Emmy Nominations: The Wire Overlooked Again

Clearly the Hollywood contingent of the television industry has no respect for the non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production that was taking place in Baltimore for the past five years. The Emmy Award nominations were announced this morning and once again, The Wire, the best show on television, got shut out.

The final list of nominees was determined with the help of some sort of bullshit blue-ribbon panels that screened submitted episodes for the top vote-getters.

Nominees in the top categories were announced at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences by Kristin Chenoweth, Neil Patrick Harris and TV academy chairman John Shaffner.

The Emmy ceremony will be held Sept. 21 and broadcast on ABC. Other Emmy honors, including those for technical achievement and guest actors and actresses in series, will be given at the creative arts ceremony on Sept. 13.

The same old list of tired, boring network shows I’ve never had any interest in watching list of nominees follows:

Outstanding Drama Series

Boston Legal
Damages
Dexter
House
Lost
Mad Men

Outstanding Comedy Series

Curb Your Enthusiasm
Entourage
The Office
30 Rock
Two and a Half Men

Outstanding Miniseries

The Andromeda Strain — A&E

Cranford (Masterpiece Theatre) — PBS
John Adams — HBO
Tin Man — Sci Fi Channel

Outstanding Made for Television Movie

Bernard and Doris — HBO

Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale — HBO
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter — Lifetime
A Raisin in the Sun — ABC
Recount — HBO

Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series

The Colbert Report — Comedy Central
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart — Comedy Central
Late Show With David Letterman — CBS
Real Time With Bill Maher — HBO
Saturday Night Live — NBC

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

Tony Shalhoub, Monk
Steve Carell, The Office
Lee Pace, Pushing Daisies
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series

James Spader, Boston Legal
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Hugh Laurie, House
Gabriel Byrne, In Treatment
Jon Hamm, Mad Men

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie

Ralph Fiennes, Bernard and Doris
Ricky Gervais, Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale
Paul Giamatti, John Adams
Kevin Spacey, Recount
Tom Wilkinson, Recount

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine
Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?

Tina Fey, 30 Rock
America Ferrera, Ugly Betty
Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Sally Field, Brothers & Sisters
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer
Glenn Close, Damages
Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Holly Hunter, Saving Grace

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie

Catherine Keener, An American Crime
Susan Sarandon, Bernard and Doris
Dame Judi Dench, Cranford
Laura Linney, John Adams
Phylicia Rashad, A Raisin in the Sun

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Jeremy Piven, Entourage
Kevin Dillon, Entourage
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother
Rainn Wilson, The Office
Jon Cryer, Two and a Half Men

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

William Shatner, Boston Legal
Ted Danson, Damages
Zeljko Ivanek, Damages
Michael Emerson, Lost
John Slattery, Mad Men

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie

David Morse, John Adams
Stephen Dillane, John Adams
Tom Wilkinson, John Adams
Denis Leary, Recount
Bob Balaban, Recount

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Kristin Chenoweth, Pushing Daisies
Jean Smart, Samantha Who?
Amy Poehler, Saturday Night Live
Holland Taylor, Two and a Half Men
Vanessa Williams, Ugly Betty

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Candice Bergen, Boston Legal
Rachel Griffiths, Brothers & Sisters
Chandra Wilson, Grey’s Anatomy
Sandra Oh, Grey’s Anatomy
Dianne Wiest, In Treatment

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie

Eileen Atkins, Cranford
Ashley Jensen, Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale
Alfre Woodard, Pictures of Hollis Woods
Audra McDonald, A Raisin in the Sun
Laura Dern, Recount

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series

Shelley Berman, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Rip Torn, 30 Rock
Will Arnett, 30 Rock
Steve Buscemi, 30 Rock
Tim Conway, 30 Rock

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series

Stanley Tucci, ER
Glynn Turman, In Treatment
Robin Williams, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Robert Morse, Mad Men
Oliver Platt, Nip/Tuck
Charles Durning, Rescue Me

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series

Polly Bergen, Desperate Housewives
Kathryn Joosten, Desperate Housewives
Sarah Silverman, Monk
Carrie Fisher, 30 Rock
Edie Falco, 30 Rock
Elaine Stritch, 30 Rock

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series

Ellen Burstyn, Big Love
Diahann Carroll, Grey’s Anatomy
Cynthia Nixon, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Anjelica Huston, Medium
Sharon Gless, Nip/Tuck

Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program

Jon Stewart, 80th Annual Academy Awards
Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report
David Letterman, Late Show With David Letterman
Don Rickles, Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program

Ryan Seacrest, American Idol
Tom Bergeron, Dancing With The Stars
Howie Mandel, Deal or No Deal
Heidi Klum, Project Runway
Jeff Probst, Survivor

7 comments ↓

#1 taylor Siluwe on 07.17.08 at 9:14 pm

Damn shame.

In defense of that list of drama series, I watch them all except LOST. Boston Legal I would call a dramedy, but its awesome. Dexter is the only show on the list that I believe is actually better than the Wire. Well, maybe not better, but truly unigue with its crime fighting serial killer. But even with Dexter I could see getting old after a few seasons, whereas the Wire reinvented itself every season and I wanted it to go on forever.

So, like I said, truly sad … the best shows always get the shaft — especially black ones.

#2 Reggie on 07.17.08 at 9:22 pm

I can’t belive The Wire got snubbed again…but then again maybe I can: too black, too complex, too real…. Haters!

#3 taylor Siluwe on 07.17.08 at 9:38 pm

Amen Reggie…
and I forgot to add — RYAN SEACREST!!??

They not only slapped the Wire in the face by snubbing them, by nominating Seacrest they kicked it in the nuts. FUCKIN’ Shame!

#4 Bobby on 07.18.08 at 9:32 am

*Yawn* @ the list of nominees. Hollyweird is so incestuous.

#5 taylor Siluwe on 07.18.08 at 11:26 am

Oh, I just checked my NetFlix queue, season 5 is out. I’m gonna catch up on the second half of season 4 which I missed and then move 5 up to the top.

#6 Bernard on 08.04.08 at 3:47 pm

“Clearly the Hollywood contingent of the television industry has no respect for the non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production [snip]”….”The same old list of tired, boring network shows I’ve never had any interest in watching”…

Yikes, Bernie! Despite the massive injustice done to “The Wire” (a masterpiece), you’ve just not been more wrong when it comes to the actual nominees this year. Even if we take into account the number of snubs OTHER than The Wire,when looking at the Best Drama this years nominees (with a few exceptions) are far removed form your criticism….especially given the fact, you know, that you’ve never watched them:

Boston Legal (Broadcast): (the only bad apple in the bunch, yet the most fearlessly liberal show on television)

Damages (Basic Cable): non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production

Dexter (Premium Cable): non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production

House (Boradcast): VERY formulaic, yet still innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production

Lost (Broadcast): non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production…that blows/blew The Wire’s cutting edge production out of the water

Mad Men (Basic Cable): non-formulaic, innovative and just absolutely-superior-to-their-crap-in-every-single-way cutting edge production

Since by your own admission you’ve never seen any of the other shows, how can you judge their merits vis a vis The Wire’s or even in comparison to each other?

#7 Bernie on 08.04.08 at 5:11 pm

Bernard, how many of those aforementioned shows have majority Black casts?

The Wire has given more work to more Black actors in five years than all of the rest of the industry in the last 20. Frankly, I’m tired of seeing their crap.

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