The 55th Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 21, 2003. The ceremony was broadcast on Fox. The Sci Fi channel received its first major nomination this year for Outstanding Miniseries for Taken; the series won the award. 28 competitive awards were presented.
Despite failing to win Outstanding Drama Series, The Sopranos continued to rake in the awards, leading all dramas with four major wins, including James Gandolfini and Edie Falco winning their third and final trophy for their respective category. Also Joe Pantoliano's win for Supporting Actor in a Drama marked the first time HBO had won in this category.
Winners are listed first and highlighted in bold:[2]
Tony Shalhoub, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series winnerDebra Messing, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series winnerJames Gandolfini, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series winnerEdie Falco, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series winnerWilliam H. Macy, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie winnerMaggie Smith, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie winnerBrad Garrett, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series winnerDoris Roberts, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series winnerJoe Pantoliano, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series winnerTyne Daly, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series winnerBen Gazzara, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie winnerGena Rowlands, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie winnerWayne Brady, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program winner
The annual "In Memoriam" montage was presented by Dennis Franz, to honor the TV personalities who died between late 2002 and early-to-mid 2003. Before the segment, Henry Winkler presented a small tribute to actor John Ritter. Another standalone tribute was shown for actor and host Bob Hope. The following people were included in the main tribute: