PASADENA, CA—The biggest night in daytime TV was held on Sunday, April 30, as the 2017 Daytime Emmy Awards were handed out. The ceremony which has gone thru development hell in my opinion in the recent years has lost its stature. This was an event that used to be televised on the big networks, but no so much. I mean we’ve even seen the ceremony not televised and air completely online at times. The ceremony was held at the famed Pasadena Civic Center.
“Extra” host Mario Lopez and “The Talk” hostess Sheryl Underwood were master of ceremonies for the non-televised awards event, which was broadcast via social media platforms. Seriously, no wonder no one takes the Daytime Emmy Awards serious anymore. I wouldn’t either. Could you imagine watching the Golden Globes or the Oscars via Facebook live? Yeah, the level of stature for those ceremonies would greatly decrease in my opinion. Mario and Sheryl did their best to liven the online broadcast, with Sheryl constant innuendos onto Lopez that became a bit much as the show progressed.
Leading the pack of all contenders was the CBS soap “The Young and the Restless,” but would the soap have the strength to pull off a win in the category for Outstanding Daytime Drama? Not quite, because “General Hospital” walked off with the prize. I would argue when it comes to the soap world, all of the soaps are quite deserving of the big prize.
The award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series went to Steve Burton for his work on “The Young and the Restless.” It’s about time for a bit of love for Burton, who has been nominated so many times in this category, without a win, so it was well deserved for the actor. The Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Younger Actress in a drama series was a victory for Lexi Ainsworth on “General Hospital.” I would argue Ainsworth delivered the most range, next to Alyvia Alyn Lind on “The Young and the Restless.”
The prize for Outstanding Game Show was a win for the show that educates all, “Jeopardy.” The Emmy for Guest Performer on a Drama Series went to Jim O’Heir for “The Bold and the Beautiful.” Indeed a shocker, as I thought that Nichelle Nichols was a lock for her performance on “The Young and the Restless.” “General Hospital” nabbed a win for Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series. The great Susan Lucci took the stage and received a standing ovation from the crowd, as she paid tribute to Agnes Nixon; the woman behind the soaps “All My Children” and “One Life to Live.” Nixon is the reason Lucci got her start on “AMC” in 1970.
Now we’re getting back to the good stuff, as the prize for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (the most competitive race in my opinion) went to Kate Mansi on “Days of Our Lives.” She sure delivered some epic acting in the recent year on the NBC soap. It was a victory for Bryan Craig for the second consecutive year for Outstanding Younger Actor for his work on “General Hospital.” The Emmy for Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host was a win for Steve Harvey.
The great Mary Hart was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award, and to present the prize was comedian Tim Allen. It was indeed a moment watching those infamous clips from all the interviews hart conducted with “Entertainment Tonight” over the past 3 decades. She gave a seriously long speech, so long that I could not remember how long she remained on the stage. The ladies of “The Talk” delivered the Emmy for Outstanding Informative Talk Show to “The Dr. Oz Show.” The award for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show went to “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” I mean is there anyone who can dethrone Ellen?
“The Young and the Restless” was victorious in the Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series category. Steve Harvey added another Emmy win for the night. “Bold and Beautiful” icons Katherine Kelly Lang and John McCook presented highlights from the soap for the past 30 years. Man, those highlights take you back to those good ole days on the soap people.
That was indeed an awkward moment to watch former lovers and hosts of the hit HGTV series “Flip or Flop” take the stage together to present the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Entertainment News Program to “Entertainment Tonight.” Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host was a victory for the ladies of “The Talk” who all took the stage minus Julie Chen.
Five ladies, five fierce performances, but only one could be victorious in the race of Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. In the end, it was a win for Gina Tognoni for her work on “The Young and the Restless.” Scott Clifton made history being the first actor to win Outstanding Younger Actor, Supporting Actor and Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his work on “The Bold and the Beautiful.” I honestly thought, this was a duel between Peter Bergman and Kristoff St. John for their work on “Y&R.”
I’m a bit surprised that the ceremony lasted longer than 2.5 hours. Previously, this is an awards show that keeps its time frame under the 2-hour mark, but I’m guessing because things were broadcast via social media, but it looked like things were spread out quite evenly across the board in the soap world between “Y&R,” “B&B” and “GH.” It would indeed be nice to see the Daytime Emmy Awards come back to TV; we can only keep our fingers crossed America.
