I remember my first Daytime Emmy Awards show. It was 95 degrees. It was held in Central Park. Paul Rausch, the fabled producer ("One Life to Live," "Another World") who put it together, was resplendent in a purple sash. I was wearing the same wrap dress as Susan Lucci. Yes, it looked better on her.
After that the Daytime Emmy Awards were a big deal. Half of Manhattan would literally shut down for the red carpet fashion march. Paparazzi lined the streets. It had an Oscar feeling. Those were the days, my friends. We thought they would never end. But they did. For the past three years the show has not even broadcast. They did try a podcast. That was a mess.
This year things are looking up. The awards show is not quite on the air, but it is on the web.
The 2018 awards will be held on Sunday, April 29, and the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has just announced a new partner for its official digital telecast, as was reported by Variety. KNEKT TV is teaming up with NATAS to stream the event on multiple platforms.
Starting with a live red-carpet pre-show, the event will be available to watch on social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram), as well as the Emmys official website. It will also be shown on KNEKT's app, which is available on Apple TV, Roku, iOS and Android. So it will kind of be on TV.
Academy Senior Vice President David Michaels said in a statement, "NATAS is thrilled to have this partnership which gives us the potential of the largest world-wide audience we have ever had. In addition, we are very excited about the live red carpet show and the backstage winner interviews KNEKT is doing with Carolyn Hennesy which allows the fans to see it all." Hennesy plays "General Hospital's" mob legal eagle, Diane.
KNEKT's Kent Speakman commented, "Celebrating the success of the nominees and winners of the Daytime Emmys is reflective of how hard work and persistence pays off. It is an inspiration to fans, members of the entertainment industry and audiences who now have access to watch the show on a global scale."
For years, one of the major questions was: Will Susan Lucci (Erica, "All My Children") ever win a Daytime Emmy? It took 13 years, but she did. After she won, the award show lost ratings. The three major networks, which rotated broadcasting the awards, were not happy when none of their shows won. NBC felt it was giving free publicity to ABC and CBS. POP, originally the TV Guide network, ran the awards. That made sense, since the network offers same-day airing of "The Young and the Restless" and "The Bold and Beautiful." But it was pretty much one and done for the cable network. After that, everyone from NATAS, the producers and soap magazines considered trying to keep it on TV, but it was too expensive.
For the most part, all the award shows have taken a ratings hit. Presently there are 26 televised award shows. Maybe celebrating a good thing has become too much of a good thing.
To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.
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