Each June the national telecast of the America Theatre Wing's Tony Award® ceremony features top-quality entertainment and gives Broadway an opportunity to put on a terrific show for small-screen audiences from coast.

It's therefore especially gratifying when the Tony telecast itself is recognized for excellence in broadcasting by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

That's exactly what happened in September 2005 when the 58th Annual Tony Awards (2004) received two primetime Emmy Awards--one for the CBS telecast itself, and the other for host Hugh Jackman.

The Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special was accepted by Tony Awards Executive Producers Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner. "This win is truly a collaboration between live theatre and television and we share this Emmy with everyone in the Broadway community," Kirschner said.

Jackman triumphed in the Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program category. The 2004 Tony telecast represented his second consecutive appearance at the helm. That year he also won a Tony Award, as Best Actor in a Musical, for his performance in The Boy from Oz. Jackman returned to host a third consecutive Tony ceremony in 2005.

Under Emmy rules, the 2004 Tony telecast was honored at the 2004-2005 television awards event. The most recent Tony ceremony, which took place in June 2005, is expected to be eligible for consideration in the 2005-2006 Emmy contest.

* * *

The Tony Awards are presented by Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of the League of American Theatres and Producers and the American Theatre Wing.