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Emmy Awards

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The Emmys are big awards for TV.

Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
They honor people who make shows. They give out a gold statue. The statue is a woman with wings.
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
This award shows great skill. Do you like watching TV?

50 words

The Emmys are big awards for TV.

Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
They honor people who make shows. They give out a gold statue.
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
The statue is a woman with wings. She holds an atom in her hand. This award shows great skill. Some awards are for shows on during the day. Other awards are for shows at night. Many people work hard to win one. It is a very special prize for TV.

83 words

The Emmy Awards honor great work in television.

NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
People win these awards for art or skill. There are many different Emmy ceremonies held each year. The Primetime Emmys honor shows aired at night. The Daytime Emmys honor shows aired during the day.
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Other awards honor sports, news, and children's shows. There are even awards for people who work with technology.
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg

The award is a gold statue. It shows a winged woman holding an atom. The wings stand for art. The atom stands for science. A man named Louis McManus designed it. He used his wife as his model. The name "Emmy" comes from a word for old TV cameras. The first ceremony was in 1949. It only honored shows in Los Angeles at first. Now, people all over the world win them. It is one of the four big awards for American entertainment. The others are the Grammy, the Oscar, and the Tony. Making each statue takes five and a half hours. Workers use white gloves to keep them clean.

190 words

The Emmy Awards celebrate great work in the world of television.

NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
These awards honor both artistic talent and technical skill. There are many different Emmy ceremonies held throughout the year. The Primetime Emmys recognize shows aired during the evening. The Daytime Emmys honor programs shown during the day.
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Other awards celebrate sports, news, or documentaries. There are even awards for people who work with television technology. People feel great pride when they win an Emmy. It is one of the four major American entertainment awards. The others are the Grammy for music, the Oscar for film, and the Tony for theater.

Making an Emmy is a very careful job. The famous statuette shows a winged woman holding an atom.

Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
An engineer named Louis McManus designed this statue. He even used his wife as the model for the woman. The wings represent the muse of art. The atom represents the electron of science. Each statue takes five and a half hours to make. Workers must use white gloves to prevent fingerprints. This keeps the metal looking clean and bright. The Primetime statues are made of copper, nickel, silver, and gold.

The history of the Emmys began in Los Angeles. The first ceremony took place on January 25, 1949.

Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
At first, it only honored shows in that local area. Shirley Dinsdale was the very first person to win an Emmy. She won for Most Outstanding Television Personality. In the 1950s, the awards grew to include shows across the whole country. In 1955, a second group called the NATAS was formed in New York. This helped serve people on the East Coast. Over many years, the awards expanded to cover many different parts of TV.

Different groups manage the various Emmy events today. Three main organizations run the different ceremonies. The ATAS handles Primetime and Los Angeles area awards. The NATAS manages Daytime, Sports, and News awards. The IATAS looks after International Emmy Awards.

Maria Rozman at the 2018 National Capital-Chesapeake Bay Emmy Awards.jpg
Maria Rozman at the 2018 National Capital-Chesapeake Bay Emmy Awards.jpg
In 1974, the first Daytime Emmy ceremony was held. The International Emmys started in the early 1970s. In 1988, cable television shows finally became eligible for Primetime Emmys. In 2013, the awards began to include shows made just for streaming. This helped the awards keep up with how people watch TV.

Rules help keep the Emmy competitions fair for everyone. A show usually enters only one type of Emmy event. For example, a show cannot enter both the Primetime and Daytime Emmys. To be a national show, it must reach more than 50 percent of U.S. households. If it reaches fewer homes, it might enter the Regional Emmys instead. In 2021, the groups made big changes to how they group shows. They now look at the style of a show rather than just the time of day. This helps them better match shows to the right award categories.

502 words

The Emmy Awards recognize artistic and technical excellence within the television industry.

NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
These awards are considered one of the four major annual American entertainment honors. They stand alongside the Grammy for music, the Oscar for film, and the Tony for theater. Because television is such a broad medium, there is no single Emmy ceremony. Instead, multiple annual events take place throughout the year. Each ceremony follows its own specific rules and award categories. These ceremonies celebrate everything from acting and directing to engineering and news reporting.

