HBO’s ‘Sopranos’ Muscles In on ‘ER’

Offering a quirky take on Mafia life that Emmy voters couldn’t refuse, “The Sopranos” became the first cable series to gain recognition as outstanding drama in nominations for the 51st annual nighttime Emmy Awards revealed Thursday, ending “ER’s” four-year reign as the most-nominated series.

Another relatively new Home Box Office show, “Sex and the City,” received one of the five comedy series bids. Until now, only one cable program, HBO’s since-departed “The Larry Sanders Show,” had ever been nominated in either category.

The 16 nominations for “Sopranos” included four out of five in the dramatic writing category, as well as the selection of stars James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco and Nancy Marchand--the last being the only previous nominee, having won four Emmys between 1978 and ’82 for “Lou Grant.”

The nominations were especially gratifying for series creator David Chase, who initially developed the concept at Fox and watched it languish for two years before landing at the pay cable service.

“I feel a tremendous amount of pressure,” said Chase, currently in New Jersey working on the program, regarding the second season that begins in January. “What are you going to do for an encore?”

Beyond “Sopranos,” producer David E. Kelley remained the undisputed darling of the Emmys, with a combined 26 nominations for his creations “Ally McBeal”--again a contender for best comedy--and “The Practice,” which defends last year’s title as outstanding drama.

Rounding out the drama field are “ER,” “NYPD Blue” and “Law & Order,” which have each been nominated at least five consecutive years (eight in the case of “Law & Order”) and won the Emmy once before. Admitting “Sopranos” to that august company bumped another perennial nominee, Fox’s “The X-Files,” out of the race.

CBS enjoyed its own breakthrough on the comedy front with the third-year series “Everybody Loves Raymond,” which garnered a nomination not only as best sitcom but for stars Ray Romano and Patricia Heaton as well as supporting players Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts.

“I feel like it’s an all-star basketball team,” said Executive Producer Phil Rosenthal of the cast. “You can pass the ball to anyone, and they score.”

“Raymond” survived a low-rated rookie season before moving to Mondays and gradually blossoming into a hit this year. Surveying the network lineups a year ago, Rosenthal said, “All I saw was ‘Ally McBeal’ and ‘Monday Night Football’ [as competition] and I thought, ‘We’re dead.’ ”

Snubbed the last two years, “Friends” rejoined the sitcom derby, which also includes NBC’s “Frasier,” the winner of an unprecedented five consecutive Emmys as outstanding comedy series.

To Thomas O’Neil, author of the book “The Emmys,” the best-comedy nomination for “Sex and the City”--eclipsing established shows such as “Mad About You” and “3rd Rock From the Sun” as well as the largely overlooked new network comedies “Sports Night” and “Will & Grace”--was this year’s biggest surprise and in part a tribute to HBO’s publicity machine.

“They spend more money than everybody else every year, and this is the [return] they’re getting for that,” O’Neil said.

Representatives for the major networks have long noted that HBO makes the Emmys and other awards part of its marketing strategy, using these prestigious showcases as a lure to entice subscribers. They point out the pay channel doesn’t face the same content and advertiser restrictions that constrain the broadcast networks.

Chris Albrecht, HBO’s president of original programming, said the network’s marketing efforts related to the Emmys merely level the playing field with better-distributed channels. He added that “Sopranos,” with its combination of ratings and critical acclaim, does represent a milestone. “ ‘The Sopranos’ is our first phenomenon,” he said. “It’s something that has previously been limited to broadcast television only.”

NBC still accounted for the most nominations of any network, followed by HBO, ABC and CBS. Even with cable accounting for more than a third of the nominees, the four major networks still amassed nearly 60% of the total.

HBO’s major break into the series arena was offset, in part, by a nomination decline in terms of made-for-TV movies, where the channel has won the top Emmy six straight years.

Other cable networks have challenged HBO’s supremacy in that sphere with their own high-profile movies and Emmy campaigns, and while the pay service still secured nominations for “The Rat Pack” and “A Lesson Before Dying,” other bids went to TNT’s “Pirates of Silicon Valley,” Showtime’s “The Baby Dance” and A&E;’s biographical “Dash and Lilly,” which tallied nine nominations overall, including for stars Sam Shepard and Judy Davis.

Shut out on the movie side, the major networks did score in the miniseries balloting with their commitment to big-budget productions for sweeps periods, including CBS’ “Joan of Arc”--the recipient of 13 nominations, most among movies and miniseries--and NBC’s music-themed productions “The Temptations” and “The ‘60s.”

Don Cheadle pulled off a double nomination for HBO’s two best-movie contenders, while Kathy Bates also received a pair of nominations--one for directing “Dash and Lilly,” the other for a guest acting role on “3rd Rock From the Sun.”

In addition to the three first-time lead nominees from “Sopranos,” those areas feature mostly familiar faces. Gandolfini and “The Practice’s” Dylan McDermott, the other newcomer, join a roster that includes “Law & Order’s” Sam Waterston, three-time winner Dennis Franz and “NYPD Blue” colleague Jimmy Smits, who left the show last year and has not won in four prior nominations.

Bracco and Falco compete with past winners Gillian Anderson (“The X-Files”), Christine Lahti (“Chicago Hope”) and Julianna Margulies, whose lone Emmy for “ER” was in the supporting-actress arena.

“Mad About You’s” Helen Hunt and Paul Reiser were also nominated in that show’s final year--Hunt being a three-time Emmy recipient for the series, while Reiser’s mantle remains empty despite five previous chances.

The actress category includes Heaton and “Sex’s” Sarah Jessica Parker, joining “Ally” namesake Calista Flockhart and “Dharma & Greg’s” Jenna Elfman, both first-time nominees a year ago. The male comedy leads feature past winners Kelsey Grammer and John Lithgow, “Spin City’s” Michael J. Fox (the owner of three Emmys, all for “Family Ties”) and Romano.

“Ally McBeal” and “The Practice” filled out their totals with first nominations for supporting stars Peter MacNicol, Lucy Liu, Lara Flynn Boyle, Steve Harris and Michael Badalucco. John Mahoney also received a first Emmy bid after six years on “Frasier,” with Benjamin Bratt finally gaining similar recognition in his last year on “Law & Order.” On the flip side, “ER’s” Noah Wyle, who has yet to win, was nominated for a fifth time.

The Emmy Awards are presented and voted upon by members of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, with the televised portion of the ceremony honoring programs and performers to air Sept. 12 on Fox. Awards in technical categories will be handed out two weeks earlier.