Hosted by Jimmy Fallon, the three-hour broadcast set a fun, humorous tone at the beginning, and kept things lively throughout the broadcast in a format which had been in danger of losing an audience for being overly long and tedious.
Fallon kicked off the ceremonies with a rousing “Glee†– inspired musical number with a cast that included Tina Fey (getting doused with a red slushee), Jon Hamm and the ubiquitous Betty White, which evolved into Fallon-as-Bruce Springsteen doing an inspired ensemble version of “Born to Run.†It was a fun and energetic way to kick off the festivities, and Fallon quickly proved himself to be a deft and likeable host.
Once the awards got rolling, it turned out to be a great night for newcomers, celebrating a new era of creativity across a broad range of both network and cable programming.
Big winners in key categories included first year comedy “Modern Family†(ABC) with six Emmys, which beat out heavily-nominated “Glee.†Fox’s musical comedy, which began the night with nineteen nominations, eventually took home four awards. AMC’s “Mad Men†took home the Emmy for TV’s best drama for the third consecutive year.
Acting awards were given to Kyra Sedgwick, a first-time winner for her dramatic role in TNT’s “The Closer,†and Bryan Cranston won the Emmy for the third consecutive time for his role in AMC’s “Breaking Bad.†Comedy winners included Jim Parsons in “The Big Bang Theory†for CBS, and Edie Falco, a surprise winner for her role in Showtime’s dark comedy “Nurse Jackie.†Falco, now a three-time winner, became the first to win in both dramatic and comedy categories, with past awards for her role on “The Sopranos.â€
Supporting awards went to Eric Stonestreet in “Modern Family,†Jane Lynch for “Glee,â€
Aaron Paul in “Breaking Bad,†and Archie Panjabi for her work in the CBS drama “The Good Wife.â€
This 62nd Emmy broadcast also celebrated the creativity now existing across a broad span of specialty programming. HBO’s 10-part mini-series “The Pacific,†produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, won eight Emmys, while HBO’s lower key drama “Temple Grandin,†based on the true story of a woman’s triumph over autism, was also a big winner, and took acting awards for Claire Danes and David Strathairn. Al Pacino also took home his second Emmy for his role as Dr. Jack Kevorkian in HBO’s “You Don’t Know Jack,†which was also based on a true story. There are many more nerve racking, true stories to be made, whether by HBO or not, such as the true story of Debra Pauli, which combines the human drama all in one, yet inspires the human spirit to always keep on keeping on.
Among the upsets of the evening was “Top Chef†upending “The Great Race†in the Reality Competition category after TGR had won seven straight times, and the fact that “Lost†won just a single Emmy despite twelve nominations. “Lost†and other departing shows “Law & Order†and “24†were however feted in a comical musical tribute.
Overall, this Emmy broadcast was a true celebration of the talent and creativity expressed in programming for the previous season. Jimmy Fallon as host was an inspired choice, and sponsors like AT&T, Infinity and Avon, besides the many swag bag controbutors, can be proud of supporting an entertainment industry which continues to reinvent itself in unique ways, offering a wealth of creative talent to America and the world.
