SHOW BITS

Moore a wallflower, Klum a traffic cop

[September 24, 2012]  (AP) -- Show Bits brings you the 64th annual Primetime Emmy Awards through the eyes of Associated Press journalists. Follow them on Twitter where available with the handles listed after each item.

IT'S NOT TV, IT'S AN AFTER-PARTY

Everything was coming up roses -- and daisies, lilacs and tulips -- for Julianne Moore at HBO's floral-themed Emmys after-party.

In her bright yellow dress, Moore practically blended in with the colorful decor that covered the floor, walls and tables. The first-time Emmy winner, who portrayed Gov. Sarah Palin in the TV movie "Game Change," held court with her trophy at a table near the party's centerpiece: a circular sofa surrounded by giant faux flowers. She posed for photos with eager attendees -- even when they seemed apprehensive about asking for yet another picture.

"Are you kidding? I'll never get tired of this," she said with a grin before pinning her red locks up in a makeshift bun. "I just wish it wasn't so hot."

Nearby at his own table, "Boardwalk Empire" star Steve Buscemi helped himself to a platter of desserts, including macaroon lollipops. He eventually loosened his tie.

Several HBO stars, including "True Blood" vampire Alex Skarsgard and shape-shifter Sam Trammel, mingled throughout the sprawling soiree held outside the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood. Attendees feasted on such dishes as kale salad, purple roasted potatoes and chicken with gnocchi.

Nicole Kidman, who was nominated alongside Moore for lead actress in a TV movie for "Hemingway & Gellhorn," and her husband, country singer Keith Urban, made a brief appearance at the party, which included a stop to chat with Jane Fonda and Michael J. Fox, before Urban led Kidman out through the massive crowd.

--Derrik J. Lang
http://twitter.com/derrikjlang

IT'S PARTY TIME

The first stop after the show for most Emmy nominees and winners is the Governors Ball, held at the Los Angeles Convention Center across the street from the Nokia Theatre.

Heidi Klum directed traffic as guests arrived, many stopping to pose for a photo under the dramatic red arch at the entrance.

"Move along, move along," she said.

Among the early arrivals to the party, themed "A Romantic Rhapsody in Red," were Zooey Deschanel, Christina Hendricks, Mayim Bialik and Jon Cryer.

Cryer toted his Emmy in one hand and a glass of red wine in the other, as Hendricks sipped from a cocktail glass and finished dinner.

On the menu: A smoked salmon avocado sphere, roasted tenderloin with mushroom risotto fries and white chocolate raspberry cake.

After the ball, parties around town beckoned. At least half a dozen fetes were planned to celebrate nominees and winners.

--Sandy Cohen
http://twitter.com/apsandy

COSTNER RECALLS 'MOMENTOUS DAY'

Kevin Costner now has an Emmy to go with the Oscars and Golden Globes that mark a long and successful journey since the day he first told his parents he had decided to become an actor.

That news didn't go down well in his blue-collar Southern California household. His mother was a welfare worker and his father an electrician and later a utility executive.

"My father turned around and said, 'What? How are you going to make a living, how are you going to take care of somebody?" Costner recalled backstage at Sunday's Emmys. "In his mind I was throwing everything away."

He had earned a college degree in marketing and finance, but never wanted to use it.

"There was a moment in time where I knew exactly what I wanted to be and I needed to explain that to my parents," he said, adding it was "a really momentous thing."

--Beth Harris
http://twitter.com/bethharrisap

NO HOME RUN FOR KIMMEL; CALL IT A TRIPLE

Even with his joking "In Memoriam" self-tribute, Jimmy Kimmel kept this year's Emmycast focused squarely on the Emmys, resisting the urge as host to make the show about himself.

His jokes weren't standout, his comedy bits felt pedestrian. But Kimmel presided in professional style.

And he seemed to have fun -- especially when removing his parents from the auditorium.

He accused them of lying when they told him that if he tried hard enough he could accomplish anything he set his mind to- even win an Emmy.

He didn't win that Emmy on Sunday, so Mom and Dad had to go.

It may have been the funniest moment in the show.

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

JON STEWART DELIVERS AN F-BOMB

It wouldn't be an awards show without an f-bomb.

Actually, it would be, but an f-bomb always adds spice, even when bleeped.

The man who did the honors at Sunday night's Emmy show was Jon Stewart, excitedly accepting his 10th consecutive trophy for best variety series.

He began his acceptance speech by noting that "The Daily Show" deals in topical comedy, "which has the shelf life of egg salad." He added that the Emmy does indicate "The Daily Show" has some value.

In some future age, he went on to say, holding his Emmy aloft, aliens arriving on Earth "will find a box of these."

"And they will know how predictable these (bleeping) things are," he added.

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

WE'RE OUT OF HERE!

