HOLLYWOOD -- Cable television was awarded its first prime-time Emmy Award
categories that are judged differently than others.
"Dear America: Letters Home From Vietnam," a documentary on HBO that
juxtaposed dramatic readings of soldiers' letters against footage of the
war, was named best informational special of the 1987-88 season.
The cable program also was cited in the category of outstanding
individual achievement in informational programming for the writing by
Bill Couturie and Richard Dewhurst. Couturie coproduced "Dear America"
with Thomas Bird.
These were the first Emmys won by cable programs in the 40-year-old
prime-time competition because this is the first year that cable has
been eligible. Previously it was deemed not to be available to enough of
the United States to justify inclusion with programs shown on
over-the-air television.
(They were not cable's first Emmys, however: ESPN won a Sports Emmy
last July.)
Two PBS programs were named best informational series: "Buster
Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow" and "Nature."
Like "Dear America," "Buster Keaton" was a double winner as writers
(and coproducers) Kevin Brownlow and David Gill collected Emmys in the
same individual achievement category for which Couturie and Dewhurst
won.
The awards announced Wednesday were in what the TV academy calls its
"area" categories, in which the nominees are judged by a peer panel
against a standard of excellence rather than in competition with one
another, so that there may be one winner, multiple winners or no winner.
The academy said it had decided to release the results before the
official ceremonies "to avoid situations where envelopes might be opened
during ceremonies with no 'area' winners awarded."
The winners will pick up their statuettes Saturday during
nontelevised ceremonies at the Pasadena (Calif.) Civic Auditorium for
the craft categories. Winners of the writing, directing, producing and
performing categories will be announced Sunday in ceremonies that will
be televised on Fox Broadcasting.
Other winners Wednesday were:
Individual Achievement -- Classical Music-Dance Programming: Kirk
Browning, director, "The Metropolitan Opera Presents: Turandot," PBS.
Individual Achievement -- Special Events Programming: Marc Palius,
lighting director, and Olin Younger, lighting consultant, "The 15th
Annual American Music Awards," ABC.
Variety-Music Events Programming: "The 60th Annual Academy Awards,"
ABC.
Graphic Design and Title Sequences: Liz Friedman, "Strong Poison,"
PBS.
Special Visual Effects: Will Vinton, Mark Gustafson, David Altshul,
"Moonlighting," ABC.
