After weeks of speculation and predictions from various sources, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, with help from Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer) and Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men), finally revealed the nominees for the 59th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.
Outstanding Drama Series:
Boston Legal (ABC)
Grey's Anatomy (ABC)
Heroes (NBC)
House (FOX)
The Sopranos (HBO)
Surprise Nomination: Boston Legal
Surprise Omission: Lost (ABC), Friday Night Lights (NBC)
My Predictions: Including the alternates, I picked 4/5 correctly (I had Friday Night Lights instead of Boston Legal)
Outstanding Comedy Series:
Entourage (HBO)
The Office (NBC)
30 Rock (NBC)
Two and a Half Men (CBS)
Ugly Betty (ABC)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: Desperate Housewives (ABC) (sort of)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 5/5
Lead Actor in a Drama Series:
James Gandolfini (The Sopranos, HBO)
Hugh Laurie (House, FOX)
Denis Leary (Rescue Me, FX)
James Spader (Boston Legal, ABC)
Kiefer Sutherland (24, FOX)
Surprise Nomination: Spader
Surprise Omission: Michael C. Hall (Dexter, SHO), Matthew Fox (Lost, ABC)
My Predictions: 3/5 (I had Hall and Fox, not Spader or Sutherland)
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series:
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock, NBC)
Steve Carell (The Office, NBC)
Ricky Gervais (Extras, HBO)
Tony Shalhoub (Monk, USA)
Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men, CBS)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: Jason Lee (My Name Is Earl, NBC)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 5/5
Lead Actress in a Drama Series:
Patricia Arquette (Medium, NBC)
Minnie Driver (The Riches, FX)
Edie Falco (The Sopranos, HBO)
Sally Field (Brothers & Sisters, ABC)
Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: SVU, NBC)
Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer, TNT)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: None
My Predictions: With Alternates: 6/6
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series:
America Ferrera (Ugly Betty, ABC)
Tina Fey (30 Rock, NBC)
Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives, ABC)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (The New Adventures of Old Christine, CBS)
Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds, SHO)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: None
My Predictions: With Alternates: 5/5
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
William Shatner (Boston Legal, ABC)
Masi Oka (Heroes, NBC)
T.R. Knight (Grey's Anatomy, ABC)
Michael Emerson (Lost, ABC)
Terry O'Quinn (Lost, ABC)
Michael Imperioli (The Sopranos, HBO)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: Jack Coleman (Heroes, NBC), Dominic Monaghan (Lost, ABC)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 4/6 (I had Coleman and Monaghan, not Emerson and O'Quinn)
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
Kevin Dillon (Entourage, HBO)
Jeremy Piven (Entourage, HBO)
Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men, CBS)
Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother, CBS)
Rainn Wilson (The Office, NBC)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: John Krasinski (The Office, NBC)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 4/5 (I had Jesse Tyler Ferguson (The Class, CBS) and Michael Urie (Ugly Betty, ABC) not Wilson)
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
Rachel Griffiths (Brothers & Sisters, ABC)
Katherine Heigl (Grey's Anatomy, ABC)
Chandra Wilson (Grey's Anatomy, ABC)
Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy, ABC)
Aida Turturro (The Sopranos, HBO)
Lorraine Bracco (The Sopranos, HBO)
Surprise Nomination: Bracco
Surprise Omission: Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost, ABC), CCH Pounder (The Shield, FX)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 4/6 (I had Mitchell and Pounder, not Griffiths and Bracco)
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
Jaime Pressly (My Name Is Earl, NBC)
Jenna Fischer (The Office, NBC)
Holland Taylor (Two and a Half Men, CBS)
Conchata Ferrell (Two and a Half Men, CBS)
Vanessa Williams (Ugly Betty, ABC)
Elizabeth Perkins (Weeds, SHO)
Surprise Nomination: None
Surprise Omission: Jane Krakowski (30 Rock, NBC)
My Predictions: With Alternates: 5/6 (I had Nicollette Sheridan (Desperate Housewives, ABC) or Ashley Jensen (Extras, HBO) not Taylor)
Worth Noting:
* 4 out of the 10 major categories had 6 nominees
* I predicted 45/54 nominees
* If The Sopranos pulls off a win for Drama Series, it will be the first time a drama in its final season will have won.