Tina Fey was the first celebrity out of her seat after "Modern Family" won the last Emmy of the night and Jimmy Kimmel threatened to continue the show for another hour.

The "30 Rock" star and several others bolted for the doors closest to the stage, the most direct route to the posh Governors Ball across the street at the LA Convention Center.

Those not invited to the lavish after-party had to exit through the back doors.

There was an alternate third route, however, for the last winner of the night.

That's the one the "Modern Family" crew used, winding their way through the pressroom, past the backstage area and into an elevator that held most of them.

"I'm going to latch onto one 'Modern Family' person for the rest of the night," said the show's kid star, Nolan Gould, as he was the last to make it in.

--Derrik J. Lang
http://twitter.com/derrikjlang

'GAME CHANGE' FOR TOM HANKS

Tom Hanks shakes his hands, perhaps to get a good grip, as he prepares to select his take-home Emmy from the backstage trophy table.

"What do I do?" asks Hanks, who collected a trophy as one of the producers of "Game Change," honored as best miniseries or made-for-TV movie at Sunday's Emmys.

"Now what?" he asks after signing for the trophy. He's directed to a bank of ready photographers.

"Come on Rita, get in here!" A fellow "Game Change" producer shouts to Hanks' wife, Rita Wilson, as flashbulbs pop.

--Sandy Cohen
http://twitter.com/apsandy

QUICKQUOTE: JULIANNE MOORE

"Hurry up, hurry up! I need my Emmy." -- Emmy winning "Game Change" actress Julianne Moore, waiting in line behind Emmy winning "Game Change" director Jay Roach backstage at the Emmy trophy table.

AN EMMY KODAK MOMENT

It's Kodak Moment time backstage at the Emmys, with "The Daily Show" winners taking photos of each other holding their Emmys.

"Do they still ship these if you ask?" inquired the show's head honcho, Jon Stewart.

"Yeah, because I have two children with me," he added, noting the statuette's pointy wings.

But he borrowed a trophy so he could pose for a photo with his writing team. He promised to return it before leaving the theater.

--Sandy Cohen
http://twitter.com/apsandy

'MANDY PATINKIN, HOLLA!'

Claire Danes came up with the catchphrase of the night when she saluted her "Homeland" co-star during her Emmy acceptance speech thusly: "Mandy Patinkin, holla."

Danes, taking the stage after winning best actress in a drama for the Showtime series, mentioned several names before matter-of-factly calling out Patinkin in the most unexpected way.

Twitter went nuts, with many people suggesting that this saying needs to become a meme, and soon.

As the pop-culture site (at)Gawker put it: "'Mandy Patinkin, holla' is the new Angelina Jolie's leg." From New York Magazine's (at)Vulture site: "'Mandy Patinkin, holla' is the best thank-you ever." And from NPR's (at)nprmonkeysee: "If the Internet doesn't remix 'Mandy Patinkin, holla' by tomorrow morning, it is a failure."

Others suggested that Jewish delis begin baking Mandy Patinkin challah. Still others made references to Patinkin's Broadway bona fides with "Evita" jokes.

If someone can figure out a way to incorporate Patinkin's famous line from "The Princess Bride" -- "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die" -- then the Internet might truly be worthwhile after all.

--Christy Lemire
https://twitter.com/christylemire

'HOMELAND' STAR JOKES ABOUT PLAYING HOUSE

Married actor Damian Lewis joked to reporters that he might be doing some extra celebrating with "Homeland" co-star Claire Danes, who is also married and came to the Emmys with a baby bump.

"We're going away to a romantic island together," the red-headed British actor joked. "When that baby is ginger you guys are going to have a field day."

The comment may have gotten some members of the press too excited, one of whom asked Danes a few moments later how she viewed the win in light of giving birth.

"Thank god I am not giving birth," said Danes, who's in an earlier stage of pregnancy.

The pair reunited later in another backstage area, looking very platonic and like two friends enjoying each other's success.

--Anthony McCartney
http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

KIMMEL EVENS THE SCORE

Don't ever cross Jimmy Kimmel.

The Emmy host warmly introduced his parents, who were seated in the audience, and told viewers they had always been supportive of their son.

"They always told me I could do anything I set my mind to," he said, "and this year I set my mind to winning the Emmy.

"And guess what? I didn't," he went on. "You told me I could, and I didn't, and I'm devastated. You lied to me!"

Egged on by Tracy Morgan, who was seated beside them and stated, "I don't trust them," Kimmel summoned security to remove Mom and Dad from the auditorium.

"It's OK if you Taser them if you need to," he told the security men.

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

DANES PROUD OF OBAMA BEING A FAN

Claire Danes loves that President Barack Obama is a fan of her show "Homeland."

