TV Talk: Emmy telecast welcomes comedy newcomers ‘Ted Lasso,’ ‘Hacks;’ shows off Billy Porter’s latest fashion

Sunday night on CBS, the 73rd Emmy Awards began with an opening that was equal parts cringe and joyful fun as host Cedric the Entertainer was joined in rapping about his love of TV by Lil Dickey, Rita Wilson and LL Cool J and the celebrities in attendance who joined in a riff on the late Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend.”

Best of all it was brief. Worst of all it reinforced the idea that celebs, gathered unmasked under a tent, get to operate by different rules than the rest of us. Bravo to Seth Rogen, who delivered a brief monologue, for calling out the obvious.

“There [are] way too many of us in this little room,” Rogen said. “They said this was outdoors. It’s not. They lied to us. We’re in a hermetically-sealed tent right now. I would not have come to this. Why is there a roof?”

Later Cedric the Entertainer assured viewers, “We had to get vaxxed to come here. I did not have a reaction like Nicki Minaj’s cousin. … I got Pfizer, that’s the Neiman Marcus of vaccines. Moderna is Macy’s. And Johnson Johnson is TJ Maxx.” (The joke would have worked better if he’d made Moderna the Neiman Marcus shot given a recent study showing it’s the most effective of the vaccines at preventing hospitalizations.)

The host returned throughout the telecast for several tepid, taped bits, including one featuring his “The Neighborhood” co-stars, but they were all brief and the producers ordered the distribution of awards in a way that kept the whole affair moving at a brisk pace so that even the gags that fell flat — most of them — were soon in the rearview mirror. The Golden Globes-like set-up, with nominees seated at tables dining during the telecast, also contributed to a looser, goosier feel than past Emmy ceremonies.

Apple TV+’s uplifting comedy “Ted Lasso” basically ran the table in the comedy categories, including wins for best comedy series, lead actor (Jason Sudeikis), supporting actor (Brett Goldstein) and supporting actress (Hannah Waddingham).

HBO Max comedy “Hacks” won for lead actress (Jean Smart), writing and directing.

On the drama side, Netflix’s “The Crown” won awards for drama series, lead actress (Olivia Colman), lead actor (Josh O’Connor), supporting actress (Gillian Anderson), supporting actor (Tobias Menzies) and writing and directing.

HBO’s “Mare of Easttown” won the most awards in the limited series/movie category, including wins for Kate Winslet (lead actress), Julianne Nicholson (supporting actress) and Evan Peters (supporting actor), but it lost best limited series to Netflix’s “The Queens Gambit,” which also took home a limited series directing trophy.

Ewan McGregor won for lead actor in a limited series for Netflix’s “Halston.”

Michaela Coel won for writing limited series “I May Destroy You.”

“Stephen Colbert’s Election Night 2020” (Showtime) won for live variety special.

Disney+’s taped-on-stage “Hamilton” won for pre-recorded Variety special with 1993 Carnegie Mellon University musical theater program grad Renee Elise Goldsberry, accepted the award on behalf of the production, saying, “This award represents the synergy of the mediums of television and theater. What a gift we can be to each other.”

Beyond these newcomers, many of the other winners were reruns.

“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” won outstanding variety talk series for the sixth year in a row. Oliver said he was rooting for Conan O’Brien, who ended his nightly show on TBS earlier this year. Oliver also paid tribute to the late Norm Macdonald, encouraging viewers to watch O’Brien and Macdonald bits on YouTube.

In accepting the best variety sketch show award (for the fifth year running), “Saturday Night Live” executive producer Lorne Michaels also paid tribute to Macdonald, one-time “Weekend Update” anchor, calling him “one of the best we ever had.”

Although he didn’t win his second Emmy for “Pose,” Pittsburgh native Billy Porter made an impression on the red carpet on the E! Emmy pre-show dressed in an all-black ensemble with giant ruffled wings, accented with diamond jewelry.

“I am the Fairy Godmother,” he said, referencing his role in the recent Amazon movie “Cinderella.” “There is a theme going on here.”

Porter, a 1987 graduate of Pittsburgh CAPA and Taylor Allderdice High Schools and a 1991 graduate of Carnegie Mellon University’s drama program, won the Emmy for lead actor in a drama for the first season of “Pose” and he was nominated again this year for the show’s final season. He called his “Pose” character Pray Tell the greatest creative work of his life so far.

“As a 14-year-old sissy boy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, my biggest dream was to be the male Whitney Houston,” he said. “I feel like the sky is the limit at this point.”

You can reach TV writer Rob Owen at rowen@triblive.com or 412-380-8559. Follow Rob on Twitter or Facebook. Ask TV questions by email or phone. Please include your first name and location.