Christian LeBlanc In an unprecedented occurrence at this year's Daytime Emmy Awards, two shows won in the category of Outstanding Drama Series: Guiding Light and The Young and the Restless. The show was broadcast live from the Kodak Theater on June 15. The last time GL won the honour was in 1982 (with its only other win being in 1980), so this year's win was a long time coming. Y&R, on the other hand, has won for best drama five times previously, making this win its sixth time in the winner's circle.
Other big winners of the night were: Outstanding Lead Actor, Christian LeBlanc (Michael Baldwin, Y&R); Outstanding Lead Actress, Maura West (Carly Tenney, As the World Turns); Outstanding Supporting Actor, Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing, General Hospital); Outstanding Supporting Actress, Genie Francis (Laura Spencer, GH); Outstanding Younger Actor, Bryton McClure (Devon Hamilton, Y&R); Outstanding Younger Actress, Jennifer Landon (Gwen Norbeck, ATWT); Outstanding Writing Team, GL; Outstanding Directing Team, ATWT.
Another long-overdue win of the night was for fan favourite Genie Francis, who reprised her role of Laura Spencer during last year's November sweeps. She and longtime love Luke were remarried exactly 25 years after their first wedding, which was a lavish ceremony that was the most-watched show in daytime television's history. A visibly moved Francis stated that she was "overwhelmed" by her win, and was surprised that she had even made the ballot, considering she was on GH for only four weeks.
Premiering on July 13 on the here! network is the Ribbon of Hope Celebration, which will be honoring former One Life to Live actress Judith Light for her extraordinary leadership and dedication to raising awareness and finding a cure for HIV/AIDS,and as an advocate for many organisations and charities that support human rights throughout the world. This is the 10th anniversary of the celebration; however, it is the first year that it will be broadcast on television for the public to watch. Also being honoured is the cast of GH, for their ongoing responsible HIV/AIDS story line about a doctor, Robin Scorpio (played by Kimberly McCullough), who has been HIV positive since she was a teenager. The special also features appearances by former President Bill Clinton, Angela Lansbury (Murder, She Wrote), Peter Gallagher (The OC) and Victoria Rowell (Y&R), among others.
Video-on-demand service
Bryton McClure
The here! network is currently available nationwide via all major cable systems and Internet-TV providers as either a 24/7 premium subscription channel, a video-on-demand service and/or a subscription video-on-demand service. Ask your local cable or satellite provider for details if you'd like to watch this special celebration.
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- Cindy Elavsky
