42nd Primetime Emmy Awards
The 42nd Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 16, 1990. The ceremony was broadcast on Fox from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California. Two networks, The Family Channel and The Disney Channel, received their first major nominations.
42nd Primetime Emmy Awards | |
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Date |
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Location | Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Pasadena, California |
Presented by | Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |
Hosted by | Candice Bergen Jay Leno Jane Pauley |
Highlights | |
Most awards | L.A. Law (3) |
Most nominations | L.A. Law (11) |
Outstanding Comedy Series | Murphy Brown |
Outstanding Drama Series | L.A. Law |
Outstanding Miniseries | Drug Wars: The Camarena Story |
Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series | In Living Color |
Television/radio coverage | |
Network | Fox |
For its second season, Murphy Brown won Outstanding Comedy Series and one other major award. Defending champion Cheers received the most major nominations for a comedy series with 9 and Newhart finished its series run with 21 major nominations, but not a single win. On the drama side, L.A. Law won Outstanding Drama Series for the third time in four years and also won three major awards, receiving the most major nominations for a drama series with 11. This became the first year that every cast member of The Golden Girls wasn't nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.
This ceremony was remembered for the circumstance that three major categories resulted in ties, the most ever for one ceremony.
A clip of The Simpsons presenting the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series can be seen on the DVD boxset of the second season as a special feature.
Winners and nominees
Programs
Outstanding Comedy Series | Outstanding Drama Series |
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Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series | Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special |
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Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special | Outstanding Miniseries |
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Lead performances
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series |
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Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Supporting performances
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series |
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Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Individual performances
Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program |
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Directing
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Directing in a Variety or Music Program | Outstanding Directing in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Writing
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series | Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series |
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Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program | Outstanding Writing in a Miniseries or a Special |
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Most major nominations
Network | Number of Nominations |
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NBC | 47 |
ABC | |
CBS | 35 |
HBO | 11 |
Program | Category | Network | Number of Nominations |
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L.A. Law | Drama | NBC | 11 |
Cheers | Comedy | 9 | |
Twin Peaks | Drama | ABC | 7 |
Murphy Brown | Comedy | CBS | 6 |
Thirtysomething | Drama | ABC | |
Billy Crystal: Midnight Train to Moscow | Variety | HBO | 4 |
The Golden Girls | Comedy | NBC | |
The Kennedys of Massachusetts | Miniseries | ABC | |
A Killing in a Small Town | Special | CBS | |
The Wonder Years | Comedy | ABC | |
Caroline? | Special | CBS | 3 |
China Beach | Drama | ABC | |
Designing Women | Comedy | CBS | |
The Famous Teddy Z | |||
The Final Days | Special | ABC | |
Quantum Leap | Drama | NBC | |
Saturday Night Live | Variety | ||
The Tracey Ullman Show | Fox | ||
The 43rd Annual Tony Awards | CBS | 2 | |
The 62nd Academy Awards | ABC | ||
Age-Old Friends | Special | HBO | |
The Best of 'The Tracey Ullman Show' | Variety | Fox | |
Coach | Comedy | ABC | |
Family of Spies | Miniseries | CBS | |
The Image | Special | HBO | |
In Living Color | Variety | Fox | |
The Incident | Special | CBS | |
Murder in Mississippi | NBC | ||
Newhart | Comedy | CBS | |
Sammy Davis, Jr. 60th Anniversary Celebration | Variety | ABC | |
Small Sacrifices | Miniseries |
Most major awards
Network | Number of Awards |
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ABC | 10 |
CBS | 9 |
NBC | 8 |
HBO | 3 |
Fox | 2 |
Program | Category | Network | Number of Awards |
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L.A. Law | Drama | NBC | 3 |
Age-Old Friends | Special | HBO | 2 |
Caroline? | CBS | ||
Cheers | Comedy | NBC | |
Murphy Brown | CBS | ||
Thirtysomething | Drama | ABC | |
The Wonder Years | Comedy |
- Notes
- "Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories.