The “In Memoriam” segment of the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday paid tribute to a number of television stars who died in the past year, but users on social media were quick to point out the notable names that didn’t make it into the montage.
In the poignant segment, rapper Jelly Roll said a few words before performing his 2024 song “I Am Not Okay” while a montage of deceased stars was shown at the Peacock Theater and on television. Participants in the segment included Donald Sutherland, James Earl Jones, Martin Mull, Richard Lewis, Richard Simmons, Shannen Doherty, Gena Rowlands, Chance Perdomo and Carl Weathers.
In some areas there was general confusion online as Friends Star Matthew Perry, who died on October 28, 2023 at the age of 54. Perry’s absence was explained by the Television Academy paying a special tribute to the actor at the 74th Emmys in January, after it was postponed due to the two strikes in Hollywood.
However, social media users felt that the omission of personalities such as Shelley Duvall, Erica Ash, Johnny Wactor, Tyler Christopher, Joe Flaherty and Chita Rivera cast a bad light on the TV Academy.
Although Duvall, who died in July at the age of 75, was better known for her film work, she was twice nominated for an Emmy. The actress was closely associated with children’s television. She was the creator, writer and executive producer of Shelley Duvall’s Bedtime Stories and creator and executive producer of Great stories and legends. Duvall was nominated for both shows.
Ash, a comedian and actress who died in July at the age of 46, appeared on MADtv And The big gay sketch showand later played the lead role in the Starz sitcom Remorse of a survivor.
Wactor was known for his role as Brando Corbin in the series General Hospital and Johnny in the NBC series SiberiaIn May, the actor was murdered in a robbery in Los Angeles. He was 37.
Another General Hospital Star Tyler Christopher was also left out. Christopher played the characters Nikolas Cassadine and Connor Bishop on the ABC soap. He died of alcohol poisoning in October 2023 at the age of 50.
SCTV Joe Flaherty was also glaringly absent, especially since the late comedian was a colleague of Emmy presenter Eugene Levy. Flaherty, who died in April at the age of 82, also played the key role of Harold Weir in NBC’s cult show Freaks and Geeks.
Rivera’s television career spanned seven decades. Although the actress, who died in January at the age of 91, had most success in the theater, Rivera nevertheless appeared in a number of prominent shows, including The Carol Burnett Show, The new Dick Van Dyke Show, Dora the Explorer And Will and grace.
Many of the names missing from the televised “In Memoriam” segment, including Ash, Duvall, Wactor and Rivera, were listed in a more extensive “In Memoriam” section on the Emmy website.
