On Saturday, January 6, the The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded), a category at the Primetime Emmy Awards, gave its honors to seven awardees. Among them was a win for Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love. And by association, big congratulations to our own MAC Award-
winning John McDaniel for arranging, orchestrating and his role as Music Director. The award for him was “an honor and a complete joy. The fact that we won the Emmy for Outstanding Primetime Variety Special last night is the cherry on the sundae!”
McDaniel is no stranger to Emmy wins. He has two of them, plus a Grammy, among other plaudits:
- 1992 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, Best Musical Direction, Chicago
- 1999 Grammy Award, Best Musical Show Album, Annie Get Your Gun
- 2001 Daytime Emmy Award, Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O’Donnell Show
- 2002 Daytime Emmy Award, Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O’Donnell Show
We know McDaniel in our cabaret/theater communities, as well as in TV, as an in-demand conductor, composer, orchestrator and record producer—especially known for leading the band daily on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” for its entire six year run. He wrote the theme song and received five Emmy nominations for Outstanding Music Direction and Composition. On the show, he worked with such artists as Tony Bennett, Dick Van Dyke, Neil Diamond, Dolly Parton, Liza Minnelli, Barry Manilow, Chaka Kahn and Madonna. For a complete bio on his very many professional credits, visit https://johnmcdaniel.com
An edited presentation of the awards presented on both nights of the Creative Arts Emmys will air Saturday, Jan. 13 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on FXX and will be available for streaming on Hulu on Sunday, Jan. 14.
The main Primetime Emmy telecast will air on Monday, Jan. 15, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on FOX – nearly four months after the originally planned date (Sept. 18).
