“America’s Got Talent got a bigger audience than the Emmys. 
Write your own punch line.  It’s a Jewish holiday.”  
– Perennial awards show scribe Bruce Vilanch’s quip on the ratings for the Emmy Awards.

If you missed the Emmy Awards, you weren’t alone.  Not only were the ratings down 11 percent from last year, they hit an all-time low.  But don’t take these numbers as a waning interest solely in television – ratings for this year’s Oscars telecast were down 19 percent, while the Grammys tanked more than 23 percent.  The decline for a televised awards show about television is also deceptive – the vast majority of nominees were for cable and streaming services, while the show was hosted by Saturday Night Live cast members on NBC.  Relevancy is as hot a topic as diversity, which was the theme of the Emmy’s opening musical number.

Since most of you missed the show, here are some of my highlights.  Jenifer Lewis showed her support for Colin Kaepernick by arriving clad head-to-toe in Nike (and she threw in a high kick on the red carpet just to show those bastards she still could).  After his first nomination 42 years ago, Henry Winkler finally won an Emmy!  I’m not entirely sure Betty White knew where she was, but she managed to pull it off…even though she was dangerously close to exclaiming, “Gladiator!”  RuPaul presented an award with Leslie Jones.  Girl, would it kill you to wear a gown?  Yes, I’m talking to you, Leslie!  As to Ru, congrats on making history by winning Best Host of a Reality Competition Series and snagging Best Reality Competition Series with RuPaul’s Drag Race.  Darren Criss never misses an opportunity to remind us he’s straight.  I LOVED the “Reparation Emmys” sketch.  Why is it that Tina Fey always looks as comfortable walking in a dress as Jodie Foster or Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg?  Taraji, you work that train!  Sandra Oh is still trying to explain to her mother that she didn’t win (but as she said, “It’s an honor just to be Asian”).  I’m still not convinced Tim Gunn isn’t being held hostage by Heidi Klum and possibly the Symbionese Liberation Army.  Lastly, that was an awfully chaste kiss between Ricky Martin and his hubby.