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TV stars gear up for Emmy awards

Ellen DeGeneres was born in the Louisiana town of Metairie
US comic Ellen DeGeneres will host the Emmy Awards on Sunday, in which TV series including Will and Grace and Scrubs are up for prizes.

The Louisiana-born comedian is expected to pay tribute to the victims of Hurricane Katrina at the beginning of this year's three-hour live telecast.

Celebrity presenters will be invited to wear magnolias - the state flower of storm-hit Louisiana and Mississippi.

This year's ceremony will be held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Four years ago the Emmys were twice postponed following the terror attacks of 11 September 2001.

DeGeneres earned rave reviews for her hosting of the toned-down ceremony that eventually took place at a smaller venue on 5 November that year.

During the telecast, on-screen messages will encourage viewers to donate to hurricane relief charities.

Executive producer Ken Ehrlich said he also expected the disaster to resonate during a segment paying tribute to news anchormen Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw and the late Peter Jennings.

"We have a renewed sense of importance of what news is all about," he said.



But there will be lighter moments during a ceremony Ehrlich said he hoped would offer the public "a little bit of healing".

Stars including William Shatner and Donald Trump are to take part in a Pop Idol-style competition that will see them sing themes from classic TV series.

Hugh Laurie is nominated for best actor for his role in House
And the show will open with veteran R&B group Earth Wind and Fire performing alongside contemporary hip-hop act Black Eyed Peas.

Hugh Laurie, Kenneth Branagh and Ian McShane are among the British stars up for acting awards.

The Emmys are the most coveted television awards in America.

Ricky Gervais's The Office Special is nominated in the made-for-TV movie category.

Hit series Lost and Desperate Housewives are expected to feature prominently, having won four awards apiece at last Sunday's Creative Arts Emmys.

Housewives stars Teri Hatcher, Marcia Cross and Felicity Huffman go head to head for the best actress in a comedy award.

Last year's ceremony was dominated by the ids drama Angels in America, which won seven prizes - three more than its nearest rival, The Sopranos. BBC

Countdown to the red carpet: 9pm-11pm
Live from the red carpet: 11pm-1am
Sy, Ch193

William Shatner (third from right) with his Star Trek co-stars
Shatner will sing the theme song from his 1960s series Star Trek
Stars including William Shatner and Donald Trump are to take part in a Pop Idol-style competition at this year's Emmy Awards ceremony.

They will sing themes from classic TV series, while the audience and viewers will get to vote for the winner.

In the contest - which has been dubbed Emmy Idol - Shatner will duet with opera star Frederica von Stade to sing the song from Star Trek.

Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres will host the Emmys on 18 September.

It will be held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Solo singer

Megan Mullally - who plays Karen in Will & Grace - will also take to the stage in the Emmy Idol contest to sing a duet with Trump to sing the theme to the 1960s comedy Green Acres.

CSI's Gary Dourdan will duet with R&B artist Macy Gray to sing their version of Movin' On Up from The Jeffersons.

Will & Grace's Megan Mullally will also sing in Emmy Idol

Kristen Bell, from Veronica Mars, will be the only solo performer, with her version of the Fame theme.

"There are certain television theme songs that are nearly as memorable as the shows connected to them," said Ken Ehrlich, the ceremony's executive producer.

"By jogging memories as well as creating wonderful moments by having them performed on this year's Emmy show, we think we're giving viewers one more reason to tune in and be entertained."

Among the presenters for the Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony are Halle Berry, Kiefer Sutherland and Charlie Sheen.

Programmes vying for awards on the big night include Desperate Housewives, Will and Grace and plane crash drama Lost.
BBC

Emmys 2005: Main nominations
Will and Grace
Will and Grace got 15 nominations in total
Desperate Housewives, Will and Grace and Everybody Loves Raymond were among the 434 nominees in 88 categories for the Primetime Emmys 2005.

