Emmys: 'Mad Men' and 'Modern Family' Score; 'The Good Wife' Is Snubbed

In a turnaround from the usually predictable and cravenly self-serving award shows, the 62^nd Emmy Awards on Sunday night in Los Angeles pulled off a few surprises in drama and comedy. On an evening of bland jokes and snail pace, the serial winner and critic favorite "Mad Men" repeated as best drama, elbowing out the acclaimed new hit "The Good Wife," and a new breakthrough comedy, "Modern Family,'' overcame the Tina Fey steamroller "30 Rock" for best comedy.

One of the evening's big surprise winners was frequent Emmy drama nominee Kyra Sedgwick, whose leading role as Deputy Chief Brenda Lee Johnson in "The Closer" is already a classic. But once again she was not expected to win. Julianna Margulies, the terrific leading actress in "The Good Wife," was expected to take the prize in a cake walk. You could hear a collective gasp at the Nokia Theater when the award went to Sedgwick, not Margulies. Sedgwick, obviously thrilled though prepared with a written speech, did not make the obligatory fake disclaimer that she didn't deserve the award amid such a stellar group of nominees (actually they were all stellar, especially Margulies and Glenn Close).

Unlike the Margulies-Sedgwick pas de deux, the drama best actor award was a big yawn. Once again, for the third year in a row, it went to Bryan Cranston of the little-watched but much-awarded AMC drama "Breaking Bad." Awards voters and critics apparently have a thing for AMC shows, including "Mad Men," while viewers have not been quite so quick to turn on the channel.

The awards for drama usually command the most attention and prestige, and this year, despite the great comedy hits like "Glee," was no different. With so many top-tier stars going to the small screen, dramas like "The Good Wife" and "The Closer" have pumped new blood, energy and imagination into the television season. Following this new burst in the industry, the past few years have enjoyed an explosion in good television.

Though Margulies didn't win the top drama actress award, the riveting Archie Panjabi, who plays Margulies's investigator and confidante in "The Good Wife," won her first Emmy and delivered one of the few graceful speeches of the evening. On the male side, Aaron Paul of "Breaking Bad" (that again) won the best supporting actor award. On the high end of the awards scale, Claire Dane and Al Pacino won for their roles in "Temple Grandin" and "You Don't Know Jack," respectively, both produced by HBO. The Emmy for made-for-TV film went to "Temple Grandin" while Tom Hanks won for his 10-part miniseries "The Pacific," also on HBO.

Comedy shows are having a resurgence in the past few seasons, breaking ground with comedy-musicals ("Glee"), dysfunctional families ("Modern Family") and weird geeks ("Big Bang"). It was hardly a surprise that Jim Parsons, the geek of "The Big Bang Theory," walked away with the best actor-comedy award, following supporting comedy awards for the irrepressible Jane Lynch of "Glee" and Eric Stonestreet of "Modern Family." The surprise, if it was that, came with the best actress-comedy prize given to much-honored Edie Falco for "Nurse Jackie" (Showtime), a sort-of-comedy. Falco, a four-time Emmy winner best known for the role of Carmela in "The Sopranos," accepted the award, saying: "This is ridiculous. I am not funny."

Falco's and Parsons' victories snapped a string of comedy awards for Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin of "30 Rock." Another years-long streak was broken when "The Amazing Race" lost to "Top Chef," a first-time winner in the reality-show category.

So what's an Emmy worth? Prestige, for sure. But, unlike the Oscars, which can transform a small movie into a box-office hit and actors and actresses into hot commodities, the Emmy doesn't do all that much. "Mad Men" is a good example. It has now won three best drama Emmys and the adulation of the critics, but it's got zilch for an audience, a modest 2.3 million or so per show. And it isn't because it's on cable. "The Closer," "Rizzoli & Isles," and "Burn Notice," all on cable, draw broadcast-level audiences. "Mad Men" is haute television, not quite ready to wear.

Speaking of fashion, how about the red carpet show? I don't mean that lame show put on by NBC preceding the awards ceremony, which was broadcast nationally by the network. Nah! I'm talking about the hours-long pre-awards show on "E!" with the slick Ryan Seacrest as the host. "E!" virtually invented the red carpet-as-runway-for-stars before award shows. Remember Joan Rivers? Yes, she just about invented this national treasure.

Between the "You look gorgeous!" and "Who are you wearing?" a parade of semi-famous and super-famous stars trooped through, the girls showing off designer gowns that after a while all seemed alike. Seacrest and his bevy of fashionistas were enthusiastic and flattering. But I can't recall a standout in the bunch, except for a thigh-high, black cocktail number with a plunging cleavage worn by Heidi Klum, dominatrix of "Project Runway." Seacrest was his usual oily self, gliding between one celebrity and another, air-kissing like the master of social manners he has become after years in the Hollywood maw.

But there was real news crawling at the bottom of the screen. Portia de Rossi, the gorgeous blond actress ("Arrested Development"), is changing her name to Portia DeGeneres, the surname of her spouse, Ellen DeGeneres.

And that's a wrap.