emmyawards

Hilary Duff books a multi-episode role on 'Gossip Girl,' Paula Abdul gets in touch with her inner 'Diva,' Wentworth Miller returns to the small screen and more TV news.

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.

They didn't just thank the Academy ...

Most awards speeches are laundry lists of gratitude (how many agents do actors HAVE?).

But every once in a while, someone busts out an Emmys speech we'll never forget -- whether it's funny, shocking, controversial or just plain confusing.

See if you can match these colorful Emmys quotes to the winners (and at least one loser ... er, non-winner) who said them.

Let it be known that my son knows a good thing when he sees it. He's 14 now, but between the ages of six and 10, he was obsessed with Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends, a Cartoon Network show that just earned an Emmy. Character designer Ben Balistreri won in the juried award category for individual achievement in animation for the "Mondo Coco" episode.

I would see the show in passing and think, what the heck is this? It just looked so weird, and the animation is practically primitive compared to today's CG standards. But the concept is somewhat more complicated.

In the Foster's universe, imaginary friends become physical beings the instant a child imagines them. An Imaginary Friend is completely real and can be seen, heard, and felt by all under most circumstances. The only problem is that children outgrow them, and they're left to fend for themselves.

It's not too late to get into 'Mad Men,' the slick AMC series about life in the early '60s that recently earned a staggering 16 Emmy nominations.

In 'For Those Who Think Young,' the second season's opener, smooth ad exec Don Draper suddenly finds himself feeling old. His doctor chides him for his five-drinks-a-day habit, he can't relate to his wife the way he used to, and his bosses are pressuring him to hire hotshots in their twenties. What's a chain-smoking, impeccably dressed alpha male to do?

For more on 'Mad Men,' including hints about plot points to come and more on those fabulous suits, check out AOL's recent interview with series star (and Emmy nominee) Jon Hamm.

With Rescue Me's fifth season finally (kinda, sorta) getting closer, we're getting more and more news about what's in store for Tommy and the gang. In addition to the minisodes, we've also got some exciting potential casting news: Michael J. Fox may be joining Rescue Me for a multi-episode arc. Fox is set to play a love interest for Tommy's (Dennis Leary) on-again/off-again ex, Janet (Andrea Roth).

Rescue Me may seem like an odd show for the former Spin City and Family Ties star to pop up on, but Fox and Leary are longtime friends. This friendship means that even though the deal isn't completely finalized, there's very good chance that Fox will be seen on the FX drama next summer.

Just when you thought awards shows couldn't get any longer, The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced that reality show hosts are eligible to receive Emmys. This year's 60th Annual Emmy Awards will include a category called Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program.

The academy named popular hosts like Ryan Seacrest, Tom Bergeron, Samantha Harris, and Howie Mandel as possible nominees. Ty Pennington, Tyra Banks, and Jeff Foxworthy are also eligible. I'm not surprised that reality hosts are getting this opportunity. The Emmys have had categories for Outstanding Reality Program and Reality-Competition Program since 2001 and 2003, respectively.

So Jay liveblogged the Emmy Awards and we've seen the pictures and debated the winners and losers. But what about those bleeps and cutaways during Ray Romano's standup routine and Sally Field's acceptance speech? Here's the scoop.

A lot of people think that Field was censored because of her liberal views and the war in Iraq. Not so, according to FOX. They bleeped her because of her use of the word "goddamn." It's always been a weird rule on television that you can say "God" and you can say "damn," but if you put the two words together, civilization as we know it will end. People always say that religion is dumped on in the media too much, but I think that in this case the media goes out of its way to please everyone.

Tonight I could have written the great American novel, learned to play Chopin's Etudes, brought peace to the Middle East, or painted my house. Oh, the ennui of such pedestrian avocations. Let somebody else do all that (especially the house painting). I spent my time camped in front of the Emmys, snapping screen shots of the rollicking festivities. Nine galleries (click the headers below); over 500 pics.

The Acceptance Speeches. That's Thomas Haden Church to the right, praising God for his good fortune or taking a much-needed leak, I can't tell which.

Tony Bennett and Christina Aguilera. It was Tony's night (Bennett and Soprano, actually), and it was Aguilera's good fortune to be his co-crooner.

