HBO While some Emmy darlings are expected and obvious, you might be surprised that some of your favorite shows of all time don’t have…
HBO While some Emmy darlings are expected and obvious, you might be surprised that some of your favorite shows of all time don’t have as many Emmys as you think — or any at all.
„Friends“ only won six Emmys during its run and „Seinfeld“ only won ten. How about HBO’s critically-acclaimed series „The Wire?“ Zero wins, two nominations.
But some audience and critic favorites do make the list for the most Emmy wins ever. „Game of Thrones“ is incredibly close to breaking „SNL’s“ record. „Breaking Bad,“ „Mad Men,“ and „Frasier“ were also consistent favorites during awards season, and it shows in their double-digit wins and for some, three-digit nominations.
The 70th annual Emmy Awards begin at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Monday night, and will air live coast-to-coast on NBC.
Here are the 19 shows with the most Emmy wins:
„Breaking Bad“ won outstanding drama series twice for the fifth and final season, since it was split in two. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul won three Emmys for their roles.
„30 Rock“ was once an Emmys darling. Its first season got ten Emmy nominations, and it got 17 in its second season. The show won outstanding comedy series three years in a row.
Jon Hamm had a lot of competition in the lead actor in a drama category, so after seven nominations, he didn’t get his first win until his final shot in 2015. In its first four seasons, „Mad Men“ won outstanding drama. The show also won several awards for writing, directing, and hairstyling.
„Murphy Brown“ received five nominations for outstanding comedy series, winning twice in 1990 and 1992. Candice Bergen won five times for her leading role as Murphy Brown, famous investigative journalist and news anchor. Bergen shares this record with Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Mary Tyler Moore.
„Taxi“ won three times for outstanding comedy series. The show focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher. Some of its actors won Emmys including Carol Kane, Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd, and Judd Hirsch.
The Emmys loved „NYPD Blue“ because on top of being well written and acted, it was unlike any other thing on television. The police procedural set in New York City won the award for outstanding drama series in 1995, while receiving nominations from 1994 to 1999. Dennis Franz was nominated for outstanding lead actor in a drama series every year between 1994 and 2001, and won four times in 1994,1996,1997, and 1999.
„24“ received nominations for outstanding drama from 2002-05, and won the award in 2006. Kiefer Sutherland received nominations from 2002-07, and won in 2006.
„The Sopranos“ was nominated for outstanding drama series every year it was eligible, and won in 2004 for its fifth season. It was the first cable series ever to win the award. The show won outstanding drama again for the second part of its sixth and final season in 2007. „The Sopranos“ also won outstanding writing for a drama series every year it was nominated, except 2000. Total, the show received nine Emmys for acting.
„All in the Family“ broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for television including racism, women’s liberation, rape, religion, abortion, the Vietnam War, and more. The series was groundbreaking and influential, and the Emmys honored that. It is the first of three sitcoms in which all the lead actors won Emmys for their performances. The other two are „The Golden Girls“ and „The Simpsons.“ In addition to several writing awards, „All in the Family“ won outstanding comedy series for its first three seasons, and again for its penultimate season in 1978.
ABC’s hit sitcom „Modern Family“ won the Emmy for outstanding comedy series in each of its first five seasons. Its actors have won several awards for their performances, including Ty Burell, Eric Stonestreet, and Julie Bowen.
NBC’s medical drama ran for 15 seasons (and helped make George Clooney famous). In 1996, it won the Emmy for outstanding drama series. The majority of its Emmy wins are for technical awards, such as sound mixing, sound editing, and graphic design.
Aaron Sorkin’s NBC serial political drama explored the Oval Office controversies of a fictional president and won the Emmy for outstanding drama series four consecutive times between 2000 and 2003. Sorkin won an Emmy for outstanding writing in the show’s first season, but he lost his four other nominations in the field.
CNN once called „Hill Street Blues“ the „most influential TV show ever,“ as the show’s mix of handheld camera, overlapping story structure, and ensemble cast was highly innovative and copied frequently following its on-air run from 1981 to 1987.
NBC’s hit sitcom „Cheers“ was nominated for outstanding comedy series in each of its 11 seasons — which ran from 1982 to 1993 — and it won the award four times. Many of the show’s cast members won Emmys. Rhea Perlman won twice for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series, and Ted Danson also won twice for outstanding lead actor.
Mary Tyler Moore’s CBS sitcom was revolutionary in that it featured as its central character an independent, single career woman in her thirties. The show ran from 1970 to 1977, and it won the Emmy for outstanding comedy series three times in consecutive years. Moore herself won four individual acting Emmys for the show as well.
The longest-running primetime animated series in US TV history, „The Simpsons“ has won 10 Emmy Awards in the category of outstanding animated program — the most of all time.
NBC’s massively successful „Cheers“ spin-off „Frasier“ won the Emmy for outstanding comedy series five times over the course of its 11-season run, which lasted from 1993 to 2004. The show’s stars, Kelsey Grammar and David Hyde Pierce, each won four Emmys for their performances.
Now the winningest drama series in Emmys history, HBO’s „Game of Thrones“ has a chance to surpass the number one spot on most Emmys ever.
