60th Primetime Emmy Awards
| 60th Primetime Emmy Awards | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Date |
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| Location | Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles, California |
| Presented by | Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |
| Hosted by | Tom Bergeron Heidi Klum Howie Mandel Jeff Probst Ryan Seacrest |
| Most awards |
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| Most nominations | 30 Rock (13) |
| Website | http://www.emmys.com/  |
| Television/radio coverage | |
| Network | ABC |
| Produced by | Ken Ehrlich |
| Directed by | Louis J. Horvitz |
The 60th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 21, 2008, at the newly opened Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California to honor the best in U.S. prime time television.[1] The ceremony was hosted by Tom Bergeron, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, Jeff Probst, and Ryan Seacrest (all were nominated in the debut category—Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program) and televised in the United States on ABC.
The nominations were announced on July 17 by Kristin Chenoweth and Neil Patrick Harris.[2] The Creative Arts Emmy Awards were held eight days earlier (September 13) at the same venue. The ceremony was hosted by Neil Patrick Harris and Sarah Chalke.
The telecast was viewed by 12.20 million with a household rating of 8.86/12.79 making it the lowest rated and least viewed ceremony in its televised history.[3][4] Many critics cited lackluster performances from the five hosts as a reason for the huge decline.[5] Others pointed to the field of nominees which were dominated by low-rated and sparsely viewed programs, thus making the Emmys widely considered as a bust, which was panned by critics as "... the worst ever, laid a big, fat ratings egg as well ..."[6][7]
In 2011, when TV Guide Network re-did their list of "25 Biggest TV Blunders", this ceremony was included.
For the first time in a decade, the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series was won by the defending champion. 30 Rock was the top show of the night receiving five major awards, including the top prize. It also made history when it tied the record for most major nominations by a comedy series of 13 set by The Cosby Show in 1986; it would break this record the next year. It set another record when it received seven nominations in the guest acting categories, a mark that has not been matched since.
Outstanding Drama Series went to AMC freshmen series Mad Men. This marked the first series award for a program on a basic cable station. Mad Men led all dramas with seven major nominations.
This would be the final ceremony to have five nominees per category, most major categories (acting and programs) were expanded to include at least six slots the following year.
Tin Man's win for Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries or Movie (Non-Prosthetic) made The Wizard of Oz the third franchise to complete EGOT status.
Winners and nominees
Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold:[8]
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Programs
Acting
Lead performances
| Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series |
|---|---|
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| Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series |
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| Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie |
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Supporting performances
| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series |
|---|---|
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| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series |
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| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie |
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Hosting
| Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program |
|---|
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Directing
| Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series | Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series |
|---|---|
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| Outstanding Directing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program | Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special |
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Writing
| Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series | Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series |
|---|---|
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| Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program | Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special |
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Most major nominations
- By network [note 1]
- HBO – 44
- NBC – 30
- ABC – 29
- CBS – 11
- By program
- 30 Rock (NBC) – 13
- John Adams (HBO) / Recount (HBO) – 8
- Mad Men (AMC) – 7
- Damages (FX) / The Office (NBC) – 6
Most major awards
- By network [note 1]
- HBO – 11
- NBC – 6
- ABC – 4
- AMC – 3
- CBS / Comedy Central / FX – 2
- By program
- 30 Rock (NBC) / John Adams (HBO) – 5
- Mad Men (AMC) / Damages (FX) – 2
- Notes
- ^ a b "Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories.
Presenters
The awards were presented by the following:
In Memoriam
- George Carlin (twice)
- Bernie Brillstein
- Joey Bishop
- William F. Buckley Jr.
- Charlton Heston
- Les Crane
- Alice Ghostley
- Ivan Dixon
- Cyd Charisse
- Mel Ferrer
- Claudio Guzmán
- Barry Morse
- Deborah Kerr
- Larry Harmon
- Estelle Getty
- Roger King
- Sydney Pollack
- Ron Leavitt
- Bernie Mac
- Eric Lieber
- Suzanne Pleshette
- Abby Mann
- Dick Martin
- Delbert Mann
- Harvey Korman
- Jim McKay
- Lois Nettleton
- Mel Tolkin
- Richard Widmark
- Stan Winston
- Tim Russert
- Isaac Hayes
References
- ^ "Emmys will move to new venue". USA Today. March 11, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
- ^ "Noms".
- ^ [1][permanent dead link]
- ^ [2]
- ^ The Live Feed; 60th Emmy Awards reviews
- ^ Give Emmys to Craig from Broadcasting and Cable
- ^ Emmys bomb in ratings and reviews
- ^ Emmys.com list of 2008 Nominees & Winners
External links
- Emmys.com list of 2008 Nominees & Winners
- Academy of Television Arts and Sciences website
- 60th Primetime Emmy Awards at IMDb