Three distinct organizations manage these various award ceremonies. The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) administers the Primetime and Loser Angeles area awards. The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) manages the Daytime, Sports, News & Documentary, and Children's & Family Emmys. Additionally, NATAS oversees the Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards. The International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (IATAS) handles the International Emmy Awards.

Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
These organizations share ownership of the Emmy trademark and the iconic statuette. They must follow strict rules regarding the use of the Emmy name and image.

The history of the Emmy began in Los Angeles in 1949.

Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
The first ceremony occurred on January 25 at the Hollywood Athletic Club. At that time, the awards only honored shows produced in the Los Angeles area. Shirley Dinsdale became the first person to win an Emmy for Most Outstanding Television Personality. During the 1950s, the ATAS expanded the scope to honor programs aired nationwide. In 1955, the NATAS was formed in New York City to serve East Coast members. Over the next two decades, the awards grew to cover many different sectors of the industry.

Different types of programming qualify for different Emmy events. The Primetime Emmys recognize excellence in American evening programming.

Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
The Daytime Emmys honor achievement in national daytime programming. The International Emmy Awards celebrate programs produced and first aired outside the United States. Regional Emmy Awards recognize excellence in local television across the country.
Maria Rozman at the 2018 National Capital-Chesapeake Bay Emmy Awards.jpg
Maria Rozman at the 2018 National Capital-Chesapeake Bay Emmy Awards.jpg
A show generally cannot enter more than one Emmy event. For example, a national show must reach more than 50 percent of U.S. households to be considered national. If a program reaches fewer homes, it may enter the Regional Emmys instead.

Television technology has changed how these awards function over time. In the 1980s, cable programs became eligible for the Primetime Emmys in 1988. The Daytime Emmys began accepting cable shows in 1989. In 2013, the ATAS started accepting original online-only streaming programs. In 2021, the ATAS and NATAS announced a major realignment of the ceremonies. This change responded to the massive growth of streaming television. Instead of focusing on the time of day, ceremonies now focus on themes and frequency. For instance, most scripted dramas and comedies now move to the Primetime Emmys. Morning shows now move to the News & Documentary Emmys.

The Emmy statuette is a highly detailed and symbolic object.

Charlie Moore with Emmy Award.JPG
Charlie Moore with Emmy Award.JPG
It depicts a winged woman holding an atom. Television engineer Louis McManus designed the statuette using his wife as the model. The wings represent the muse of art, while the atom represents the electron of science. The name "Emmy" comes from "immy," which was slang for the image orthicon tube in early cameras. The name was later feminized to match the female figure of the statue. Each Primetime statuette is made of copper, nickel, silver, and gold. It takes five and a half hours to manufacture a single statue.

Manufacturing these awards requires extreme precision and care. Workers must use white gloves to prevent fingerprints from marking the metal. The Primetime Emmy statuettes are produced by R.S. Owens & Company in Chicago, Illinois.

Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award 2009.jpg
Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award 2009.jpg
This company also manufactured the Academy Award statues until 2016. The Regional Emmy Awards are made by both R.S. Owens & Company and Society Awards. The dimensions and weight of the statues vary depending on the specific award event. This careful process ensures that the physical symbol of achievement remains pristine for the winners.

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🖼️ Images & Media (7)
File:NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Primetime Emmy Award.jpg
NASA Television 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth...
File:Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
Dana Delany 1992 Emmys retouch.jpg
File:Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
Garry Shandling (211280631).jpg
File:Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
Bradley Bell 2010 Daytime Emmy Awards.jpg
File:Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award 2009.jpg
Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement...
File:Charlie Moore with Emmy Award.JPG
Charlie Moore with Emmy Award.JPG
File:Maria Rozman at the 2018 National Capital-Chesapeake Bay Emmy Awards.jpg
Maria Rozman at the 2018 National...
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