Emmy's Back

On Sunday, barring anthrax, small pox, terrorism, retaliation or giant asteroid, the 2001 Emmy Awards will take place in Los Angeles. The original Sept. 16 telecast was canceled in the wake of the terrorist attacks, the Oct. 7 dressed-down, two-city-simulcast effort was canceled because we began bombing Afghanistan. If for some reason they prematurely roll-up the red carpet on Sunday, let's hope, for the sake of host Ellen Degeneres and CBS, the producers decide to go the way of the Latin Grammys and hand out the damn awards at a press conference.

Some predictions and smart-ass comments:

Best Comedy Series: This category is a toss-up. Any one of three shows could take the prize: Everybody Loves Raymond has never won before, Will & Grace won last year and has that whole gay-chic thing still going for it and Malcolm in the Middle is one of the few actually funny programs on network television. Given the television Academy's preference for the pedestrian and repetitive, expect two gays, a girl and a bitchy pseudo-lesbian to triumph for the second year in a row.

Best Actor and Actress in a Comedy: Continuing with our rerun theme, look for Frasier's Kelsey Grammer to win something like his one millionth award for playing Dr. Frasier Craine. As for the women, as much as some Recess staffers would like to see Sex & The City's Sarah Jessica Parker win, the smart money is on Jane Kaczmarek, the frighteningly familiar mother on Malcolm in the Middle.

Best Actor and Actress in a Drama: The Sopranos's James Gandolfini deserves a second Emmy for his nuanced work as family don, but he will not win this year. Martin Sheen, The West Wing's Yber-liberal president, will win for his performance in the season finale--where he yelled at God in Latin. Yelling at mobsters in Italian was so 2000. The best actress race is a duel between Gandolfini's co-stars: Lorraine Bracco and Edie Falco. Both are very deserving, but since Bracco's performance in The Sopranos's rape-episode was so horrifyingly realistic, expect her to take home the trophy.

Best Drama Series: Like 2000, it's a race between The Sopranos's mobsters and The West Wing's politicos. Like 2000, The Sopranos is still the better show. Like 2000, The West Wing will win the award. Emmy voters have never awarded a non-network show a top series prize. You are more likely to see Wing go pro-life than to find The Sopranos's producers climbing the podium.