Most Nominations:
Program: Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee (17; HBO)
Drama Series: The Sopranos (15; HBO)
Returning Series: The Sopranos (15; HBO)
Comedy Series: Ugly Betty (11; ABC)
Freshman Series: Ugly Betty (11; ABC)
Non-Cable Network: ABC (70)
Cable Network: HBO (86)
Tune into FOX on September 16 to find out who will take home TV's favorite golden girl, Emmy. For a complete list of all the categories and nominees, click here
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Mad Men: Everything Old Is New Again
How appropriate that the American Movie Classics is premiering a "new" series that could be mistaken for a Douglas Sirk film.
Mad Men takes a closer look at the attitudes and practices of the people who shaped the opinions of the American consumers, as well as the typical roles of men and women at that time.
It tells the tale of the advertising geniuses on New York's famed Madison Avenue in 1960. At the center of the action is Creative Director of the Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency, Don Draper (Jon Hamm, Providence). He's the man everyone wants in the boardroom, and apparently the bedroom as well. When not concerned with newbies like Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser, Angel), who wants to match, if not pass, Don's accomplishments in and out of the office, Draper struggles to keep his personal and professional lives separate. That proves to be no easy task when women such as department store chief Rachel Menken (Maggie Siff, Rescue Me) and illustrator Midge (Rosemarie DeWitt, Standoff) are involved.
As a result, the 13-week series shows how what advertising did back then has shaped the lives of Americans now. So for a quick trip back to the future, check out Mad Men, Thursday July 19th at 10PM on AMC.
Photo courtesy of amctv.com
Mad Men takes a closer look at the attitudes and practices of the people who shaped the opinions of the American consumers, as well as the typical roles of men and women at that time.
It tells the tale of the advertising geniuses on New York's famed Madison Avenue in 1960. At the center of the action is Creative Director of the Sterling Cooper Advertising Agency, Don Draper (Jon Hamm, Providence). He's the man everyone wants in the boardroom, and apparently the bedroom as well. When not concerned with newbies like Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser, Angel), who wants to match, if not pass, Don's accomplishments in and out of the office, Draper struggles to keep his personal and professional lives separate. That proves to be no easy task when women such as department store chief Rachel Menken (Maggie Siff, Rescue Me) and illustrator Midge (Rosemarie DeWitt, Standoff) are involved.As a result, the 13-week series shows how what advertising did back then has shaped the lives of Americans now. So for a quick trip back to the future, check out Mad Men, Thursday July 19th at 10PM on AMC.
Photo courtesy of amctv.com
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Catch a Falling Star
Looking at the first two quotes in the TV Talk section, "celebrity" reality TV is what comes to mind. On the good side, at least in my opinion, is a show like Dancing with the Stars. Famous people are trying to acquire a new skill and see how much they can improve an aspect of their life. They're taking on a new challenge, but not one that whether they succeed or fail will be a life-altering event. Harmless fun that, if nothing else, will give the performers some exercise and publicity.
However, the current climate in the reality TV industry is having a celebrity (or celebrities) take the audience on a personal tour of their life. The purpose of this, I don't know. Are they just trying to drum up some attention and jump start their career? Or do these people really think that exposing themselves and their lifestyles is truly beneficial to their well-being and what the viewing public wants to see?
The latest example of this is the VH-1 series Scott Baio is 45… and Single. Don't get me wrong. I was a huge Scott Baio fan. I loved him on Happy Days, Charles in Charge and even on Diagnosis Murder. And I can understand why, at 45, he is concerned that he's never been married and doesn't want to end up alone. But why go on TV with it? Yes, hire the life coach. Yes, visit the ex-girlfriends you've wronged and find out why. But why, oh why, is there the need to air you're dirty laundry or whatever on the airwaves?
He's not the only one. Look at American Idol judge Paula Abdul on BRAVO's Hey Paula! If she did this show to quell the nasty gossip about her flightiness or erratic behavior on the FOX competition series, then she's in for a very rude awakening. Her new show just makes her look even nuttier than before!
