Awards Watch: ALMA Awards

The nominations for the 2008 ALMA Awards, recognizing "the outstanding artistic achievements of Latinos in motion pictures, television and music", have been announced.

Special achievement awards will be given to the cast of Ugly Betty, High School Musical 2 director Kenny Ortega and the Spanish language film Under the Same Moon. Other television nominees include Desperate Housewives' Ricardo Chavira, Lost's Jorge Garcia and Grey’s Anatomy's Sara Ramirez, while movie nominations went to Bella, El Cantante, Illegal Tender, Love in the Time of Cholera and Tortilla Heaven.

The 2008 Alma Awards, hosted by Eva Longoria Parker and Cristian De La Fuente, will be broadcast September 12 on ABC.

Awards Watch: Emmy Nominations 2008

The 2008 Emmy Award nominations were announced today, which means: time to start complaining. Seriously, Two and a Half Men, one of the least original "comedies" on TV today, instead of the brilliantly creative Pushing Daisies, the revitalized Desperate Housewives and the one and only Ugly Betty? Boston Legal, again? At least Lost returned to the Best Drama line-up.

Nevertheless, some of our favorites did make the cut, including Daisies' Lee Pace and Kristin Chenoweth, Betty's America Ferrera and Vanessa Williams, Housewives' Polly Bergen and Kathryn Joosten, Brothers & Sisters' Sally Field and Rachel Griffiths, Lost's Michael Emerson and Grey's Anatomy's Diahann Carroll, Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson.

Also among the nominees include out actors Neil Patrick Harris and Cynthia Nixon, plus the TV movies Bernard and Doris (along with stars Ralph Fiennes and Susan Sarandon), A Raisin in the Sun (and its stars Phylicia Rashad and Audra McDonald, who both won Tonys for the Broadway production) and High School Musical 2 and the specials Movies Rock, Company, AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies - 10th Anniversary Edition and the 80th Annual Academy Awards.

The Emmys will be presented live on ABC on Sunday September 21.

Cinematic Crush: Taye Diggs

Crush object: Taye Diggs, actor.

- He found instant fame as a member of the legendary original cast of the landmark rock musical Rent, wherein he played Benny. His life was changed with the show in another way, as he met his future wife, Idina Menzel; the two would later co-star in The Wild Party and Wicked. His other stage roles include Carousel, Chicago and A Soldier's Play.

- After a stint on the soap The Guiding Light, he made his film debut as the answer to How Stella Got Her Groove Back.

- More movies followed with Go, The Wood, The Best Man, House on Haunted Hill, Brown Sugar and the film versions of Chicago and Rent.

- Guest stints on Ally McBeal and The West Wing led to his own series, Kevin Hill, which won him an NAACP Image Award, but only lasted one season. He appeared as a love interest for Will in the final season of Will and Grace and starred in another short-lived series, Day Break.

- He currently stars on the Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Private Practice, which returns for a second year this fall.

Bye Bye Betty

"All right ladies, it's time for some dodgeball!"

Our Ugly Betty (played by the always game America Ferrera) faces some big challenges in tomorrow night's season finale, including a Felicity-esque choice between her two suitors in the present and a Hairspray-esque game of dodgeball in the past.

And, as you may have heard, a certain Lindsay Lohan guest stars as a Mean Girl from Betty's high school days. But she isn't the only tabloid name to sign up for the second season closer, as Naomi Campbell also pops in for a little game of ... softball?

Immediately following Betty will be the two-hour season finale of Grey's Anatomy, which promises to feature a reunion between Meredith and Dr. McDreamy and a possible hook up between lady docs Hahn and Torres.

Easy as ABC

ABC will be overtaking the "Must-See TV" banner for Thursday nights starting tomorrow with the post-strike returns of three of our favorites. To celebrate, it's time for ABC Thursday Night Funnies!:

• Ugly Betty: On the official Ugly Betty Video Podcast, Becki Newton and Michael Urie ask the musical question, "Are You Ready for Betty?" Meanwhile, back in Iran: will anyone ever listen to Ugly Betool?
• Grey's Anatomy: A pair of pitch-perfect parodies from MADtv, including a special visit from Dr. House.
• Lost: Before you return to this island, see what happens when it crosses paths with two other famous TV isles, and then be sure to catch up on the past seasons with this helpful video primer. And a bonus: Lost - The Musical.