Four Northwestern alumni or former students snagged prizes at television’s most prestigious awards ceremony Sunday night in Los Angeles, including three of the top available trophies for actresses.
Anna Gunn (Communication ’90) took home the Emmy award for best supporting actress in a drama series for her work in AMC’s “Breaking Bad,” while Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Communication ’83) was awarded best lead actress in a comedy series for her starring role as the title character in HBO’s “Veep.” Stephen Colbert (Communication ’86) ended Jon Stewart’s 10-year reign as the winner in the best variety series category for his daily Comedy Central political satire, “The Colbert Report,” which also won best writing for a variety series.
Laura Linney, who attended NU before transferring to Brown University, won best lead actress in a miniseries or movie for her performance in Showtime’s “The Big C: Hereafter.”
Colbert, one of the School of Communication’s most visible alumni, last returned to campus in 2011 to give the annual commencement address.
“Northwestern’s alumni list is truly impressive,” Colbert said in his address. “This university has graduated best-selling authors, Olympians, presidential candidates, Grammy winners, Peabody winners, Emmy winners, and that’s just me.”
Louis-Dreyfus delivered a commencement address of her own in 2007 and also came back to NU last year to speak on a panel with her husband, Brad Hall (Communication ’80).
Gunn, whose run as the wife of a teacher-turned-drug-lord ends Sunday when the show’s finale airs, told The Daily in 2010 that she lived in Jones Residential College as a freshman and was first cast in Walton Jones’ musical “The 1940s Radio Hour.”
(Q&A: ‘Breaking Bad’ star reflects on NU memories)
This year’s Emmys are Colbert’s sixth and seventh. Louis-Dreyfus has now won four, and Gunn’s trophy was her first.
— Joseph Diebold
