Crashing the Post-Emmy Soirees
Forgive me for any typos or misspellings because I’ve just ended my evening of post-Emmy festivities. It’s 1:30 a.m. PST, and I’m jetlagged after coming to L.A. Saturday from New York. It’s been a busy night.
The Governor’s Ball after the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony was held in the Los Angeles Convention Center, which was beautifully redecorated with red carpet and crystal saucer-shaped lights, the walls made to look like a starry dark blue night.
Networks that turned out to be some of the big winners Sunday night – namely AMC and FX – had tables in sections raised above the main floor on the side of the room.
Surprise winner Bryan Cranston for AMC’s Breaking Bad was joyously posing for congratulatory photos, and the whole joint was packed.
Outside the hall, Matt Weiner – a multiple winner for AMC’s Emmy-history-making Mad Men, clutching his statues — could be seen chatting with another honoree last night, Tommy Smothers.
Mad Men’s Jon Hamm was gracious as ever, even though he was considered a lock for best dramatic actor that Cranston won instead. Hamm posed for photos with Kevin Spacey of HBO’s Recount. He posed for pictures with fans.
And later Hamm shared a warm embrace with Jon Feltheimer, CEO of Lionsgate, which produces Mad Men.
HBO’s shindig was, as usual, at the Pacific Design Center. It was packed with suits and talent. My West Coast colleague Linda Haugsted and I walked in at the same time as Entourage’s Adrien Grenier. A woman asked Grenier if she could take his photo for “her column,” and he rather suspiciously asked her what column that was. Her answer didn’t sound too legit.
The premium network’s party seemed to have some kind of retro motif. Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes was there. HBO honcho Richard Plepler was there, happy about his network’s wins for John Adams. HBO alum and current Hallmark Channel CEO Henry Schleiff also was present.
The cast of characters at the party also included Bob Balaban, Lorne Michaels, Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Cheryl Hinds, Alan Cumming, Seth Myers, Sex and the City’s Cynthia Nixon and her girlfriend, and assorted cast members from True Blood.
The next stop was the TV Guide gala at The Kress, which had an Asian motif, with kimono-clad waitresses, paper lanterns and what appeared to be snowflakes raining down on us. We couldn’t figure out what the flakes really were.
But we did spot Joey Fatone, Mad Men cast member Bryan Batt, and the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s baby, photographer Larry Birkhead. By that time, we were running out of steam and decided to leave.
FX – which scored an expected win for Glenn Close and a surprise win for Zeljko Ivanek, both for Damages –had a party at Foxtail. But we just never made it over there.
AMC has a bash for Mad Men, we hear. But we weren’t invited.