40th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 40th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, August 28, 1988. The ceremony was broadcast on Fox from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California. The ceremony was pushed back from its newly established September date because of the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Cable stations HBO and Showtime received their first major nominations at this ceremony.
40th Primetime Emmy Awards | |
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Date |
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Location | Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Pasadena, California |
Presented by | Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |
Hosted by | John Forsythe |
Television/radio coverage | |
Network | Fox |
Produced by | Lorne Michaels |
Despite a season that consisted of only six episodes, newcomer series The Wonder Years won Outstanding Comedy Series. After winning his fourth consecutive Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, John Larroquette requested to have his name taken off of the ballot for future ceremonies. Frank's Place became the most recent show whose only season was nominated for Outstanding Comedy/Drama Series.
In the drama field L.A. Law came into the ceremony as the defending champ and with 15 major nominations, (second most ever by a drama series at that time), it was seen as the heavy favorite. However, it was upset by another first season show, thirtysomething which won four major awards on the night including Outstanding Drama Series, L.A. Law only won one major award. The duo of Cagney & Lacey won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for the sixth consecutive year, this tied The Mary Tyler Moore Show's record for acting categories, which still stands, (it stood for all categories until The Daily Show with Jon Stewart won ten consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series). With the wins for Bea Arthur and Estelle Getty, The Golden Girls became the most recent show to have all of its cast members win Emmys. It became the second series to do so, following All in the Family. Two other programs would accomplish this feat: Will & Grace in 2003, and The Simpsons in 2014.
There was controversy during the nomination process regarding the PBS series Rumpole of the Bailey. The series was initially placed in the miniseries field, but soon after the Academy disqualified it and placed it in the drama series field. Its slot in the miniseries category was filled by The Bourne Identity.[1]
Winners and nominees
Programs
Outstanding Comedy Series | Outstanding Drama Series |
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Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program | Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special |
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Outstanding Miniseries | |
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Lead performances
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series |
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Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Supporting performances
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series |
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Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Guest performances
Outstanding Guest Performer in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series |
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Directing
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Directing in a Variety or Music Program | Outstanding Directing in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Writing
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program | Outstanding Writing in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Most major nominations
- By network [note 1]
- NBC – 69
- CBS – 32
- ABC – 24
- By program
- L.A. Law (NBC) – 15
- Cheers (NBC) – 9
- The Golden Girls (NBC) / St. Elsewhere (NBC) – 8
- Baby M (ABC) / thirtysomething (ABC) – 6
Most major awards
- By network [note 1]
- NBC – 11
- ABC – 8
- CBS – 6
- By program
- thirtysomething (ABC) – 4
- Frank's Place (CBS) / The Golden Girls (NBC) / Inherit the Wind (NBC) – 2
- Notes
- "Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories.
References
- "PBS' 'Rumpole' Back in Emmy Race--as a Drama". Los Angeles Times. 1988-08-20.
- Emmys.com list of 1988 Nominees & Winners