The Primetime Emmy Awards

Once a year, television's royalty gathers together for a ceremony honoring the best of the best of primetime TV. Shows, actors, and writers are all given a chance to take home a coveted Emmy statue--but in order to win, they must pass the mysterious and rigorous selection process of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Millions of people tune in to watch each year's ceremony and find out if their favorite shows and actors have been recognized or ignored, and the results can often make or break a series or career. The Emmy statue, depicting a winged woman holding an atom, was developed in 1948 by Louis McManus. The statue is meant to signify the arts, through the female figure, and the sciences, through the atom. The name for the award is taken from "Immy," a slang term for "image orthicon tube," an ingredient of many early television cameras. Since the figure is female, "Emmy" seemed more suitable to the Academy.