PASADENA, Calif. -- The Emmy Awards may be getting ready to shower praise on the HBO series "The Sopranos," but they'll have to get in line behind the Television Critics Association.
The TCA got there first. Fully 40 percent of the TCA Awards presented in ceremonies at the Ritz-Carlton Huntington Hotel here went to the quirky show about a present-day Mafia family. The show won in every category it was nominated, and those nominations came out more than two months before "The Sopranos" became the first cable series ever to be nominated for an Emmy as outstanding drama series, one of 16 nominations it received last week -- the most of any show.The TCA named "The Sopranos" best new program, best drama and program of the year. And lead actor James Gandolfini shared the prize for individual achievement in drama with writer/producer David E. Kelley. In the 15-year history of the TCA awards, no show had ever won more than two in the same year.
"This is wonderful," said creator/executive producer/writer David Chase. "This is beyond our wildest dreams. Somebody said before when we were first making this show . . . 'Who's going to watch this?' We didn't believe that anyone would watch it. And you guys liked it and wrote about it and the word spread and it's a hit."
In other categories, Nickelodeon's "Blues Clues" won its second TCA Award in a row in the children's programming category -- the only repeat winner of the evening. CNN won its fifth award in 11 years, but it was for an entirely new project -- the massive, 24-hour documentary series "The Cold War."
CBS's "Joan of Arc" was named outstanding movie, miniseries or special. And longtime critical favorite Ray Romano, whose sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond" was nominated but didn't win in the outstanding comedy category, was cited for individual achievement in comedy.
Romano recalled the support his show had received from critics long before it was a ratings success.
"You guys were on our side when we were getting our (expletive) kicked by 'Moesha,' " he joked.
The outstanding comedy award went to another critical darling -- ABC's "Sports Night," a show critics have championed that is still looking to build an audience.
And the career achievement award went to Norman Lear, the producer behind such ground-breaking shows as "All In the Family," "Maude," "Sanford and Son," "Good Times" and "One Day at a Time."
AND THE WINNERS ARE: Here are the winners of the 15th annual Television Critics Association Awards.
Program of the Year: "The Sopranos," HBO
Best new program: "The Sopranos," HBO
Best drama: "The Sopranos," HBO
Best comedy: "Sports Night," ABC
Best movie, miniseries or special: "Joan of Arc," CBS
Individual achievement in drama: (tie) James Gandolfini ("The Sopranos") and David E. Kelley ("The Practice")
Individual achievement in comedy: Ray Romano, "Everybody Loves Raymond," CBS
News and information: "The Cold War," CNN
Children's programming: "Blue's Clues," Nickelodeon
Career achievement: Norman Lear
HE LOVES US: The fact that creator/executive producer/writer Aaron praised the critics in accepting the best comedy award for "Sports Night" comes as no surprise. After all, he'd just gotten an award from them.
But he went against conventional Hollywood wisdom in doing so.
"If you're an actor or a writer or a director or a producer, there's a chorus that you hear over and over again almost from the time that you start working -- 'Don't worry about the critics; the critics don't matter. Don't worry about the critics; the critics don't matter,' " Sorkin said. "And I suppose that's right, because all critics have ever done for us is lead the charge out of the box for 'Sports Night,' keep the show on the air all year long and get us renewed for next year.
"You were more than big, you were everything. You were the cavalry. And I can't repay you, except, perhaps, to repeat what I just said to the next gas-bag, can't-type-the-alphabet guy who comes up to me and tells me that the critics don't matter."