Following a season in which no single show or network dominated, television critics have picked a roster of nominees featuring lots of fresh shows and fresh faces for their 18th annual awards.
Final winners will be announced at a ceremony July 20 at the Ritz-Carlton Huntington Hotel & Spa in Pasadena. Comic legend Bob Newhart will kick off the proceedings. The Television Critics Association is comprised of more than 150 journalists from the United States and Canada.
Voting in 11 categories, the critics often displayed a preference for the new over the old.
Fox's "24," HBO's "Six Feet Under" and FX's "The Shield" each are nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Drama, New Program, and Program of the Year. All are first-year series.
Several stars from those shows also are recognized for Individual Achievement in Drama: Michael Chiklis ("The Shield"), Rachel Griffiths ("Six Feet Under") and Kiefer Sutherland ("24"). Returning nominees in that category are Lauren Graham (The WB's "Gilmore Girls") and Martin Sheen (NBC's "The West Wing.")
MTV's "The Osbournes" proved a critical rave, with nods for outstanding achievement in Comedy, New Program, and Program of the Year.
For Individual Achievement in Comedy, the list features four first-time nominees, including veteran Matt LeBlanc of NBC's "Friends." Others are Denis Leary (ABC's "The Job"), Bernie Mac (Fox's "The Bernie Mac Show"), John McGinley (NBC's "Scrubs") and repeat nominee Ray Romano (CBS's "Everybody Loves Raymond").
Another indicator of diverse tastes this year is the fact that no one network or cable channel had the lion's share of nominations.
In the category of Outstanding Achievement in Drama, the nominees come from five different outlets, with CBS's "CSI" and The WB's "Gilmore Girls" joining the new shows cited above.
Perennial HBO pick "The Sopranos" was not eligible this year because no new episodes aired during the TCA Awards year of May 23, 2001 to May 22, 2002. HBO's 9/11 documentary "In Memoriam" similarly did not qualify for 2002 consideration because it debuted after May 23.
In the category of Outstanding Achievement in Comedy, Fox's "The Bernie Mac Show," CBS's "Everybody Loves Raymond," NBC's "Friends" and NBC's "Scrubs" share company with "The Osbournes."
The category of Movies, Miniseries and Specials indicates a varied year in programming. Nominees are CBS's "9/11" documentary, the multi-outlet 9/11 concert "America: A Tribute to Heroes," HBO's "Band of Brothers," Discovery's "Blue Planet: Seas of Life" and PBS's "Frontier House."
Elsewhere, Bill O'Reilly's controversial Fox news analysis program "The O'Reilly Report" received its first TCA nomination in the News & Information category. Also cited are PBS' "Frontline," ABC's "Nightline," CBS' "60 Minutes," and PBS' "American Masters."
Previous TCA winner and PBS series "Between the Lions" is nominated again for Outstanding Achievement in Children's Programming, along with Nickelodeon's "Spongebob Squarepants" and "Little Bill," and Cartoon Network's "Samurai Jack." (This category has just four nominees.)
In the Career Achievement category, the finalists are Carol Burnett, Bill Cosby, Larry Gelbart, Aaron Spelling and Mike Wallace.
And with that group in mind, the TCA this year is introducing a new category, the Heritage Award, intended to honor programs or entities with a distinguished track record in television. This year's nominees are NBC's "Saturday Night Live," CBS's "60 Minutes," Fox's "The Simpsons," NBC's "Law & Order" and Hallmark Hall of Fame productions.
The 2002 TCA Award nominees:
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
"The Bernie Mac Show" (Fox)
"Everybody Loves Raymond" (CBS)
"Friends" (NBC)
"The Osbournes" (MTV)
"Scrubs" (NBC)
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
"24" (Fox)
"CSI" (CBS)
"Gilmore Girls" (WB)
"The Shield" (FX)
"Six Feet Under" (HBO)
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT MOVIES, MINI-SERIES AND SPECIALS
"9/11" (CBS)
"America: A Tribute to Heroes" (all networks)
"Band of Brothers" (HBO)
"Blue Planet: Seas of Life" (Discovery)
"Frontier House" (PBS)
OUTSTANDING NEW PROGRAM OF THE YEAR
"24" (Fox)
"Alias" (ABC)
"The Osbournes" (MTV)
"The Shield" (FX)
"Six Feet Under" (HBO)
INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
Denis Leary ("The Job")
Matt LeBlanc ("Friends")
Bernie Mac ("The Bernie Mac Show")
John McGinley ("Scrubs")
Ray Romano ("Everybody Loves Raymond")
INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
Michael Chiklis ("The Shield")
Lauren Graham ("Gilmore Girls")
Rachel Griffiths ("Six Feet Under")
Martin Sheen ("West Wing")
Kiefer Sutherland ("24")
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CHILDREN'S PROGRAMMING
"Between the Lions" (PBS)
"Little Bill" (Nickelodeon)
"Samurai Jack" (Cartoon Network)
"Spongebob Squarepants" (Nickelodeon)
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NEWS & INFORMATION
"60 Minutes" (CBS)
"American Masters" (PBS)
"Frontline" (PBS)
"Nightline" (ABC)
"The O'Reilly Factor" (Fox)
PROGRAM OF THE YEAR
"24" (Fox)
"Band of Brothers" (HBO)
"The Osbournes" (MTV)
"The Shield" (FX)
"Six Feet Under" (HBO)
CAREER ACHIEVEMENT
Carol Burnett
Bill Cosby
Larry Gelbart
Aaron Spelling
Mike Wallace
HERITAGE AWARD (New award in 2002)
"60 Minutes" (CBS)
Hallmark Hall of Fame productions
"Law & Order" (NBC)
"Saturday Night Live" (NBC)
"The Simpsons" (Fox)
Credit: tvcritics.org
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