The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat is coming for the television industry. This year’s Primetime Emmy awards will be handed out this coming Sunday. Actor Michael Emerson has two of the gold statuettes. He earned his M-F-A degree from the University of Alabama while acting with the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Emerson appeared in the cult classic horror movie “SAW” before going onto roles on TV series like “Lost” and “Person of Interest” for CBS, and “Evil” for Paramount. He says one catch on Emmy night is that organizers don’t feed the nominees…
“It's a long show, and you know, you get, you kind of run out of steam, and if you're not allowed a certain amount of refreshment, whether it's liquid or food, God help you if you're one of the last categories called,” Emerson recalled.
Both actor Michael Emerson and his wife, actor Carrie Preston, will be future guests on “APR Notebook” on Alabama Public Radio. The two met during an Alabama Shakespeare Festival production of Hamlet in 1994 in Montgomery. Preston is currently starring in the CBS crime drama “Elsbeth.” Emerson notes that he and Preston both won the Emmy for Best Guest Performer in a Drama during different years, but at the same age when they were honored. He won his Guest performance award for the series “The Practice.” Emerson says it’s a challenge to take a guest appearance and make it something memorable.
“Those are the roles to get, if you can get them, get get something that's a difficult character that no one else can figure out exactly how to play it, and then get it and run with it,” he said
Another notable moment during this year’s Emmy awards was the presentation of the Governor’s Award. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was honored yesterday with one of the top prizes in television even as it winds down its nearly 60-year work after the U.S. government withdrew funding. The organization, which has helped pay for PBS, NPR, 1,500 local radio and TV stations as well as programs like “Sesame Street” and “Finding Your Roots,” will be awarded the Television Academy's Governors Award, which honors those who have "made a profound, transformational and long-lasting contribution to the arts and/or science of television.”
“For more than half a century, CPB has been a steadfast champion of storytelling that informs, educates and unites us and ensures public media remains a vital space where diverse voices are heard and communities are served,” Television Academy Chair Cris Abrego said in a statement. The corporation told employees that most staff positions will end with the fiscal year on September 30th. A small transition team will stay until January to finish any remaining work.
The closure is expected to have a profound impact on the journalistic and cultural landscape — in particular, public radio and TV stations in small communities across the United States. The private, nonprofit corporation was founded in 1968 shortly after Congress authorized its formation. It now ends nearly six decades of fueling the production of renowned educational programming, cultural content and emergency alerts about natural disasters.
President Donald Trump signed a bill in July canceling about $1.1 billion that had been approved for public broadcasting. The White House claims the public media system is politically biased and an unnecessary expense. Previous recipients of the Governors Award include Jerry Lewis, John Walsh, Bob Hope, Ted Turner, Tyler Perry, “Star Trek,” “American Idol” and Debbie Allen.
