Awards shows are just an lazy way for networks to eat up hundreds of minutes of airtime. They also sell big chunks of advertising that no one will see because the kind of people who watch every single minute of airtime either never leave their house or don't have the cognitive faculties to understand the concept of money.

The worst of the worst is the Tonys. They seem to go out of their way to make the whole affair uninteresting and over the heads of their viewers who are located outside of the Broadway area, give or take a few blocks. Why even air them? Is there a beet farmer in Bumblecrack, Ark. who just can't wait another night to find out if Hope Davis took home the Best Actress nod for 'God of Carnage?'

This year, an orange glow of hope came down from the heavens when the people behind the awards show offered the hosting job to Conan O'Brien, an honor he turned down just as fast.

This seems to be Neil Patrick Harris' year. A tour-de-force season on How I Met Your Mother was followed by hosting stints on the Tonys and TV Land Awards that showed how natural he was in the role of awards host. Heck, he even managed to get the Tonys some viral street cred by doing a Billy Crystal-esque medley at the end that stated the show "could not be any gayer if Liza was named mayor and Elton John took flight."

So, it's not a big surprise to hear that NPH is near a deal to host the Emmys as well, according to Variety.

CBS has secured even more celebrities to grace the stage at Radio City Music Hall next Sunday. Gabriel Byrne (In Treatment), Julie Chen (Big Brother), Harry Connick, Jr. (Will & Grace), Laurence Fishburne, Mandy Patinkin (Criminal Minds), David Hyde Pierce, Lily Tomlin and John Waters (Til Death Do Us Part) have been added as presenters. These actors and actresses (and, er, Julie Chen) will join an already stellar list of presenters and host Whoopi Goldberg.

I have to admit it. I'm getting a little excited for The Tonys. I usually find them boring. The performances are fantastic but the awards in between are a bit of a snore. However, this cast of presenters is intriguing. I'll at least be flipping back and forth hoping to catch the performances and my favorite stars.

The 62nd Annual Tony Awards will be held on Sunday June 15th from 8:00 to 11:00 p.m. ET on CBS.

CBS is rounding up some A-listers to appear at The Tony Awards this year. Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Kristin Chenoweth (Pushing Daisies), Glenn Close (Damages), Richard Griffiths, Laura Linney (John Adams), John Lithgow, Liza Minnelli, Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds), Daniel Radcliffe, Brooke Shields (Lipstick Jungle) and Marisa Tomei will be presenters at this year's award show. As previously announced, Whoopi Goldberg of The View, a Tony-winner herself, will be this year's host.

Also, the Tony Award-winning productions The Lion King and Rent will make rare encore performances at this year's gala.

The 62nd Annual Tony Awards will be broadcast live from Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 15th from 8:00 to 11:00 p.m. ET (delayed PT) on CBS. Here's my issue with the Tonys. It's long and it's usually a snore. Do you think this effort to spice up the show will pay off? Does it make you want to tune in?