Maybe it was the
promise of seeing those Desperate Housewives
tussle over the Best Acting trophy or watching Lost
find Emmy gold--the awards ceremony drew its
biggest audience in three years. More than 18.5 million
viewers tuned in to Sunday's show, a 35% increase over
last year, according to preliminary estimates from
Nielsen Media Research. Final figures were expected
Tuesday.
The CBS broadcast
reversed a ratings slide that in 2004 saw the ceremony
drop to its second-smallest audience ever, 13.8 million, on
ABC. The event rotates among the four major networks.
Conventional wisdom has it that popular movies draw
big audiences to the Academy Awards; the ABC freshman
sensations Desperate Housewives and Lost
may have done the same for the Emmys.
Lost, about plane crash survivors on a
mysterious and dangerous island, received the Best Drama
Series award and won a Best Directing trophy. "To get
this award right now, right before our second season
kicks off, is incredibly exciting and puts us in a
really good spot," series star Matthew Fox said backstage
Sunday. The show returns for its second season
Wednesday. Suburban satire Desperate Housewives, from
out creator Marc Cherry, failed to grab the Best
Comedy award, but Felicity Huffman was named Best
Comedy Actress, prevailing over costars Teri Hatcher and
Marcia Cross. The series also received a Best Directing
award.
Ellen DeGeneres,
who hosted 2001's challenging post-9/11 Emmys, again
proved herself smooth and unflappable, juggling a show
stuffed with musical numbers and awards as well as
recognition of Hurricane Katrina victims. HBO again
topped the networks in total Emmys, receiving 27
awards, including seven honors Sunday and 20 trophies given
at last week's Creative Arts Emmys recognizing
technical and other achievements. ABC got a total of
16 awards, followed by CBS with 11, NBC and PBS with
10 each, and Fox with six. (Lynn Elber, via AP)