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Primetime Emmy Awards facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The Primetime Emmy Awards are special prizes given to the best TV shows and people who work on them in the United States. These awards celebrate excellent television programs shown during "primetime," which is the evening time when most people watch TV.

The awards were first given out in 1949. Back then, they were just called the "Emmy Awards." Later, in the 1970s, other Emmy awards were created, like the Daytime Emmy Awards for shows aired during the day. To avoid confusion, the word "primetime" was added to these awards. They are presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Award Categories

The Primetime Emmys honor many different types of TV shows and the talented people who make them. Here are some of the main categories:

  • Outstanding Comedy Series (for funny shows)
  • Outstanding Drama Series (for serious shows)
  • Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series (for talk shows, sketch comedy, or musical performances)
  • Outstanding Made For Television Movie (for movies made just for TV)
  • Outstanding Miniseries (for short TV series with a limited number of episodes)
  • Exceptional Merit in Nonfiction Filmmaking (for amazing documentary-style shows)
  • Directing (for the person who guides the actors and cameras)
    • Directing for a Comedy Series
    • Directing for a Drama Series
    • Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program
    • Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special
  • Writing (for the people who create the scripts and stories)
    • Writing in a Comedy Series
    • Writing in a Drama Series
    • Writing in a Variety, Music or Comedy Program
    • Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special
  • Outstanding Reality Program (for shows like documentaries or unscripted series)
  • Outstanding Reality-Competition Program (for shows where people compete, like game shows)
  • Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program (for the person who leads a reality show)
  • Outstanding Informational Series (for shows that teach you things)
  • Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Special (for one-time special events)
  • Lead role (for the main actors)
    • Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
    • Lead Actor in a Drama Series
    • Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
    • Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
    • Lead Actress in a Drama Series
    • Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
  • Supporting role (for actors who play important but not main characters)
    • Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
    • Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
    • Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
    • Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
    • Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
    • Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
  • Guest role (for actors who appear in only a few episodes)
    • Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
    • Guest Actor in a Drama Series
    • Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
    • Guest Actress in a Drama Series
  • Outstanding Special Class Program (for unique or unusual programs)

Creative Arts Primetime Emmys

The Creative Arts Emmy Awards honor the many talented people who work behind the scenes to make TV shows look and sound great. These awards cover areas like animation, art, costumes, and special effects. Some categories even recognize work based on how the show was filmed (using a single-camera or multi-camera setup).

  • Animation
    • Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour)
    • Animated Program (for Programming One Hour or More)
    • Voice-Over Performance (for actors who do voices for animated characters)
    • Individual Achievement in Animation
  • Art Direction (for designing the sets and visual style)
    • Art Direction for a Multi-Camera Series
    • Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series
    • Art Direction for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
    • Art Direction for a Variety or Music Program
  • Casting (for choosing the actors)
    • Casting for a Comedy Series
    • Casting for a Drama Series
    • Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
  • Children's Program
  • Choreography (for creating dance routines)
    • Choreography
  • Cinematography (for how the show is filmed and lit)
    • Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series
    • Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series
    • Cinematography for a One Hour Series
    • Cinematography for a Half-Hour Series
    • Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie
    • Cinematography For Nonfiction Programming
  • Commercial
  • Costumes (for designing and making the clothes characters wear)
    • Costumes for a Series
    • Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
  • Directing for Nonfiction Programming
  • Hairstyling
    • Hairstyling for a Series
    • Hairstyling for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
  • Interactive Television (for shows that let viewers interact)
    • Interactive Television, Program-Specific
    • Interactive Television, Non-Program-Specific
  • Lighting Direction
  • Main Title Design (for the opening credits)
  • Makeup
    • Makeup for a Series, Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Prosthetic)
    • Makeup for a Series (Non-Prosthetic)
    • Makeup for a Miniseries or a Movie (Non-Prosthetic)
  • Music
    • Individual Achievement - Classical Music/Dance Programming
    • Music Composition for a Series (for writing original music)
    • Music Composition for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
    • Music Direction
    • Music And Lyrics
    • Main Title Theme Music (for the show's theme song)
  • Nonfiction
    • Nonfiction Series
    • Nonfiction Special
  • Picture Editing (for putting all the video clips together)
    • Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series
    • Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series
    • Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
    • Multi-Camera Picture Editing for a Series
    • Multi-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
    • Picture Editing For Nonfiction Programming
  • Sound Editing (for creating and adding sound effects)
    • Sound Editing for a Series
    • Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
    • Sound Editing For Nonfiction Programming
  • Sound Mixing (for balancing all the sounds, like voices, music, and effects)
    • Single-Camera Sound Mixing for a Series
    • Single-Camera Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Movie
    • Multi-Camera Sound Mixing for a Series or Special
    • Sound Mixing for a Variety or Music Series or Special
    • Sound Mixing For Nonfiction Programming
  • Stunt Coordination (for planning and directing action scenes)
  • Technical Direction (for managing cameras and video during filming)
    • Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video for a Series
    • Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
  • Variety, Music or Comedy Special
  • Visual Effects (for creating computer-generated images and special effects)
    • Special Visual Effects for a Series
    • Special Visual Effects for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
  • Writing for Nonfiction Programming

Retired Awards

Over the years, some Emmy award categories have been stopped. This often happens because new categories are created, or similar awards are given out by other Emmy shows, like the Sports Emmys or the Daytime Emmy Awards.

  • Actor of the Year
  • Actress of the Year
  • Best Kinescope Show (for shows recorded from a TV screen)
  • Best Live Show
  • Best New Program
  • Most Outstanding Kinescoped Personality
  • Most Outstanding Live Personality
  • Outstanding Live Sports Special †
  • Outstanding Sports Personality †
  • Outstanding Program Achievement by Individuals in Daytime Drama ‡
  • Outstanding Program Achievement in Daytime Drama ‡
  • Program of the Year
  • Best Sports Coverage†
  • Best Western Series (1958-1959 only)
  • Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program
† These awards were later replaced by similar categories in the Sports Emmy Awards.
‡ These awards were later replaced by similar categories in the Daytime Emmy Awards.

Leading Nominees

Here are some of the people and shows that have received the most Emmy nominations:

Most Emmy nominations for an individual
  • Jac Venza: 57 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a television program
  • Saturday Night Live: 126 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a comedy series in a single year
  • 30 Rock (2009): 22 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a drama series in a single year
  • NYPD Blue (1994): 26 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for an animated series in a single year
  • The Simpsons (1992): 7 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a miniseries
  • Roots (1977): 37 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a television movie
  • Eleanor and Franklin (1976); Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years (1977); and Grey Gardens (2009): 17 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for a variety series in a single year
  • Saturday Night Live (2009 and 2010): 13 nominations
Most Emmy nominations for an individual without a win

Leading Winners

Here are some of the people and shows that have won the most Emmy Awards:

Most Emmy wins by a individual
Most Emmy wins for a television program
Most Emmy wins in the comedy series category
Most Emmy wins in the drama series category
  • Hill Street Blues: 4
  • L.A. Law: 4
  • The West Wing: 4
Most Emmy wins for an animated series
  • The Simpsons: 25
Most Emmy wins for a miniseries
  • John Adams (2008): 13
Most Emmy wins for a television movie
  • Eleanor and Franklin (1976): 11
Most Emmy wins in a single year for a network
  • CBS (1974): 44
Most performing Emmys wins
Most Emmy wins for the same character in the same series
Most Emmy wins for the same character in different series

Related pages

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Premios Primetime Emmy para niños

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