Here are some of the main nominees:

Best actor in a comedy

Jason Bateman -Arrested Development
Ray Romano -Everybody Loves Raymond
Tony Shalhoub -Monk
Zach Braff -Scrubs
Eric McCormack -Will and Grace

Best actress in a comedy

Marcia Cross - Desperate Housewives
Teri Hatcher - Desperate Housewives
Felicity Huffman - Desperate Housewives
Patricia Heaton - Everybody Loves Raymond
Jane Kaczmarek - Malcolm in the Middle

Best actor in a drama

James Spader - Boston Legal
Ian McShane - Deadwood
Hugh Laurie - House
Hank Azaria - Huff
Kiefer Sutherland - 24

Best actress in a drama

Jennifer Garner - Alias
Mariska Hargitay - Law and Order: Special Victims Unit
Patricia Arquette - Medium
Glenn Close - The Shield
Frances Conroy - Six Feet Under

Best actor in a mini-series/movie

Jonathan Rhys Meyers - Elvis
Ed Harris - Empire Falls
Geoffrey Rush - The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
Kenneth Branagh - Warm Springs
William H Macy - The Wool Cap

Best actress in a mini-series/movie

Blythe Danner - Back When We Were Grown-ups
Debra Winger - Dawn
Anna S Epatha Merkerson - Lackawanna Blues
Halle Berry - Their Eyes Were Watching God
Cynthia Nixon - Warm Springs

Best supporting actor in a drama

William Shatner - Boston Legal
Oliver Platt - Huff
Naveen Andrews - Lost
Terry O'Quinn - Lost
Alan Alda - The West Wing

Best supporting actress in a drama

Sandra Oh - Grey's Anatomy
Blythe Danner - Huff
Tyne Daly - Judging Amy
CCH Pounder - The Shield
Stockard Channing - The West Wing

Best supporting actor in a comedy

Jeffrey Tambor - Arrested Development
Jeremy Piven - Entourage
Peter Boyle - Everybody Loves Raymond
Brad Garrett - Everybody Loves Raymond
Sean Hayes - Will and Grace

Best supporting actress in a comedy

Jessica Walter - Arrested Development
Doris Roberts - Everybody Loves Raymond
Holland Taylor - Two And A Half Men
Conchata Ferrell - Two And A Half Men
Megan Mullally - Will and Grace

Outstanding comedy series

Arrested Development
Desperate Housewives
Everybody Loves Raymond
Scrubs
Will and Grace

Outstanding drama series

Deadwood
Lost Six Feet Under
24
The West Wing
BBC

Everybody Loves Raymond took the best comedy Emmy, while instant hit Lost collected the best drama award at the ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman won best comedy actress, beating two of her co-stars.

Patricia Arquette collected best drama actress for psychic crime drama Medium, while James Spader won best actor for Boston Legal for a second year.

Victims of Hurricane Katrina were remembered during the event.

Host Ellen De Generes paid tribute to them, while guests were invited to wear a magnolia, the state flower of Louisiana and Mississippi.

The awards were thinly spread around, with no show running away with a massive haul.

Everybody Loves Raymond and The Life and Death of Peter Sellers each won three awards, while Lost and Desperate Housewives collected two apiece.

As well as best drama, Lost creator JJ Abrams won for best director.

The best comedy actor award went to Tony Shalhoub for Monk, beating Everybody Loves Raymond's Ray Romano.

But Everybody Loves Raymond, which ended this year after nine seasons, did see success for Doris Roberts and Brad Garrett who won best supporting actors in a comedy honours.

William Shatner once again won best supporting actor in a drama for Boston Legal, while Blythe Danner, the mother of Gwyneth Paltrow, won best supporting actress for Huff.

The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, which was co-produced by HBO and the BBC, won lead actor Geoffrey Rush a best actor in miniseries or TV movie.

It also won directing and writing awards.

The Lost Prince won best miniseries while Warm Springs was voted best TV movie.

Desperate Housewives had been favourite to take the best comedy award, having received critical acclaim for its first series.

Thanking co-stars

It had been nominated in 15 categories but had to settle for just two, including best comedy direction.

Collecting her best actress award, Huffman thanked "the women of Wisteria Lane", her co-stars and fellow nominees Marcia Cross and Teri Hatcher - and Eva Longoria.

British actor Hugh Laurie had been favourite to win best drama actor, but lost out to Boston Legal's James Spader, winning the award for the second year running.

Sitcom Will and Grace had been nominated for 15 awards but came away empty-handed. BBC