SMALL SCREEN, BIG GLAMOUR

It’s official. The Emmys blow the Academy Awards away as a fashion derby.

Maybe actresses faced with choosing a gown to wear to the Oscars are overwhelmed by the pressure of an audience of 1 billion. What else could explain the parade of fashion disasters and near-misses that are a staple of the movie industry’s big night?

In contrast, the 50th anniversary Emmy Awards show at the Shrine Auditorium on Sunday was a gathering of glamorous men and women who, even if they weren’t feeling relaxed, looked remarkably comfortable in their carefully chosen finery. The women of television wisely heeded that old style rule--you should wear your dress, not the other way around.

Not that there was an absence of knockout dresses. The gowns just didn’t overpower the women wearing them. From Sarah Michelle Gellar, adorable in a Chloe bustier and skirt, to Helen Hunt, with wisps of hair framing her face and looking just that much softer than when she accepted her Oscar, it was a great show for anyone who tunes in to see who’s wearing what.

A deliberate air of nonchalance has been fashion’s dominant mood in the ‘90s. It can be difficult to look laid-back with a collar of diamonds wrapped around your throat and several yards of satin sweeping the floor behind you. Nevertheless, a truly sophisticated woman can appear as at ease in an evening gown as in khakis. Case in point: Lara Flynn Boyle, whose platinum satin gown was so fluid it seemed nearly liquid.

Boyle embodied two of the evening’s recurring trends: sleek hair and backless dresses. Ellen Barkin’s beaded black John Galliano dress, Jane Leeves’ deep green mermaid gown by Randolph Duke and Julianna Margulies’ black satin ball gown by Ralph Lauren all revealed beautiful naked backs. If it weren’t for its bare rear view, Calista Flockhart’s pale pink column by Richard Tyler could have been a bridesmaid’s dress. Margulies, Kim Delaney, Kristen Johnston, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tea Leoni, Sigourney Weaver, Lisa Kudrow and Christina Applegate all swept their hair off their faces, a decision that did more than show off pretty diamond earrings. Too bad Camryn Manheim, a popular winner, didn’t get the neat hair message and went for a fussy up-do.

Not so long ago, any black-tie occasion was a signal for women to zip into a black dress. Not anymore. Whitney Houston and Brandy were among the few women on the stage to dazzle in black. Gray, the sportswear color of the season, showed it could come out after dark too. Rita Wilson and Michelle Pfeiffer both chose show-stopping beaded silver Armani gowns. Jamie Lee Curtis’ simple elongated T-shirt gown of sweatshirt gray by Pamela Dennis, Tracy Pollan’s pale beaded Halston, Applegate’s sparkling Badgley Mischka slipdress, Jeri Ryan’s shimmering gunmetal gown by Richard Tyler and Mary Tyler Moore’s sheer Vera Wang slink were among the best of the grays. Delaney, Jenna Elfman and Lea Thompson reminded any doubters how striking lipstick red can be.

The men didn’t stray from basic black. Several, including Chris Rock, wore black shirts and ties with black jackets. And then there was Michael Richards. “Seinfeld’s” erstwhile Kramer took the stage in a tuxedo jacket worn with baggy shorts trimmed with ball fringe. Well, OK. But I don’t know that his black socks were the perfect hosiery choice on such an elegant night.