21 July 1999
Emmy’s 51st - The Programs - THE COMMENTARY
By Joseph Planta
This Thursday, the 22nd, at 5:35 AM, The Academy of Television Arts And Sciences will reveal the nominiations for The 51st Annual Emmy Awards. The Emmy is the award given for outstanding achivement in Primetime televivion, so Susan Lucci won’t get a chance to get a second Emmy. We’ll take a look at the process, what’s up for a nod and who’ll actually get a nomination Thursday morning. Mildred, get your pencil out and be ready for the pool.
The Emmys, unlike the Oscars, is judged differently. Instead of having the entire Academy of 6,000 or so members to vote, only people within their respective fields choose the nominees and the winners. So, actors choose actors, directors choose directors, lighting designers choose lighting designers etc... Some say this system is better than the popularity contests that plague the Oscar race, I think it only gives way to stunning upsets or painful repeat winners year after year. This past Television season has been boring at best. Season no. 1 A.S. (after Seinfeld), has seen network viewership eroded by cable and networks scrambling to put on big-budget spectaculars on the air. This season look for a good chunk of nominations go to cable outlets like HBO and Showtime. With the departure of constant Emmy nominees like Seinfeld, The Larry Sanders Show and Murphy Brown, see the Comedy categories fill up with such programs like Sports Night, Will and Grace and the return to Emmy consideration for Friends.
DRAMA SERIES has a great number of shows that should be nominated. HBO’s gripping series Oz, has never been nominated and should be, a long time ago. Homicide: Life On The Street, the critcs darling has also never been nominated. It won a Best Acotr Emmy for Andre Braugher, but he’s left that series and this is the last season for the show. I don’t watch Party of Five, but once again, the critcs have screamed blue bloody murder everytime the show isn’t nominated at The Emmys. But what will get nominated? Well, it’s safe bets on ER, The X-Files, NYPD Blue, The Practice and Law and Order. All of these shows with the exception of The X-Files has actually taken the Best Drama crown. For my sake bet on these five and for an ounce of doubt, HBO’s The Soprano’s could actually sneak in. The mob dramedy is extremly popular by industry insiders and who knows.
Last year’s nominees for COMEDY SERIES were: Ally McBeal, Frasier, The Larry Sanders Show, Seinfeld and 3rd Rock From The SUn. With Seinfeld and Larry Sanders gone, that opens a spot for the ultra-good Friends and Sports Night. Frasier and Ally will be there too, but as far as 3rd Rock goes, knock it off. It’s going downhill and it isn’t as sharp as it used to be. For the fifth nominee I propose either Everybody Loves Raymond, whihc the critcs are just mad about or Will and Grace. The critics at Variety say also not to count out Just Shoot Me. I say you’d be better off doing that. Just Shoot Me is funny, sure, but not in the high profile league that Will and Grace or Friends is in, yet.
This season saw a big budget year of MINISERIES’. CBS brought us Joan of Arc and ABC gave us Cleopatra. They also brought on Stepehen King’s Storm of the Century, which got it’s behind whacked by TOuched By An Angel in the ratings. NBC aired the surprise hit The Temptations and the biblical tale of Noah’s Ark. They also aired Alice In Wonderland, which failed to ignite in the ratings, but don’t forget that ratings don’t mean squat in the Emmy race, so you’ve got your nods in these 5 Miniseries’. But, don’t count out the gems A&E doled out. Horatio Hornblower and Dash and Lilly added to their stable of Biography’s and music specials. PBS’s has Our Mutual Friend on and King Lear, but don’t think those one’s will blip on Emmy list of nods.
CBS owns the Sunday night schedule partly on the success of their line-up: 60 Minutes, Touched By an Angel and The CBS Sunday Night Movie. The Movie’s on CBS always find themselves on the Top 25 each week and are actually pretty good. With the exception of the mega-boring Hallmark presentation of Durango and Reba McEntire’s Forever Love, I stayed tune the whole season watching their made for televison moveis. They are of good quality, but let’s highlight they one’s from the other networks: A Lesson Before Dying from Showtime will for sure be on the list as well as THe Baby Dance which got a load of Golden Globe and SAG nods this year. TNT aried Pirates of Silicon Valley and they plan on getting a whole stack of nominations. Inherit The Wind, another George C. Scott starrer will also vie for a spot in the list of best MADE FOR TELEVISION MOVIE. The 3 best CBS SUnday Night Movies, which Varitey has said they’ll submit for nominations are Saint Maybe which starred Blythe Danner, Grace and Glorie with Gena Rowlands and Having Our Say starring Diahann Carroll and Ruby Dee, which was also produced by Mrs. Bill Cosby, Camile Hanks. Oprah had some movies which she produced, there was one that starred Sidney Poitier, but the name of the flick ecapes me.
For best VARIETY, MUSIC or COMEDY SERIES, Dave’s Late Show, Jay’s Tonight Show, Dennis’ Dennis Miller Live and Tracey’s Take On show will get nods. That leaves one space open for either MTV’s Unplugged series, Late Night with Conan or Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn. I’m siding with the first four and possibly Saturday Night Live.
The 52nd Tony Awards telecast, as well as The 71st Oscars will get the nominations for best VARIETY, MUSIC or COMEDY SPECIAL. PBS’ showing of Cats and their showing of Hey, Mr. Producer could sneak in, as well as the TNT tribute to Johnny Cash. I’m betting on Tony, Oscar, The Kennedy Center Honors, Hey, Mr. Producer and for the fifth spot, how ‘bout the VH1 Diva’s Live show?
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An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE .