'Grey Gardens' big winner for HBO at Emmy Awards

"Grey Gardens" was a shoo-in to win best TV movie at the Emmy Awards. After all, it tied the record for most nominations for a TV movie (17) and HBO has won this race 14 of the last 16 years, including the most recent five in a row. And that HBO golden touch with the Emmys carried over to the mini/movie acting categories because all four races went to first-time champs.
Two-time Oscar winner Jessica Lange ("Tootsie," "Blue Sky") finally prevailed on her third Emmy bid. She won the lead actress race for the role of 'Big' Edie Beale in "Grey Gardens." Christine Ebersole and Mary-Louise Wilson both took home Tony Awards two years ago for playing the younger and older versions of this captivating woman in a tuner version of this story.

With his supporting actor win for "Grey Gardens," Ken Howard – who won a featured actor Tony in 1970 for "Child's Play" – edged out, among others, another Tony champ, Len Cariou ("Sweeney Todd"). And with her win as supporting actress, Shoreh Aghdashloo ("House of Sadaam") kept recent Tony winner Marcia Gay Harden ("God of Carnage") from claiming the triple crown of acting this year.

One woman Harden bested for the Tony -- Janet McTeer – also contended in this category for "Into the Storm." While McTeer lost, her on-screen husband, Brendan Gleeson, won the lead actor race for his portrayal of Winston Churchill seven years after Albert Finney won this same category for playing the political powerhouse in "The Gathering Storm."

"Little Dorrit" helmer Dearbhla Walsh became the first woman ever to win the movie/mini directing Emmy Award. And after winning an Emmy in 1991 for scripting the contemporary political thriller "House of Cards," Andrew Davies got Emmy nods for adapting literary classics "Pride and Prejudice" (1996) and "Bleak House" (2006) before finally winning again for his scripting of "Little Dorrit" this year.