Documentary icon Sheila Nevins — who holds the all-time record for most Emmy wins by an individual (31), thanks to her long run as president of HBO Documentary Films — had to skip Thursday night’s Television Academy Hall of Fame event, after being diagnosed with COVID and pneumonia.
Instead, Nevins sent her acceptance speech via video, and kicked off her thank-yous with a special shoutout: Dr. Anthony Fauci. “I’d like to thank a bunch of important people,” she said. “First and foremost, Dr. Fauci. Finally, I got tested, and lo and behold, they said — and they were right — ‘you’re lucky you got the vaccine because you’re going to be over this in five to eight days.’ And it’s true. This is the eighth day, and I’m testing negative. Thank you again, Dr. Fauci.”
Nevins was one of six honorees at the Hall of Fame this year, which also included late “60 Minutes” correspondent Ed Bradley, actor Ted Danson; “South Park” co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos and “Hacks” star Jean Smart. The event took place at the JW Marriott L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — where the TV Academy is set to kick off its annual Televerse conference on Friday.
After her Fauci reference, Nevins wasn’t done. She also had pointed things to say about several of her co-honorees: In the case of Smart, “it’s really quite astounding. Smart, funny, respect for age, beautiful, and most importantly, after so many seasons, able to earn the same amount of money that the men earn.”
