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TV 101: Emmy Awards show is a slow stroll
Monday, September 14, 1998 By Rob Owen, Post- Gazette TV Editor
The 50th annual Emmy Awards felt more like it was approaching a creaky, wheezing 150.
Half the show was in black and white with clips from the dark ages of TV. The Emmys became "Night of the Living Dead" during a too-long standing ovation for comedy pioneers Milton Berle, Bob Hope and Sid Caesar.
It's great to celebrate those who jump-started TV in its early years, but we've seen these performers and many of the clips paraded out for applause numerous times before. Why do it again?
Some of the clip reels were entertaining and moving (the decade-by-decade remembrance of shows and events offered a warm fuzzy), but most of these pre-packaged segments fell flat (the one on farewell episodes was especially skimpy, overlooking drama series finales and replaying the last scene from "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" for the umpteenth time).
Presenter David Spade summed it up best when he joked, "Before I introduce a 45-minute clip on the history of the dolly shot..."
The Emmy telecast seemed to pick up steam and a much-needed sense of humor in its second hour. That didn't last. By the final fourth hour the Emmys were as sleep-inducing as warm milk and Tylenol PM.
But throughout the broadcast there were some winning moments, and a few losers, that deserve awards of their own:
Best animated shorts: Newly created animated segments of "King of the Hill's" Hank and his buddies watching the Emmys were the most entertaining parts of the show. "Not another shot of Kelsey Grammer," complained Cotton Hill, Hank's dad. "Put the camera in front of Dharma and leave it there!"
Best Clinton joke: Jay Leno must be saving his jokes for the "Tonight Show," because he didn't bring up the president. But Chris Rock pulled out a cigar and said, "Early on in comedy this was used as a prop, and today it still is."
Worst Clinton joke: After an interview with Jamie Lee Curtis during the E! pre-show, Joan Rivers told Curtis's 11-year-old daughter, "Stay away from the White House."
The 'who are you and where have you been' award: "Who is this lovely lady?" Joan Rivers asked Andrea Martin on E!, followed by, "Why aren't you doing a lot more?"
Worst "Dateline NBC" rip-off: That damnable "Dateline Timeline" morphed into an Emmy timeline. Who cares if "The Simpsons" premiered in 1989, 1990 or 1991? That's the biggest waste of time on "Dateline," and it fared no better on the Emmys.
Most unusual acceptance: Louis Horvitz won an Emmy for directing the Oscars, but he was in the control room directing the Emmys and continued to shout out orders ("Take tape A!") even as he accepted his award.
Most exuberant acceptance: The deserving Camryn Manheim, Ellenor Frutt on ABC's "The Practice," showed true excitement at her win (unlike "Friends" star Lisa Kudrow, who was so calm it seemed as if she knew in advance). Manheim brought an autograph book to get signatures from her fellow nominees and proclaimed, "This is for all the fat girls!"
Most excruciating wait: Michael Richards ("Seinfeld's" Kramer) didn't want to reveal the winner of outstanding director for a comedy series. "Maybe I won't tell you who the winner is," he taunted. Eventually he revealed that Todd Holland ("The Larry Sanders Show") beat "Temptations" director Allan Arkush ("Ally McBeal").
Best dis: "The Emmys moved from Pasadena to Los Angeles this year so David could be closer to his wife," Garry Shandling said while presenting an award with "X-Files" star David Duchovny, who got the shooting location of his show moved from Vancouver to L.A for that reason.
Award for best revisionist history: Ellen DeGeneres spoke of how some movie stars just couldn't make it in television: "Charlton Heston had a development deal and three failed pilots: 'My Mother the AK-47,' 'My Three Guns' and 'Why Can't I Just Shoot Somebody?'"
Most touching moment: Sigourney Weaver introducing her father, Pat Weaver, a pioneering NBC executive.
Most satisfying wins: Andre Braugher finally took home a much-deserved award for his intense, mesmerizing role as Det. Frank Pembleton on "Homicide: Life on the Street." And it was a treat to see ABC underdog "The Practice" bring home a statue for best drama series.
TV critic most in need of a Ouija board: That would be me. I predicted winners in seven categories in Sunday's Post-Gazette. I only got three right. Oh well, there's always next year.
Rob Owen can be reached at 412-263-2582 or: rowen@post-gazette.com.
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