HBO’s surreal undertakers drama, “Six Feet Under,” snagged a whopping 23 Emmy nominations yesterday – helped by the fact that HBO stablemate “The Sopranos” was ineligible this year.
“Six Feet Under,” created by “American Beauty” scribe Alan Ball, led the Emmy-nominee pack across most major categories and helped HBO score a leading 93 nominations, four more than runner-up NBC.
HBO and NBC were followed by CBS (50), ABC (35), Fox (33) and PBS (11).
The critically acclaimed, darkly comic “Six Feet Under” revolves around the Fishers, an eclectic family running a Los Angeles funeral home and dealing with their own inner demons.
“The Sopranos,” which received 22 Emmy nominations last year, wasn’t eligible for consideration this year because it has taken a 16-month hiatus, so no new episodes aired during the past season.
CBS’s forensics drama “CSI,” now TV’s top-rated show, snagged a nomination as Best Drama. HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” created by “Seinfeld” mastermind Larry David, received a nomination as Best Comedy Series.
NBC’s “The West Wing” cleaned up in the Supporting Actor category, with series co-stars Dule Hill, Richard Schiff, John Spencer and Bradley Whitford all nominated.
ABC’s now-canceled “Politically Incorrect” received a surprising nomination for Best Variety, Music or Comedy Series.
Chrome-domed Michael Chiklis, who stars in FX’s “The Shield,” received a nomination for Best Actor.
First-time nominee Bernie Mac (“Bernie Mac”) was among the Best Comedy Actor nominees.
Three “Friends” stars – Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and Jennifer Aniston – were nominated for Best Actor/Actress in a Comedy.
Last year’s Emmy Awards were rescheduled twice after the Sept. 11 attacks and the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan.
No host has been named yet for this year’s show, which will air Sept. 22 on NBC.