46th Primetime Emmy Awards


The 46th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 11, 1994. The ceremony was hosted by Patricia Richardson and Ellen DeGeneres. It was broadcast on ABC. Comedy Central received its first major nomination at this ceremony.
For its first season, the Cheers spin-off Frasier won Outstanding Comedy Series and four total major awards. For the second straight year Picket Fences won Outstanding Drama Series, it too won four major awards on the night, but the more impressive drama series was newcomer NYPD Blue, which took home three major awards.
NYPD Blue came into the ceremony with 19 major nominations. This broke Hill Street Blues record for most nominations by a drama or comedy series of 16 set in 1982, and put it in second place all time behind Roots which gained 21 major nominations in 1977. NYPD Blue set another milestone when it received every nomination for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series, this marked only the ninth time that a show had received every nomination in a category. This feat has not been accomplished since.
The television film And the Band Played On also made Emmy history. It set a new record when it received nine major nominations, the most ever for a television movie. The record was maintained for twenty years, until The Normal Heart received nine major nominations in 2014. Both films won the top prize, but each lost all six of their acting nominations, directing, and writing to other projects.

Winners and nominees

Programs

Outstanding Comedy SeriesOutstanding Drama Series

  • Picket Fences,
  • * Law & Order,
  • * Northern Exposure,
  • * NYPD Blue,
  • * ',
    • Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy SeriesOutstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Special
  • Late Show with David Letterman,
  • * Dennis Miller Live,
  • * MTV Unplugged,
  • * Saturday Night Live,
  • * The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,
  • The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts,
  • * The 47th Annual Tony Awards,
  • * The 66th Annual Academy Awards,
  • * Comic Relief VI,
  • * Tracey Takes on New York,
    • Outstanding Made for Television MovieOutstanding Miniseries
  • And the Band Played On,
  • * Breathing Lessons,
  • * Gypsy,
  • * A Place for Annie,
  • * To Dance with the White Dog,
  • Prime Suspect III,
  • * Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All,
  • * The Stand,
  • * Tales of the City,
  • * ',

    • Acting

    Lead performances

    Supporting performances

    Guest performances

    Directing

    Writing

    Most major nominations

    ;By network
    ;By program
    ;By network
    ;By program
    ;Notes