The 34th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 19, 1982. The ceremony was broadcast on ABC. It was hosted by John Forsythe and Marlo Thomas.
In its eighth and final season, Barney Miller finally won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series, it had been nominated and lost the previous six seasons. On the drama side, it was once again all about Hill Street Blues. It set multiple records on the night, including receiving 16 major nominations (winning four), breaking the long-held record (subsequently broken) of 14 for a comedy or drama set by Playhouse 90 in 1959. It also received nine acting nominations for regular cast members, this has since been tied by L.A. Law, The West Wing and Game of Thrones. Included in those acting nominations was another milestone, Hill Street Blues received every nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, this achievement has not been duplicated by a comedy or drama in a major acting category since. Another milestone was set by Andrea Martin, who became the first actor from a variety series, in this case Second City Television, to be nominated in the comedy acting field since the categories merged in 1979.
Ingrid Bergman won her final award posthumously, for A Woman Called Golda. It was not only the fourth posthumous acting award in Emmy history, but also the second performance ever to have won from a non-Network Syndicated show.
Winners and nominees
Programs
Acting
Lead performances
Acting
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Carol Kane as Simka Dahblitz in Taxi (ABC) (Episode: "Simka Returns")
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Supporting performances
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Nancy Marchand as Margaret Pynchon in Lou Grant (CBS) (Episode: "Review")
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Laurence Olivier as Lord Marchmain in Brideshead Revisited (PBS) (Episode: "Brideshead Revisited")
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Directing
Directing
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One Day at a Time (CBS): "Barbara's Crisis" – Alan Rafkin
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Writing
Writing
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Hill Street Blues (NBC): "Freedom's Last Stand" – Story by : Michael Kozoll and Steven Bochco
Teleplay by : Steven Bochco, Anthony Yerkovich, Jeffrey Lewis and Michael I. Wagner
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Hill Street Blues (NBC): "Personal Foul" – Steven Bochco, Anthony Yerkovich, Jeffrey Lewis and Michael I. Wagner
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Hill Street Blues (NBC): "The Second Oldest Profession" – Story by : Michael Kozoll, Steven Bochco and Anthony Yerkovich
Teleplay by : Steven Bochco, Anthony Yerkovich and Robert Crais
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Hill Street Blues (NBC): "The World According to Freedom" – Michael I. Wagner
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Lou Grant (CBS): "Blacklist" – Seth Freeman
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Second City Television (NBC): "Moral Majority Show"
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I Love Liberty (ABC)
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Second City Television (NBC): "Christmas Show"
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Second City Television (NBC): "Cycle Two, Show Two"
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Second City Television (NBC): "Tony Bennett"
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Bill (CBS) – Story by : Barry Morrow
Teleplay by : Corey Blechman
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Most major nominations
Networks with multiple major nominations
Network |
Number of Nominations
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CBS |
43
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ABC |
34
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NBC
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PBS |
13
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Programs with multiple major nominations
Program |
Category |
Network |
Number of Nominations
|
Hill Street Blues |
Drama |
NBC |
16
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Fame |
Drama |
NBC |
12
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M*A*S*H |
Comedy |
CBS |
10
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Brideshead Revisited |
Miniseries |
PBS |
8
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Taxi |
Comedy |
ABC
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Lou Grant |
Drama |
CBS |
6
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Second City Television |
Variety |
NBC
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Barney Miller |
Comedy |
ABC |
5
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A Woman Called Golda |
Special |
Syndicated
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Bill |
CBS |
3
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The Elephant Man |
ABC
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Inside the Third Reich
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Skokie |
CBS
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Baryshnikov in Hollywood |
Variety |
2
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Benson |
Comedy |
ABC
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Dynasty |
Drama
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The Jeffersons |
Comedy |
CBS
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Knots Landing |
Drama
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Love, Sidney |
Comedy |
NBC
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Mae West |
Special |
ABC
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Magnum, P.I. |
Drama |
CBS
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Night of 100 Stars |
Variety |
ABC
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One Day at a Time |
Comedy |
CBS
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Oppenheimer |
Limited |
PBS
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Police Squad! |
Comedy |
ABC
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Most major awards
Networks with multiple major awards
Network |
Number of Awards
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ABC |
8
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CBS |
7
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NBC
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Programs with multiple major awards
Program |
Category |
Network |
Number of Awards
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Hill Street Blues |
Drama |
NBC |
4
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Taxi |
Comedy |
ABC |
3
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Bill |
Special |
CBS |
2
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M*A*S*H |
Comedy
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A Woman Called Golda |
Special |
Syndicated
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- Notes
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"Major" constitutes the categories listed above: Program, Acting, Directing, and Writing. Does not include the technical categories.