The very first primetime Emmy Awards took place on this day in 1949. It was held in Los Angeles, and only Los Angeles produced TV shows were admitted for nomination.
The best TV show for 1949 was a games show called Pantomime Quiz. There were no sub-categories.
Interestingly, every show nominated was aired by the same channel (KTLA). It’s probably no big surprise that KTLA took home the award for outstanding overall performance in 1948.
Louis McManus, who designed the actual Emmy statuette, received a special award for his achievement. Ironically, he received a plague for his efforts, not a copy of the Emmy statue….
I featured the Emmy Awards in Blood Stone, although the awards ceremony in the story wasn’t held in 1949, but much later.
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