1. Thinking outside the airtight glass box
Conan O'Brien's opening number had him dropping in on various hit TV shows and then mocking host network NBC's ratings woes with a spoof of "Ya Got Trouble" from The Music Man. Not much different from what Billy Crystal would do at the Oscars, except that O'Brien is always sending up himself, too. Crystal really considers himself a song-and-dance man, whereas O'Brien just pretends to be one. His other big running joke – holding Bob Newhart hostage in an airproof glass case to keep the show's time under three hours – gave me bizarre associations with Middle Eastern terrorism, but it was a great sight gag. And the show didn't run over.2. He's smiling down from 7th Heaven
Stephen Collins, flanked by Heather Locklear and glamorous old bobblehead Joan Collins, led off the Aaron Spelling tribute with a phrase I hope will someday be used in my own obituary notices: "He was a surprisingly gentle mogul." After all the fuss over the family feud, it was nice to see Tori Spelling in attendance (and if I may bring up the subject of the show's demographic, didn't she seem like the youngest person in the entire studio audience?).Ah, then came the reunited Charlie's Angels: fragile Farrah Fawcett, dolphin-sleek Jaclyn Smith and strapping Kate Jackson, who looked as if she were about to go off to battle practice with Xena. More than a nice moment, it was a reminder that Spelling's notion of sex appeal – cheesily kittenish or no – endures despite, or maybe beyond, Drew Barrymore and her crew's hipper incarnation.
3. Gloat like a butterfly, sting like a bee
Jeremy Piven won a well-deserved Emmy on the second go-round for his portrayal of über-agent Ari Gold on Entourage. His acceptance speech was short and punchy, with a sweet nod to his mama in the audience and a rather unexpected blue reference to a career in pornography. If you recorded NBC's red-carpet pre-show, make sure to watch his interview with Billy Bush. I couldn't tell if Piven was engaging in friendly bantering or vicious undercutting. Impressive, either way.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, backstage at the Emmys
reed saxon / AP
