Posted: Saturday, July 15, 2006 7:00 pm
The tired “Will & Grace” sitcom recently got nine Emmy nominations, as did three of the cast members from “The West Wing.” Meanwhile, Lauren Graham, the hip, fast-talking mother on “Gilmore Girls,” and Kristen Bell, the sharp-tongued teenage detective, are on the outside looking in.
Again.
So much for voting changes helping out the actors on lower-rated shows on the smaller networks.
In February, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced it was changing the voting process in how Emmy nominees were determined.
Under the new rules, the nominees for best actors and actresses in comedy and drama series as well as the shows themselves are selected by a two-tier system.
All academy members cast ballots for nominees, followed by a blue-ribbon panel selecting the five nominees from the top vote-getters.
The change is meant to get a broader cross section of talent on the ballot as opposed to the usual suspects showing up.
But with a few exceptions — Denis Leary (“Rescue Me”) and Lisa Kudrow (“The Comeback”) — the nominees still read like a Who’s Who of Old Standbys.
I predicted that “Grey’s Anatomy” would clean up (11 nominations) and that “Desperate Housewives” would not.
“Housewives,” last year’s best comedy winner, virtually was shut out this season. Alfre Woodard nabbed a nod for best supporting actress in a comedy. That one is a head-scratcher, considering her rarely used role was more dramatic than comedic.
I also expected Steve Carell (“The Office”) to be a shoo-in, and “Will & Grace,” even though its final season was so-so, to do well because it was the show’s swan song.
I was surprised Forest Whitaker, who put up some of the best work on TV in his role on “The Shield,” was not among the best supporting actor nominees in a drama.
I was pleased that the Academy honored three of the underdogs — Kudrow, “Scrubs” and Will Arnett of “Arrested Development” — I championed in my column two weeks ago.
I just wish there had been a few more surprises.
In addition to Graham and Bell, others deserving nominations include Treat Williams (“Everwood”), Jason Lee (“My Name is Earl”) and Mary-Louise Parker (“Weeds”).
Parker was, in my opinion, the biggest oversight. She deserved a nomination more than “Out of Practice’s” Stockard Channing.
Biggies shut out included Hugh Laurie (“House”), two-time winner James Spader (“Boston Legal”) and Patricia Arquette (“Medium”), who won the best actress drama Emmy last year. Also, no regular cast member from “Lost” made the cut. Hmmm.
I’ll probably change my mind as the date draws closer, but the following are my picks to win at the Aug. 27 ceremony, which NBC will televise live:
Drama
Series: “Grey’s Anatomy.” “24” had its best season yet, but “Grey’s” is more multi-dimensional.
Actor: Denis Leary, “Rescue Me.”
Actress: I blogged “West Wing’s” Allison Janney, but have switched to Kyra Sedgwick, “The Closer.”
Supporting actor: Gregory Itzin, “24.” This one’s my slam-dunk pick.
Supporting actress: Chandra Wilson, “Grey’s Anatomy.”
Comedy
Series: “The Office.”
Actor: Steve Carell, “The Office.”
Actress: I blogged Julia Louis-Dreyfus (“The New Adventures of Old Christine”), but now I like Debra Messing, “Will & Grace.”
Supporting actor: Jeremy Piven, “Entourage” (HBO).
Supporting actress: Jaime Pressly, “My Name is Earl.”
Around the dial
* NBC is welcoming back Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs — at least for one night.
Saturday, the network plans to air the two-hour pilot of “Miami Vice,” which premiered September 1984, in connection with the summer blockbuster movie by the same name that comes out later this month.
Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx, who star in the film, will host the special event scheduled for Saturday night. Of course, the original Crockett and Tubbs were played by Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas.
* Slowly but surely Bob Woodruff is working his way back.
The former ABC news anchor recently contributed a voiceover to a “Nightline” report on North Korea.
It was his first bit of reporting since being hurt by a roadside bomb in Iraq on Jan. 29.
Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.