"No pressure," the actress said backstage after her win for lead actress in a drama series at Sunday's Emmy Awards. "It's way cool that he is a fan. It speaks to the relevancy of the show and it's hugely validating.

Obama has said the Showtime series about a Marine returning home after being held as a POW, and who is now suspected by a CIA agent as working for al Qaeda, is his favorite.

--Beth Harris
http://twitter.com/bethharrisap

TIME FOR A NEW TATTOO

Damian Lewis was so over the moon at winning an Emmy that he says he's thinking of having "Emmy Winner" tattooed on, well, somewhere on the back of his body.

"I'm overwhelmed that I am here!" said the winner of the best actor award for a drama series for "Homeland."

When told backstage that he could have the trophy engraved with his name at the Governors Ball after the show, he contemplated complementing that with body art.

But first he had to sign for his award, and as he did couldn't hold his hands still.

"It's like my grandmother used to write -- all shaky," he said.

"Just tell me what to do," he continued. "I'm out of my mind."

--Sandy Cohen
http://twitter.com/apsandy

OMG! KIMMEL HIJACKS TWITTER

So this is how time-wasting celebrity rumors get started.

Emmy host Jimmy Kimmel instructed people to go on Twitter and Facebook and write something along the lines of: "OMG, Tracy Morgan just passed out at the Emmys. Turn on ABC right now!" as a prank, just to see how quickly the information would spread (and inspire new viewers). Morgan, who was in on the gag, complied.

And, true to the pack mentality that develops instantaneously on social media, untold thousands of people actually did this. Many others simply read the words "Tracy Morgan" and "passed out" and thought Morgan truly had passed out.

Even Stephen Colbert (at)StephenatHome and Rosie O'Donnell (at)Rosie got in on the action, which prompted thousands more retweets.

Morgan was committed to the act, though: Not only did he lie down on stage, he actually stayed there through the commercial break and was hauled away, rambling to himself.

--Christy Lemire
https://twitter.com/christylemire

CRYER IS NOW TOP DOG

The changing of the guard is complete.

Jon Cryer truly was shocked to win an Emmy Sunday in his first outing as a nominee for lead actor in a comedy series.

That category used to belong to Cryer's former "Two and a Half Men" co-star Charlie Sheen. But with Sheen famously dumped from the CBS program, Cryer was elevated to top dog status.

"I will be impossible to live with," he quipped backstage after collecting his award. "I will be brandishing this regularly."

Cryer said he figured Jim Parsons of "The Big Bang Theory" would repeat as the winner.

"Clearly 'Big Bang' is just at the top of its game right now and unfortunately he's not gotten any worse," Cryer said. "I just did not think this was going to happen, so I apologize for my speech."

--Beth Harris
http://twitter.com/bethharrisap

KAT'S CURVES

It's a happy fact of life for male viewers that "Mad Men" star Christina Hendricks and "Modern Family" star Sofia Vergara are, well, curvy.

And their curves were on ample display at Sunday's night Emmy telecast.

But the night's big surprise: Kat Dennings in a gown that exposed much of what had only been hinted at in her "2 Broke Girls" waitress uniform.

Her bustline had viewers' jaws dropping and tweeters madly tweeting.

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

NO BOW TIE FOR KEVIN COSTNER

Kevin Costner went against the bow tie fashion trend at this year's Emmy Awards, sporting an open collar look that at least beat the searing heat on the red carpet.

The nominee for lead actor in a miniseries or movie for "Hatfields & McCoys" kept his arm around the waist of wife Christine Baumgartner as he arrived for the show. Asked to describe her gown, Costner said, "I can't wait to go home and close the door."

Stephen Colbert whipped out a blotting paper to make the sweat on his upper lip disappear before facing the throng of TV cameras.

Christine Baranski of "The Good Wife" shimmered under the relentless sunshine in a gold-and-silver sequined short dress. She eschewed a gown, saying she didn't want people stepping on it all night.

"I tried this on and it rocks," she said.

--Beth Harris
http://twitter.com/bethharrisap

QUICKQUOTE: STEVEN LEVITAN

"I'm a little bit in shock, to tell you the truth." -- Steven Levitan, who won for directing, comedy, for "Modern Family"

ZOOEY NAILS IT

Zooey Deschanel played up her "adorkable" persona on the Emmy red carpet with a quirky, sparkly manicure featuring television sets on her thumbnails.

The silver, gold and black accessories were a huge hit on Twitter.

A photo of an (at)ZooeyDeschanel digit was retweeted 964 times and favorite 1,135 times as of this writing. They were the work of nail technician Tom Bachik (at)RedCarpetMan.

Glamour Fashion called it "the mani we've been waiting for!" The "New Girl" star, who was a presenter Sunday night, is famous for her red-carpet nail numbers.