In Memoriam. Dead people, sadly. Some well known; others who actually do the hard work.

Jon Stewart and Steve Colbert. They solve global warming, then steal Ricky Gervais' Emmy.

Presentations. Possibly more glamorous than winning.

Ryan Seacrest. America's host, for better or worse.

The Audience. The camera loves Julia ... and dozens of others.

Lewis Black. And his many pissed-off faces.

The Sopranos. They mobbed the stage for no reason, then later they won the big award.

• At 7, NBC has a new Football Night in America, followed by the Patriots/Chargers game.
• At 8, CBS has a new Big Brother.
• FOX as The Emmy Awards at 8 (E!'s red carpet coverage started at 6).
• Nickelodeon has a new Drake & Josh at 8, followed by a new Zoey 101.
• At 9, PBS has new Mystery!
• Lifetime has a new Side Order of Life at 9.
• There's a new Iron Chef America at 9 on Food Network.
• HGTV has a new Design Star at 9.
• USA has the season finales of The 4400 and Dead Zone, starting at 9.
• VH-1 has a new Rock of Love with Bret Michaels at 9, then a new Hogan Knows Best.
• Also at 9: HBO has a new Tell Me You Love Me, followed by a new Curb Your Enthusiasm.
• At 10, MSNBC has this morning's Meet the Press, if you missed it this morning.
• At 11:30, Cartoon Network has a new Robot Chicken.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Get this: not only is Ryan Seacrest going to host The Emmys later this month, he actually might sing as well.

This is all part of Seacrest's plan for world domination by the year 2019. He's already hosting The Super Bowl and New Year's Eve coverage on ABC and doing various weekly radio shows and shows on E! He also waits tables three nights a week at the T.G.I. Fridays in Glendale, CA. How does the man do it?

Hey, Brigitte here with TV Squad Daily. I'll be covering the TV stories I find interesting each day, Monday through Friday, in this video blog.

Today on TV Squad Daily:

• Kid Nation, the reality show that sets kids loose in an abandoned New Mexico town, is (of course) creating some controversy,
  
• The Emmy nominations are in!
  

The video's embedded below, or you can subscribe to this podcast via our feed. Plus, you can also download the file directly.

We'll have full coverage of the Emmy Award nominations tomorrow (Thursday) morning starting just before 8:30 Eastern Time. That's 5:30am on the West Coast, where they announce the nominations. Crazy Hollywood people getting up so early.

In the meantime, head on over to AOL and pick who you think is going to be nominated tomorrow in several categories, including Best Drama, Best Comedy, Best Actor, and Best Actress. Then come back here tomorrow morning for the live blog and see how you did.

Those cruel Emmy bastards. Here Regis Philbin is today, recuperating from his heart bypass surgery (unless it's still going on, which is possible), and he doesn't even get a nomination for Best Talk Show or Host!

Ellen got a nod though, and she led all nominees with 12 nominations. Going up against her for Best Talk Show are Dr. Phil, The View, Tyra Banks, and Rachael Ray. If she's not the winner out of that group, something is wrong somewhere. She's also up for Best Talk Show Host, with the same nominees and also Lisa Rinna, who apparently hosts something called Soap Talk.

The shows up for Best Soap are Guiding Light, The Young and the Restless, One Life To Live, and The Bold and the Beautiful. Bob Barker got a nomination for The Price Is Right. His last day on that show is in June.

Oh, and that Today Show "It's a New Day" theme? It got a nom too.

Here is the full list of nominees.

American Idol is a powerhouse of ratings. The Emmy telecast -- not so much. In fact, last year's show was down 13 percent in viewers from the previous year. How can Emmy grab a little of that Idol magic? Perhaps by hiring the guys behind Idol. Which is just what FOX has done.

Idol producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick have been tapped to executive produce the telecast for The 59th Annual Emmy Awards, which will air on Sunday, September 16 (8-11 PM ET) from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

FOX Entertainment President Peter Liguori said, "Nigel and Ken have consistently raised the creative bar with their innovative work on American Idol and we believe they will continue to do so during their first Emmy telecast."