The 60th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 21, 2008, at the newly opened Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California to honor the best in U.S. prime time television. The ceremony was hosted by Tom Bergeron (who was also hosting America's Funniest Home Videos and Dancing with the Stars, both also on ABC, at the time), Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, Jeff Probst, and Ryan Seacrest (all were nominated in the debut category—Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program) and televised in the United States on ABC. 28 awards were presented.

The nominations were announced on July 17 by Kristin Chenoweth and Neil Patrick Harris. The Creative Arts Emmy Awards were held eight days earlier (September 13) at the same venue. The ceremony was hosted by Neil Patrick Harris and Sarah Chalke.

The telecast was viewed by 12.20 million with a household rating of 8.86/12.79 making it the lowest rated and least viewed ceremony in its televised history. Many critics cited lackluster performances from the five hosts as a reason for the huge decline.The Live Feed; 60th Emmy Awards reviews Others pointed to the field of nominees which were dominated by low-rated and sparsely viewed programs, thus making the Emmys widely considered as a bust, which was panned by critics as "... the worst ever, laid a big, fat ratings egg as well ..."Give Emmys to Craig from Broadcasting and Cable

In 2011, when TV Guide Network re-did their list of "25 Biggest TV Blunders", this ceremony was included.

For the first time in a decade, the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series was won by the defending champion. 30 Rock

Outstanding Drama Series went to AMC freshmen series Mad Men. This marked the first series award for a program on a basic cable station. Mad Men led all dramas with six major nominations.

This would be the final ceremony to have five nominees per category, most major categories (acting and programs) were expanded to include at least six slots the following year.

Winners and nominees Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold:Emmys.com list of 2008 Nominees & Winners

Programs

+ 30 Rock (NBC) Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO) Entourage (HBO) The Office (NBC) Two and a Half Men (CBS) Mad Men (AMC) Boston Legal (ABC) Damages (FX) Dexter (Showtime) House (Fox) Lost (ABC) Recount (HBO) Bernard and Doris (HBO) Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale (HBO) The Memory Keeper's Daughter (Lifetime) A Raisin in the Sun (ABC) John Adams (HBO) The Andromeda Strain (A&E) Cranford (PBS) Tin Man (Sci Fi) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) The Colbert Report (Comedy Central) Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO) Saturday Night Live (NBC) The Amazing Race (CBS) American Idol (Fox) Dancing with the Stars (ABC) Project Runway (Bravo) Top Chef (Bravo)

Acting

Lead performances + Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock as Jack Donaghy (NBC) Steve Carell – The Office as Michael Scott (NBC) Lee Pace – Pushing Daisies as Ned (ABC) Tony Shalhoub – Monk as Adrian Monk (USA) Charlie Sheen – Two and a Half Men as Charlie Harper (CBS) Tina Fey – 30 Rock as Liz Lemon (NBC) Christina Applegate – Samantha Who? as Samantha Newly (ABC) America Ferrera – Ugly Betty as Betty Suarez (ABC) Julia Louis-Dreyfus – The New Adventures of Old Christine as Christine Campbell (CBS) Mary-Louise Parker – Weeds as Nancy Botwin (Showtime) Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad as Walter White (AMC) Gabriel Byrne – In Treatment as Dr. Paul Weston (HBO) Michael C. Hall – Dexter as Dexter Morgan (Showtime) Jon Hamm – Mad Men as Don Draper (AMC) Hugh Laurie – House as Dr. Gregory House (Fox) James Spader – Boston Legal as Alan Shore (ABC) Glenn Close – Damages as Patty Hewes (FX) Sally Field – Brothers & Sisters as Nora Walker (ABC) Mariska Hargitay – Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Olivia Benson (NBC) Holly Hunter – Saving Grace as Grace Hanadarko (TNT) Kyra Sedgwick – The Closer as Brenda Leigh Johnson (TNT) Paul Giamatti – John Adams as John Adams (HBO) Ralph Fiennes – Bernard and Doris as Bernard Lafferty (HBO) Ricky Gervais – Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale as Andy Millman (HBO) Kevin Spacey – Recount as Ron Klain (HBO) Tom Wilkinson – Recount as James Baker (HBO) Laura Linney – John Adams as Abigail Adams (HBO) Judi Dench – Cranford as Matilda "Matty" Jenkyns (PBS) Catherine Keener – An American Crime as Gertrude Baniszewski (Showtime) Phylicia Rashad – A Raisin in the Sun as Lena Younger (ABC) Susan Sarandon – Bernard and Doris as Doris Duke (HBO)

