As the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences continues to attempt to figure out the mass changes in prime time television, the category in which prime time game shows would be placed has changed its name again to \"Outstanding Reality/Competition Program\" (as opposed to \"Nonfiction Program (Traditional)\" and \"Nonfiction Program (Alternative)\"). Here are this year's nominees:
AFI’s 100 Years ... 100 Passions: America’s Greatest
Love Stories • CBS • An AFI production in association
with The Gary Smith Company
The Amazing Race • CBS • Amazing Race Productions,
Inc. and Touchstone Television in association with Jerry
Bruckheimer Television and Earthview, Inc.
American Idol • FOX • 19 TV Limited and FremantleMedia
North America
100 Years Of Hope And Humor • NBC • A Hope Enterprise,
Inc. production in association with The Gary Smith
Company
Survivor • CBS • SEG, Inc.
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Yes, two of these things are not like the others. No matter whether you think the other three are game shows or not, you will agree that they are competitions of some sort. The AFI and Bob Hope specials are definitely *not* competitions. What was the NATAS smoking?
What I'm afraid is that, with the dissolving of the blue ribbon panels in their old form and more of the membership voting, that a lot of scripted TV people are going to vote for either the AFI or Hope shows to indicate their displeasure with reality formats. This is especially bad because the academy has already announced that this award will be presented on the big Emmy telecast on Sept. 21 on Fox instead of the Creative Arts ceremony. Oh well, it's not the like the Emmy people haven't done anything embarrassing before...
(For the record, the \"Alternative\" nominees are \"Antiques Roadshow,\" a Bravo Cirque du Soleil special, \"Da Ali G Show,\" \"The Osbournes\" and \"Trading Spaces.\")
\"TAR\"'s program nomination is its only one. \"Survivor\" is also up for \"Art Direction for a Variety/Music/Comedy Series\" (?) against the Oscars, the Grammys, \"Cedric the Entertainer Presents\" and \"MADTV,\" Nonfiction Cinematography against conventional documentaries (and \"Survivor\" is shot on tape, not filim) and Nonfiction Editing again against conventional documentaries. \"AI\"'s also up for Nonfiction Directing (Bruce Gowers) against conventional documentaries and Ali G, Lighting Direction against the Oscars and Cher and Rolling Stones concerts (the first sensible lineup of the whole lot), Nonfiction Sound Mixing against (again) conventional documentaries (and do you really think that panels with documentary people will want to vote for a talent show?) and TD/Camera/Video Control against Letterman, \"SNL\" and Leno (the other category besides lighting that they have a shot at winning).
And Wayne Brady is up for an Emmy for the umpteenth time in Variety/Comedy/Music Performance on \"Whose Line?\", against Jon Stewart, Dennis Miller, Martin Short (for \"Primetime Glick\") and Robin Williams. Good luck, Wayne. (FWIW, \"AI\" should've gone for the Variety/Comedy/Music tech categories instead of Nonfiction.)
As I said, some of the fiasco will be on Fox Sept. 21. The rest will be at the Creative Arts ceremony on Sept. 13. No announcement of a telecast yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if E! will do a taped and edited telecast to air on Sept. 20, the night before the big show, as it has the last two years.
