HBO Tops Creative Arts Emmys

HBO topped the Prime Time Creative Arts Emmys awards ceremony Aug. 19 with 17 awards.

Elizabeth I led all shows with five awards, followed by two more HBO productions, Baghdad ER and Rome, with four apiece.
Veteran Cloris Leachman became the most Emmied actress ever with her eighth award for performing, beating out Mary Tyler Moore, on whose show she earned two of those Emmies as Phyllis.

ABC won the most statues among the broadcast nets with 10, followed by NBC with eight, CBS, Fox and PBS, all tied with seven. The most-honored basic cable net was Cartoon with four, followed by History Channel with three.

The awards are primarily for the craft and technical side of the TV business--editing, sound, mixing, effects, stunts, art direction--though four acting awards were also given out, as well as nods for kids, reality, variety, and animated series.

Guest actress in a comedy went to Patricia Clarkson for Six Feet Under, best guest actress in a drama went to Leachman for her turn as Frankie Muñiz's grandmother on Malcolm in the Middle; best guest actor in a drama went to Christian Clemenson for his brilliant-but-troubled tax attorney on Boston Legal, and best guest actor in a comedy went to Leslie Jordan for Will & Grace.

The Simpsons was named best animated program, while Disney's High School Musical and HBO's I have Tourette's But Tourette's Doesn't Have Me tied for best kids program. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition won best reality show, while the Winter Olympics opening ceremony on NBC got the nod as best variety show.

The awards, produced by Spike Jones Jr. and company, will air as a special on E! Aug. 26, hosted by Penn & Teller.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.