By Andy Goldberg Aug 26, 2006, 0:56 GMT
Los Angeles - The US television world is set to salute its best and brightest Sunday at the Emmy Awards Show, where a new nomination system controlled by industry insiders has been blasted with controversy.
The hit medical drama Grey's Anatomy is favoured to win the top award but faces tough challenges from the now defunct political saga The West Wing and edgy spy thriller 24. The other nominees for top drama are the hospital show House and the gangster drama The Sopranos.
The favourite for best comedy series is The Office, adapted from the British workplace satire of the same name. It faces competition from Arrested Development, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Scrubs and Two and a Half Men.
But there is no room for hit shows like last year's top winners Desperate Housewives and Lost, a result critics contend of the fact that the nominations were decided by select panels of professionals rather than the general membership of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
The change was made ostensibly to give newcomers, low-rated series and smaller networks a better shot at the major categories. But it resulted in some curious choices like the nomination of Ellyn Burstyn for best supporting actress, for a 15 second role in the drama Mrs Harris - in which she delivers just three sentences and her character isn't even important enough to be named in the credits.
At the same time, Sopranos stars James Gandolfini and Edie Falco were ignored in the best actor and actress categories, despite glowing reviews for their performances.
'The Emmys need a fast fix,' says USA Today television writer Robert Bianco. 'After years of effort, the TV industry has managed to create an awards show that no one trusts and most people won't watch.'
The flagging viewership may reflect not only a poor choice of nominees, but also the falling interest in network and major cable television outlets as young viewers increasingly view niche cable channels or use the Internet as an alternative to TV.
Nominees for lead actresses in a drama include Frances Conroy, (Six Feet Under); Geena Davis (Commander in Chief); Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit); Allison Janney (The West Wing) and Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer).
The lead dramatic actor nominees are Peter Krause (Six Feet Under); Denis Leary (Rescue Me); Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit); Martin Sheen (The West Wing) and Kiefer Sutherland (24).
Nominees for lead actress in comedy include Stockard Channing (Still Standing); Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm in the Middle); Lisa Kudrow (The Comeback); Julia Louis-Dreyfus (The New Adventures of Old Christine) and Debra Messing, (Will & Grace).
The comic actor nominees are led by Steve Carell (The Office); Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm); Kevin James (The King of Queens); Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men).
Your Talkback on this Story