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'Sopranos' gets respect as HBO sweeps Emmys
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-09-21 11:32

The dark side of American life dominated the 56th annual Emmy Awards Sunday as the mobsters of "The Sopranos" and the AIDS victims of "Angels in America" walked off with top awards, making cable network HBO king.


Al Pacino reacts after receiving an Emmy at the 56th annual primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles September 19, 2004. Pacino won the Emmy for lead actor in miniseries or movie for 'Angels in America.' This was his first nomination and first win. [Reuters]
But the evening had a sentimental side as the stars of two recently departed prime-time comedy favorites -- Sarah Jessica Parker of HBO's "Sex and the City" and Kelsey Grammer of NBC's "Frasier" -- won the best acting awards in their categories.

The evening also had its surprises with the award for best comedy going to "Arrested Development," a critical darling on the Fox network that is struggling to survive poor ratings. And the award for best actor in a drama went to film star James Spader for his portrayal of an unethical lawyer on the final season of ABC's "The Practice."

After four previous losing bids for top honors, "The Sopranos" finally claimed the elusive crown as U.S. television's best drama, rubbing out competition from defending champion, NBC political drama "The West Wing."

"Angels in America," an adaptation of Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning play about the AIDS epidemic, won 11 Emmys, the most of any show this year, and eclipsed the miniseries record of nine Emmys set by ABC's seminal slavery drama "Roots" in 1977.

"Angels" stars Al Pacino and Meryl Streep picked up the awards for best lead actor and lead actress in a miniseries. "There are some days when I think I am overrated, but not today," a delighted Streep said from the stage.

"Sopranos," about a conflicted New Jersey mob boss, earned four Emmys in all. Michael Imperioli was named best supporting actor in a drama series for his role as the hitman nephew, and Drea de Matteo, who played his ill-fated girlfriend won for best supporting actress in a drama series.

A RELIEF

It was the first time a cable network show had won for best drama. "Sopranos" creator David Chase said the triumph came as a relief. "It's hard to talk about it. We put a lot of work into it, and we've gotten better at our jobs and it's good that it finally paid off," he said, adding that the series would end next year, after a sixth season, joking that otherwise "it might get worse."

Besides the victory for Grammer, who played the lovable elitist Dr. Frasier Crane on TV for 20 years, his series co-star, David Hyde Pierce, went home with the statuette for best supporting actor in a comedy. "They say that television and comedy in television is changing," Pierce said, alluding to the growing prime-time dominance of "reality" shows. "And I just want to say when it changes back, call me."

HBO, which has grown from a movie channel to a powerhouse of original programming, finished the night with 32 Emmys, the most of any network. Its closest rival was Fox, with 10 prizes. NBC was third with eight awards, followed by ABC and the public television network PBS with seven each.

"Sex and the City's" Parker, defeated in her last five acting nominations for the show, called her victory "worth the wait." She added, "but ... I hope I've been a grateful loser in the past."

Allison Janney won her second Emmy for best actress in a drama series for her role as White House press secretary C.J. Cregg on "The West Wing."

Playwright Kushner made an unusual acceptance speech by thanking his "husband" Mark saying, "One of these days we can get a legal marriage license and you can make an honest homosexual out of me."

The comment, referring to the debate over same-sex marriage, was a rare political comment during an evening in which the entertainment industry celebrated its finest rather than choosing sides on controversial issues.

On stage, 'Soprano's star James Gandolfini was cut off when he was trying to acknowledge an infantry unit in Iraq that had named their Bradley Fighting Vehicle after Tony Soprano's boat. Show director Louis Horvitz said cutting him off was not intentional.



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