Supporting performances + Jeremy Piven – Entourage as Ari Gold (HBO) Jon Cryer – Two and a Half Men as Dr. Alan Harper (CBS) Kevin Dillon – Entourage as Johnny "Drama" Chase (HBO) Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother as Barney Stinson (CBS) Rainn Wilson – The Office as Dwight Schrute (NBC) Jean Smart – Samantha Who? as Regina Newly (ABC) Kristin Chenoweth – Pushing Daisies as Olive Snook (ABC) Amy Poehler – Saturday Night Live as various characters (NBC) Holland Taylor – Two and a Half Men as Evelyn Harper (CBS) Vanessa Williams – Ugly Betty as Wilhelmina Slater (ABC) Željko Ivanek – Damages as Ray Fiske (FX) Ted Danson – Damages as Arthur Frobisher (FX) Michael Emerson – Lost as Ben Linus (ABC) William Shatner – Boston Legal as Denny Crane (ABC) John Slattery – Mad Men as Roger Sterling Jr. (AMC) Dianne Wiest – In Treatment as Dr. Gina Toll (HBO) Candice Bergen – Boston Legal as Shirley Schmidt (ABC) Rachel Griffiths – Brothers & Sisters as Sarah Whedon (ABC) Sandra Oh – Grey's Anatomy as Dr. Christina Yang (ABC) Chandra Wilson – Grey's Anatomy as Dr. Miranda Bailey (ABC) Tom Wilkinson – John Adams as Benjamin Franklin (HBO) Bob Balaban – Recount as Benjamin Ginsberg (HBO) Stephen Dillane – John Adams as Thomas Jefferson (HBO) Denis Leary – Recount as Michael Whouley (HBO) David Morse – John Adams as George Washington (HBO) Eileen Atkins – Cranford as Deborah Jenkyns (PBS) Laura Dern – Recount as Katherine Harris (HBO) Ashley Jensen – Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale as Maggie Jacobs (HBO) Audra McDonald – A Raisin in the Sun as Ruth Younger (ABC) Alfre Woodard – Pictures of Hollis Woods as Edna Reilly (CBS)

Individual performances + Don Rickles – Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (HBO) Stephen Colbert – The Colbert Report (Comedy Central) Tina Fey – Saturday Night Live (NBC) David Letterman – Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) Jon Stewart – The 80th Annual Academy Awards (ABC)

Hosting + Jeff Probst – Survivor (CBS) Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars (ABC) Heidi Klum – Project Runway (Bravo) Howie Mandel – Deal or No Deal (NBC) Ryan Seacrest – American Idol (Fox)

Directing + Pushing Daisies: "Pie-lette" – Barry Sonnenfeld (ABC) 30 Rock: "Rosemary's Baby" – Michael Engler (NBC) Entourage: "No Cannes Do" – Dan Attias (HBO) Flight of the Conchords: "Sally Returns" – James Bobin (HBO) The Office: "Goodbye, Toby" – Paul Feig (NBC) The Office: "Money" – Paul Lieberstein (NBC) House: "House's Head" – Greg Yaitanes (Fox) Boston Legal: "The Mighty Rogues" – Arlene Sanford (ABC) Breaking Bad: "Pilot" – Vince Gilligan (AMC) Damages: "Get Me a Lawyer" – Allen Coulter (FX) Mad Men: "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" – Alan Taylor (AMC) The 80th Annual Academy Awards – Louis J. Horvitz (ABC) The Colbert Report – Jim Hoskinson (Comedy Central) Company (Great Performances) – Lonny Price (PBS) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – Chuck O'Neil (Comedy Central) Saturday Night Live – Don Roy King (NBC) Recount – Jay Roach (HBO) Bernard and Doris – Bob Balaban (HBO) The Company – Mikael Salomon (TNT) Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale – Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (HBO) John Adams – Tom Hooper (HBO)

Writing + 30 Rock: "Cooter" – Tina Fey (NBC) 30 Rock: "Rosemary's Baby" – Jack Burditt (NBC) Flight of the Conchords: "Yoko" – James Bobin, Jemaine Clement, and Bret McKenzie (HBO) The Office: "Dinner Party" – Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky (NBC) Pushing Daisies: "Pie-lette" – Bryan Fuller (ABC) Mad Men: "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" – Matthew Weiner (AMC) Battlestar Galactica: "Six of One" – Michael Angeli (Sci Fi) Damages: "Get Me a Lawyer" – Glenn Kessler, Todd A. Kessler, and Daniel Zelman (FX) Mad Men: "The Wheel" – Robin Veith and Matthew Weiner (AMC) The Wire: "–30–" – David Simon and Ed Burns (HBO) The Colbert Report (Comedy Central) The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) Late Night with Conan O'Brien (NBC) Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) Saturday Night Live (NBC) John Adams: "Independence" – Kirk Ellis (HBO) Bernard and Doris – Hugh Costello (HBO) Cranford – Heidi Thomas (PBS) Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale – Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (HBO) Recount – Danny Strong (HBO)

Most major nominations + Networks with multiple major nominations"Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories. Network No. ofNominations HBO 44 NBC 30 ABC 29 CBS 11

+ Programs with multiple major nominations Program Category Network No. ofNominations John Adams MiniseriesHBO8 Recount Movie 30 Rock Comedy NBC6 DamagesDrama FX Mad Men AMC The Office Comedy NBC Bernard and Doris Movie HBO5 Boston Legal Drama ABC Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale Movie HBO Saturday Night LiveVariety NBC The Colbert Report Comedy Central4 Cranford Miniseries PBS EntourageComedy HBO Pushing Daisies ABC Two and a Half Men CBS The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Variety Comedy Central3 House Drama Fox Late Show with David Letterman Variety CBS A Raisin in the Sun MovieABC The 80th Annual Academy Awards Variety2 American Idol Competition Fox Breaking BadDrama AMC Brothers & SistersABC Dancing with the Stars Competition Dexter Drama Showtime Flight of the Conchords Comedy HBO Great Performances Variety PBS Grey's AnatomyDrama ABC In Treatment HBO Lost ABC Project Runway Competition Bravo Samantha Who?ComedyABC Ugly Betty

Most major awards + Networks with multiple major awards"Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories. Network No. ofAwards HBO 10 NBC 4 ABC3 AMC CBS2 Comedy Central FX

+ Programs with multiple major awards Program Category Network No. ofAwards John Adams Miniseries HBO 5 30 Rock Comedy NBC 4 DamagesDrama FX2 Mad Men AMC Recount Movie HBO

Notes

Presenters The awards were presented by the following: