The 66^th Emmy Awards were on today in the US and finished a few minutes ago. It all started on the red carpet with the consensus being that the beautiful Julia Roberts was best dressed in what looked like she fell into a barrel of marbles.

Seth Myers was this year’s host. He’s from Saturday Night Live and a few movies most didn’t see but he did a fairly solid job. Not sure he’ll be back. There was a hilarious bit of him taking questions from the audience, Phil Donahue style. If you missed it, watch it on tonight’s replay on TV.

Game Of Thrones season 4 was nominated for 19 Emmys including best drama which meant it was the most supported show prior to the show starting. Whilst it’s the most popular show of all time, it didn’t win the big ones.

Ty Burrell won the first award for best supporting Actor in a comedy for the incredibly funny Modern Family. A writing award was then given to Louie. Allison Janney, who you may remember from the West Wing then won best supporting actress in a comedy for Mom.

Modern Family picked up another Emmy for comedy directing by Gail Mancuso. Then the Lead Actor in a comedy award was handed out to Jim Parsons for The Big Bang Theory which was anything but a surprise. In his acceptance speech it sounded like that Sheldon nerd. Lead Actress in a comedy series went to Julia Louis-Dreyfus for the 3^rd time for Veep. It’s rare to have such success in 3 sitcoms as Julia has with Seinfeld, The New Adventures Of Old Christine and now Veep. All hugely funny shows.

The award this year for best Reality Show went to The Amazing Race for the 10^th time, really 10 times, why wasn’t Survivor nominated but the US Voice was? Go figure.

The best mini series went to Fargo. Not sure what that was doing in the mini series category but if Orange Is The New Black is in the comedy category I guess anything goes.

Aaron Paul won best supporting actor in a drama series for Breaking Bad. And it appears the stage is set for a Breaking Bad-a-thon Emmys.

There was then a moving tribute to Robin Williams by his friend Billy Crystal. After the MTV VMA awards yesterday provided a terrible almost offensive 15 second tribute to Robin, all eyes were on Crystal’s tribute. It was a beautiful moment and not a dry eye in the place. Even some of the botox faces showed some emotion.

True Detective won for best drama Director. Breaking Bad picked up another couple of Emmys for best supporting actress in Anna Gunn and also for writing.

Julianna Margulies and Bryan Cranston won best actors in a drama for their work on The Good Wife and Breaking Bad. These were expected wins. Did I mention the full on pash between Bryan Cranston and Julia Louis-Dreyfus on the audience floor? Seriously, it happened.

Modern Family continues it’s unstoppable run winning the Emmy for best Comedy and no surprise at all with the final season of Breaking Bad picked up the best drama award. All in all, a fairly good Emmys, it was the first Emmys on a Monday night (US time) since the 1970s so it suffered a little because of that, but well worth watching the reply tonight if you get a chance.

This week we have lost two of Hollywood’s greats. Both Robin Williams and Lauren Bacall have passed away. For two people that could not have been more different, they will both be very much missed.

Robin Williams was a diverse, complex, exhausting and hilarious actor. He brought to the screen, both on TV and in film, a frenetic comedic energy that was pure genius. From his beginnings on the Mork and Mindy TV show which is still available on DVD, to Good Morning Vietnam, to the Angriest Man In Brooklyn he has delighted audiences. When you were watching Robin doing comedic roles you always got the feeling that he was making it up as he went along and that his co-stars were always on the verge of laughing out loud when something unexpected happened. That was one of the greatest qualities about Robin Williams, he made you feel like you were watching pure spontaneity and that you were part of the fun.

He also proved to us that he could be dramatic, starring in some of the most powerful movies of our generation. Dead Poets Society was one of the most influential movies of the early 1990s, it changed the perspective of many a teenager and their view of the world. It also made the phrase Carpe Diem (seize the day) part of our everyday language.

Good Will Hunting earned Robin Williams his only Oscar, validating that his dramatic movie work was powerful and brilliant, as was his comedy.

Robin Williams was clearly a brilliant mind that was incredibly gifted. However, it seems that genius has come at a heavy price. He has given us a legacy of incredible comedy and powerful drama to continue to enjoy.

In other sad news, Lauren Bacall has passed away. She was a Hollywood icon and starred in some of the great films of the 20^th century.   Lauren Bacall was glamorous and seductive and was a joy to watch on the silver screen in her film noir roles. She starred alongside Humphrey Bogart in many films including The Big Sleep and Key Largo. They also married, despite him being 25 years her senior, and they were married for 11 years until his death in 1957.

Lauren Bacall’s career spanned 70 years during much change in the film industry and throughout she remained sophisticated and dignified. She was the perfect example of a true Hollywood legend.