Hosted by comedian Seth Meyers, the Emmys aired tonight while I was attending a movie screening, but all I was really interested in was what Billy Crystal had to say about his late friend, Robin Williams. I’ve since seen the clips and it was an elegant, poignant tribute from a truly talented peer (whose own Emmy-nominated 700 Sundays program is brilliant) only it was too short. But worth every second to see a star honor a fallen star.
I watch TV selectively, with most of my down time devoted to reading books and seeing movies. Most of my friends, partners and colleagues tell me what they like or are working on and I do try to watch certain shows in a variety of ways – on cable, digital and mobile – and my list of programs to watch and check out grows. But I am not a serious television watcher by any standard. My favorite TV channels are TCM and PBS and Hallmark or anything with reruns of classic TV shows.
The only season pass I bought on iTunes this year was for Modern Family, because I laugh out loud during almost every episode, as I did during the series run of NBC’s Frasier, the last situation comedy I watched. So, I’m pleased that ABC’s popular comedy won again for Best Comedy, matching Frasier for most consecutive Best Comedy Emmys. Both series involve Christopher Lloyd. Both series are at root about a band of individualists who are family, though not fundamentally by blood and bonded more by shared values. Both series are warm, intelligent and imbued with good humor. Ty Burrell of Modern Family has an incredible sense of humor and so much talent and I’m glad he won an Emmy, too. I don’t feel strongly about the Sofia Vergara pedestal bit one way or the other, though I think she, too, is a talented actress and comedienne, but I notice that feminists hated it and I think it’s because they hate any act that implicitly acknowledges women’s (or men’s) sex appeal. Honestly, I think they mostly amount to butch, anti-sex conservatives.
TV has become an exciting showcase for talent and the enthusiasm for all these dramas – The Good Wife, Game of Thrones, Outlander – is probably warranted. I root for Netflix and CBS and any venue that brings quality programming, such as Sherlock, to the market. I’m planning to watch and review more TV programs including an upcoming documentary on government-subsidized TV about the Roosevelts and a special on 9/11 and I would like to know what readers’ favorite shows are, too. In the meantime, it’s hard to ignore that the Emmys, with tremendously skilled actors such as Benedict Cumberbatch, Bob Newhart, Angela Bassett, Jon Voight, Paul Giamatti, Robin Wright, Alfred Molina, Ellen Burstyn, Kathy Bates, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Diana Rigg, Nathan Lane, Margo Martindale, Joan Cusack, Sarah Paulson, Cicely Tyson, and Tina Fey represent both TV’s best and the new, Hollywood normal that television programs are often as good as gold.