Standout Moments of the 2016 Emmys

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Jimmy Fallon hosts the 2016 Emmys at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. The Emmy Awards Show gives recognition to excellence in the television industry.

by Megan Cardosi, TALON Sports Editor

To honor the actors bringing characters to life in starring roles and the team working behind the scenes of everyone’s favorite TV shows, the Emmys give awards to standouts in multiple television categories.

The 68th Primetime Emmy Awards were held Sept. 18, 2016, at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California. Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the award ceremony was full of memorable moments, from record-breaking awards to breakout stars to entertaining commentary.   

HBO’s TV show Game of Thrones was the most nominated drama series, with 23 in total. Some of the nominations leading to awards included “Outstanding Drama Series,” “Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series” and “Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series.” The show now has a total of 38 Emmys, a record-breaking number.

FX’s The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story won five awards, the most wins of the night. The show details OJ Simpson’s infamous murder trial. One of its awards was “Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special.”

American-Egyptian actor Rami Malek won his first Emmy for his lead role in Mr. Robot. He had previously acted in TV shows and movies such as Gilmore Girls and Night at the Museum.

“I think [Rami Malek] really plays his character well, as somewhat of an introvert and sociopath” Jerry Chen (11) said. “From his acting, I couldn’t tell that the actor himself wasn’t actually just a sociopathic psycho.”

In the comedic acting awards, Jeffrey Tambor won for a second time for his role in Transparent. Additionally, Julia Louis-Dreyfus won for the fifth year in the row for her acting in Veep.

In addition to the awards, the people who presented and spoke added an important element to the show. With all the presenters and winners many different voices were heard throughout the show.

Many speakers mocked presidential candidate Donald Trump, though he was not present, throughout the award show. Host Jimmy Kimmel joked about Mark Burnett, who created Trump’s former reality show, The Apprentice.

Thanks to Mark Burnett, we don’t have to watch reality shows anymore, because we’re living in one,” Kimmel said.

Alan Yang is a screenwriter, producer and director, well known for working on Parks and Recreation and Master of None. Justin Xie (11) distinctly remembered Alan Yang’s comment during the show.

“I really liked [Yang’s] speech about how Asian parents should give their kids cameras instead of violins,” Justin said. “It was very entertaining.”

Another notable moment of the show was when the child actors of Netflix’s Stranger Things rode around the venue on bicycles to hand out peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to audience members. This event was rather unexpected and unlike previous undertakings performed at award shows.

The Emmys had 11.3 million viewers this year, a five percent drop from the 2015 Emmys. However, those who watched could still count on witty and unique remarks and speeches in addition to the traditional awards.