Tennis champ Mark Philippoussis on NBC's Age of Love is another famous face in need of an intervention. I can see how being a celebrity could interfere with finding someone to share your life with who is interested in you for more than just your fame and fortune. A lot of people have trouble finding someone to love. But not everyone makes a national pastime of it. Haven't these people learned anything from the debacles of Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston on Being Bobby Brown? Or how Newlyweds ruined Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey's marriage? what about Danny Bonaduce downward spiral caught on tape for all to see on Breaking Bonaduce?
Basically, these shows are therapy sessions that the networks foot the bill for. Obviously not everyone shares this opinion or else networks wouldn't be spending the money on developing these programs. Like Mr. Barnes said, "The most terrifying thing is what people do want." And, apparently, it's more of this drivel instead of investing time and money into worthwhile material.
Photo by serieslive.com
However, the current climate in the reality TV industry is having a celebrity (or celebrities) take the audience on a personal tour of their life. The purpose of this, I don't know. Are they just trying to drum up some attention and jump start their career? Or do these people really think that exposing themselves and their lifestyles is truly beneficial to their well-being and what the viewing public wants to see?
The latest example of this is the VH-1 series Scott Baio is 45… and Single. Don't get me wrong. I was a huge Scott Baio fan. I loved him on Happy Days, Charles in Charge and even on Diagnosis Murder. And I can understand why, at 45, he is concerned that he's never been married and doesn't want to end up alone. But why go on TV with it? Yes, hire the life coach. Yes, visit the ex-girlfriends you've wronged and find out why. But why, oh why, is there the need to air you're dirty laundry or whatever on the airwaves?He's not the only one. Look at American Idol judge Paula Abdul on BRAVO's Hey Paula! If she did this show to quell the nasty gossip about her flightiness or erratic behavior on the FOX competition series, then she's in for a very rude awakening. Her new show just makes her look even nuttier than before!
Tennis champ Mark Philippoussis on NBC's Age of Love is another famous face in need of an intervention. I can see how being a celebrity could interfere with finding someone to share your life with who is interested in you for more than just your fame and fortune. A lot of people have trouble finding someone to love. But not everyone makes a national pastime of it. Haven't these people learned anything from the debacles of Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston on Being Bobby Brown? Or how Newlyweds ruined Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey's marriage? what about Danny Bonaduce downward spiral caught on tape for all to see on Breaking Bonaduce?
Basically, these shows are therapy sessions that the networks foot the bill for. Obviously not everyone shares this opinion or else networks wouldn't be spending the money on developing these programs. Like Mr. Barnes said, "The most terrifying thing is what people do want." And, apparently, it's more of this drivel instead of investing time and money into worthwhile material.
Photo by serieslive.com
"Shift"-ing Gears
Night follows day, sort of, as the ABC soap opera General Hospital branches out into late night television with General Hospital: Nightshift on its sister cable network SOAPnet.The premise, or at least one of them, of this spin-off is that Drs. Robin Scorpio and Patrick Drake (Kimberly McCullough and Jason Thompson) are sentenced to working the "nightshift" at General Hospital for 13 weeks because they violated policy by operating on an uninsured patient. That's all well and good and carries over from the daytime version of the show. So you don't necessarily have to watch the daytime version to understand what's going on. In fact, it's probably better if you don't because problems arise with the introduction of some of the other GH regulars. Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) brings in his friend Damian Spinelli (Bradford Anderson) to the hospital because Spinelli accidentally shot himself in the foot with Jason's gun. The problem with this is if you watch the daytime version. Jason is in jail on Thursday afternoon and is still in jail on Friday. However, Thursday night he's out and about. Also, there's no mention of Spinelli having had an accident on Friday's show.
I'm all for this additional airtime for soap operas, since they are always underrated as a valid vehicle for "real actors." But that's a topic for another time. I just hope that the creators make up their minds regarding continuity. Either have the plots incorporate the daytime storylines or keep them separate, but not both.
Photo by SOAPnet.com
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