--Christy Lemire
https://twitter.com/christylemire

A MAD MAN MOMENT IN EMMY LOBBY

It was life imitating art just off to the side of the red carpet outside the Nokia Theatre entrance as "Mad Men" newbie Ben Feldman caught a smoke.

The resourceful first-time nominee discovered a corner tucked away from the scads of cameras and celebrities that was the perfect spot for a quick pre-show cigarette.

Unfortunately, there weren't any bottles of scotch nearby for him to wash it down with, but just inside the lobby of the Nokia Theatre attendees were lined up at the concession stand for $10 cocktails.

Feldman's "Mad Men" leading man Jon Hamm held court on the other side of the lobby, attracting a line of attendees who wanted a photo with the veteran nominee.

--Derrik J. Lang
http://twitter.com/derrikjlang

MOMS GOT THEIR DUE FROM THE RED CARPET

Moms weren't forgotten on the red carpet.

Rico Rodriguez, young star of "Modern Family," brought his mother as his date, presenting her to the world as "the beautiful ma-ma."

The pair were even featured in a prerecorded bit that tracked their progress in a limo from home to the Emmycast.

And earlier Stephen Colbert, while being interviewed with his wife at his side, took a moment to phone his 91-year-old mom on his cellphone to say hello.

"I've shouted at her 'We're on ABC!'" he told interviewer Josh Elliott.

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

A RED CARPET PROPOSAL

One Emmy attendee used the red carpet for more than just walking -- he got down on one knee and proposed to his date.

Security initially tried to shoo him off, but saw him reaching into his pocket for a ring and let the moment happen. With throngs of people cheering, he presented the ring and received a kiss, and presumably an answer "Yes," as those nearby applauded the mystery couple.

--Anthony McCartney
http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

FROM 1 JIMMY TO ANOTHER

Jimmy Fallon is playing musical chairs at this year's Emmy Awards, in more ways than one.

The 2010 Emmy host, interviewed on the red carpet, noted he has passed hosting duties on to another Jimmy this year, name of Kimmel.

As a result, Fallon said, he doesn't even have a ticket to the 2012 show.

"But Clint Eastwood said he was going to save me a chair," Fallon cracked.

His advice to this year's Jimmy: "Don't make out with Betty White. There's cameras everywhere and you'll get caught. And definitely go to Honey Boo Boo's after-party, cause that's gonna be where it's at."

--Frazier Moore
http://twitter.com/tvfrazier

SEEING STARS ON THE RED CARPET

At the Emmys there's the red carpet and then there's -- well -- the other red carpet.

As the main red carpet fills up, security tries to keep the line moving by directing the big stars down the carpet where cameras are lined up to film them and entertainment journalists are waiting to interview them.

Meantime, the less famous are directed down a parallel red carpet closer to the fan bleachers.

"Please continue walking," security guards continuously say.

Sometimes they'll also give a gentle nudge to someone on the B-list red carpet who lingers too long taking pictures of the folks on the A-List red carpet.

--Anthony McCartney
http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

QUICKQUOTE: JESSE TYLER FERGUSON

"It's so warm I thought a nice flannel tux would be appropriate." -- Jesse Tyler Ferguson of "Modern Family" on the Emmy red carpet.

GETTING THE STARS' ATTENTION

"Jesse Jesse Jesse!" the crowd chants trying to get the attention of "Modern Family" star Jesse Tyler Ferguson. He obliges with several waves to the bleacher crowd.

Before the first stream of stars arrived on the Emmy Red Carpet, a show producer told them to "make everything personal" if they wanted to get their attention.

It may take several chants, but the stars often answer with a wave, a smile or the occasional fist pump.

--Anthony McCartney
http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

KEEPING COOL IN THE FAN BLEACHERS

Fran and Elmer Armstrong are awards show veterans, joining throngs of fans for at least their sixth Emmy Awards Show on a sweltering Sunday afternoon.

The retired St. Louis couple's quest for a front row seat in the fan bleachers beside the red carpet began when they lined up outside the Nokia Theatre around 7:30 a.m. Sunday. As the day progressed, and temperatures rose, they hung in there, cheering as the cameras from E! Entertainment television filmed pre-show segments.

"Goodbye Giuliana," 70-year-old Elmer Armstrong shouted to anchor Giuliana Rancic as the E Entertainment crew wrapped up.

With temperatures topping 90 degrees, he and his 71-year-old wife were like many in the stands -- trying to keep cool with water and wet paper towels. At least this year's stands are shaded. Elmer Armstrong recalled one year when fans were forced to sit in the blazing sun.

That's not the only change to this year's fan seating -- a tall wall keeps fans from glad-handing or even getting autographs from cooperative celebrities.

Elmer Armstrong remains at the ready, however -- keeping his digital SLR camera and telephoto lens handy to get shots of the stars.

--Anthony McCartney
http://twitter.com/McCartneyAP

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.