar winner Forest Whitaker putting in some face time for his Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama stint on ER, and Elizabeth Reaser following suit in the female category for that other medical drama Grey’s Anatomy.
- Top Chef scoring its first of hopefully many future nominations for Reality-Competition Program.
Since no self-respecting TV blog would ever totally forego spitting out the master list, here are the complete nominations in the top categories, for what they’re worth. My preliminary picks are in bold with an asterisk afterwards. To review the official (really, really long) full list issued by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, just visit its Web site.
Outstanding Comedy Series
- 30 Rock
- Entourage
- The Office
- Two and a Half Men
- Ugly Betty*
Outstanding Drama Series
- Boston Legal
- Grey’s Anatomy
- Heroes
- House
- The Sopranos*
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
- Alec Baldwin for 30 Rock
- Steve Carell for The Office
- Ricky Gervais for Extras*
- Tony Shalhoub for Monk
- Charlie Sheen for Two and a Half Men
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
- Tina Fey for 30 Rock
- America Ferrera for Ugly Betty*
- Felicity Huffman for Desperate Housewives
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus for The New Adventures of Old Christine
- Mary-Louise Parker for Weeds
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- James Gandolfini for The Sopranos
- Hugh Laurie for House
- Denis Leary for Rescue Me*
- James Spader for Boston Legal
- Kiefer Sutherland for 24
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
- Patricia Arquette for Medium
- Minnie Driver for The Riches*
- Edie Falco for The Sopranos
- Sally Field for Brothers & Sisters
- Mariska Hargitay for Law & Order: SVU
- Kyra Sedgwick for The Closer
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
- Jim Broadbent for Longford*
- Robert Duvall for Broken Trail
- William H. Macy for Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King
- Matthew Perry for The Ron Clark Story
- Tom Selleck for Jesse Stone: Sea Change
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
- Debra Messing for The Starter Wife
- Helen Mirren for Prime Suspect: The Final Act*
- Mary-Louise Parker for The Robber Bride
- Queen Latifah for Life Support
- Gena Rowlands for What If God Were the Sun?
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
- Jon Cryer for Two and a Half Men
- Kevin Dillon for Entourage
- Neil Patrick Harris for How I Met Your Mother*
- Jeremy Piven for Entourage
- Rainn Wilson for The Office
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- Conchata Ferrell for Two and a Half Men
- Jenna Fischer for The Office
- Elizabeth Perkins for Weeds
- Jaime Pressly for My Name Is Earl
- Holland Taylor for Two and a Half Men
- Vanessa Williams for Ugly Betty*
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
- Michael Emerson for Lost
- Michael Imperioli for The Sopranos*
- T.R. Knight for Grey’s Anatomy
- Terry O’Quinn for Lost
- Masi Oka for Heroes
- William Shatner for Boston Legal
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
- Lorraine Bracco for The Sopranos*
- Rachel Griffiths for Brothers & Sisters
- Katherine Heigl for Grey’s Anatomy
- Sandra Oh for Grey’s Anatomy
- Aida Turturro for The Sopranos
- Chandra Wilson for Grey’s Anatomy
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie
- Edward Asner for The Christmas Card
- Thomas Haden Church for Broken Trail
- Joe Mantegna for The Starter Wife
- Aidan Quinn for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
- August Schellenberg for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee*
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
- Toni Collette for Tsunami: The Aftermath
- Judy Davis for The Starter Wife
- Samantha Morton for Longford*
- Anna Paquin for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
- Greta Scacchi for Broken Trail
Outstanding Made for Television Movie
- Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee*
- Inside the Twin Towers
- Longford
- The Ron Clark Story
- Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy
Outstanding Miniseries
- Broken Trail
- Prime Suspect: The Final Act (Masterpiece Theatre)*
- The Starter Wife
Outstanding Reality Competition Program
- The Amazing Race
- American Idol
- Dancing with the Stars
- Project Runway*
- Top Chef
Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series
- The Colbert Report
- The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
- Late Night with Conan O’Brien*
- Late Show with David Letterman
- Real Time with Bill Maher
The 59th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards airs live on Sunday, September 16, at 8pm EST on Fox
Emmy photo courtesy of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
