If ever there was a reason to root for As the World Turns in the Outstanding Writing Team category, it's simply because one never knows what might come out of head writer Hogan Sheffer's mouth.
A few years ago when he and his team of writers won Emmy gold, the plus-size Sheffer reminded viewers that "television adds 500 pounds."
This year, the quick-witted Sheffer had a message for those who may have been flipping through the channels and ended up on the Emmy telecast by accident.
"Even if you're just tuning in, you can probably tell this is a writing award," Sheffer cracked as he and the members of his writing team took the stage. "Either that or the Rockettes have really let themselves go to hell."
Jokes aside, Sheffer's pen has inked a revival of the 48-year-old As the World Turns. The Procter & Gamble produced soap has earned writing honors three of the last four years. The three Emmy wins under Sheffer are the show's only wins in the writing field, despite eleven overall nominations.
In somewhat of a surprise, General Hospital toppled perennial directing powerhouse The Young and the Restless, which has won directing honors 10 times since 1986 -- more than the total of all the other nominees together.
For its Emmy reel, General Hospital submitted an episode in which Sonny accidentally shot his wife, Carly, in the head while she was giving birth to their child. In its second submitted episode, the show chose a "silent movie" episode from New Year's Eve.
One of the show's directors downplayed talk of filming General Hospital in high-definition, saying that the show "is really about the storytelling" and not how the show is aired.
For General Hospital, it marked only the fourth win in twelve nominations in the directing category. The show's previous wins came in 1981, 1982 and 2000.
