Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series

The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for Variety Series is awarded to one television series each year. After being grouped together for decades as Outstanding Directing for Variety or Music Program, categories were divided for series and Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special in 2009.

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for Variety Series
Awarded for	Outstanding Directing for Variety Series
Country	United States
Presented by	Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
Currently held by	Liz Patrick Saturday Night Live (2024)
Website	emmys.com

In the following list, the first titles listed in gold are the winners; those not in gold are nominees, which are listed in alphabetical order. The years given are those in which the ceremonies took place:

Winners and nominations

1970s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Variety, Comedy or Music
1970
	Kraft Music Hall	"The Sound of Burt Bacharach"	Dwight A. Hemion	NBC
	New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts	"Berlioz Takes a Trip"	Roger Englander	CBS
	The Second Bill Cosby Special		Seymour Berns	NBC
Outstanding Directing for a Comedy-Variety or Music Series
1971 [1]
	Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In	"Orson Welles"	Mark Warren	NBC
	The Andy Williams Show	"Christmas Show"	Art Fisher	NBC
	The Flip Wilson Show	"David Frost, James Brown and The Muppets"	Tim Kiley
1972 [2]
	The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour	"Tony Randall"	Art Fisher	CBS
	The Carol Burnett Show	"Carol Channing and Steve Lawrence"	Dave Powers	CBS
	The Flip Wilson Show	"Petula Clark and Redd Foxx"	Tim Kiley	NBC
1973
	The Julie Andrews Hour	"Lisa Doolittle and Mary Poppins"	Bill Davis	ABC
	The Flip Wilson Show	"Roberta Flack and Burt Reynolds"	Tim Kiley	NBC
	The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour	"Mike Connors"	Art Fisher	CBS
1974 [3]
	The Carol Burnett Show	"The Australia Show"	Dave Powers	CBS
	In Concert	"Cat Stevens"	Joshua White	ABC
	The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour	"Ken Berry and George Foreman"	Art Fisher	CBS
1975 [4]
	The Carol Burnett Show	"Alan Alda"	Dave Powers	CBS
	Cher	"Bette Midler, Flip Wilson and Elton John"	Art Fisher	CBS
1976 [5]
	Saturday Night Live	"Paul Simon"	Dave Wilson	NBC
	The Carol Burnett Show	"Maggie Smith"	Dave Powers	CBS
	The Sonny and Cher Show	"Premiere"	Tim Kiley
1977 [6]
	The Carol Burnett Show	"Eydie Gormé"	Dave Powers	CBS
	Saturday Night Live	"Paul Simon"	Dave Wilson	NBC
	Van Dyke and Company	"John Denver"	John Moffitt
1978 [7]
	The Carol Burnett Show	"Steve Martin and Betty White"	Dave Powers	CBS
	The Muppet Show	"Elton John"	Peter Harris	Syndicated
	The Richard Pryor Show	"Paula Kelly"	John Moffitt	NBC
	Saturday Night Live	"Steve Martin"	Dave Wilson
	Shields and Yarnell	"John Aylesworth"	Steve Binder	CBS
Outstanding Directing in a Comedy or Comedy-Variety or Music Series
1979 [note 1]
	Barney Miller	"The Harris Incident"	Noam Pitlik	ABC
	All in the Family	"California, Here We Are, Part 2"	Paul Bogart	CBS
	M*A*S*H	"Dear Sis"	Alan Alda
		"Point of View"	Charles S. Dubin
	Soap	"Episode 27"	Jay Sandrich	ABC

1980s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
1980 [8]	Outstanding Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program
	Baryshnikov on Broadway		Dwight Hemion	ABC
	The Big Show	"Mariette Hartley and Dean Martin"	Steve Binder	NBC
	John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together		Tony Charmoli	ABC
	The Muppet Show	"Liza Minnelli"	Peter Harris	Syndicated
1981 [9]
	The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts		Don Mischer	CBS
	The 53rd Annual Academy Awards		Marty Pasetta	ABC
	Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters	"Dolly Parton and John Schneider"	Bob Henry	NBC
	Linda in Wonderland		Dwight Hemion	CBS
	Nureyev and the Joffrey Ballet in Tribute to Nijinsky (Great Performances)		Emile Ardolino	PBS
	Sylvia Fine Kaye's Musical Comedy Tonight II		Tony Charmoli
1982 [10]
	Goldie and Kids... Listen to Us		Dwight Hemion	ABC
	The 54th Annual Academy Awards		Marty Pasetta	ABC
	Baryshnikov in Hollywood		Don Mischer	CBS
	Live from Lincoln Center: An Evening with Danny Kaye		Robert Scheerer	PBS
	Night of 100 Stars		Clark Jones	ABC
1983 [11]
	Sheena Easton... Act One		Dwight Hemion	NBC
	The 55th Annual Academy Awards		Marty Pasetta	ABC
	Lincoln Center Special — Stravinsky and Balanchine: A Genius Has a Birthday!		Emile Ardolino	PBS
	Live from Lincoln Center: Zubin Mehta Conducts Beethoven's Ninth with the New York Philharmonic		Kirk Browning
	Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever		Don Mischer	NBC
	SCTV Network	"The Energy Ball" / "Sweeps Week Show"	John Blanchard and John Bell
1984 [12]
	Here's Television Entertainment		Dwight Hemion	NBC
	Burnett "Discovers" Domingo		Marty Pasetta	CBS
	The 6th Annual Kennedy Center Honors		Don Mischer
	The 1984 Tony Awards		Clark Jones
1985 [13]
	Sweeney Todd (Great Performances)		Terry Hughes	PBS
	Late Night with David Letterman	"3rd Anniversary Special"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	Motown Returns to the Apollo		Don Mischer	PBS
	Night of 100 Stars II		Waris Hussein	ABC
1986 [14]
	Copacabana		Waris Hussein	CBS
	The 58th Annual Academy Awards		Marty Pasetta	ABC
	The Gospel at Colonus (Great Performances)		Kirk Browning	PBS
	Neil Diamond... Hello Again		Dwight Hemion	CBS
1987 [15]
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Don Mischer	CBS
	Late Night with David Letterman	"5th Anniversary Special"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	Liberty Weekend: Opening Ceremonies		Dwight Hemion	ABC
	The 41st Annual Tony Awards		Walter C. Miller	CBS
	The Tracey Ullman Show	"Meg and Tina in August" / "Pre-School" / "Golf"	Ted Bessell and Stuart Margolin	Fox
1988 [16]
	Celebrating Gershwin (Great Performances)		Patricia Birch and Humphrey Burton	PBS
	Irving Berlin's 100th Birthday Celebration		Walter C. Miller	CBS
	Late Night with David Letterman	"6th Anniversary Special"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour: The 20th Reunion		David Grossman	CBS
1989 [17]
	The Jim Henson Hour	"Dog City"	Jim Henson	NBC
	Dance in America: Gregory Hines — Tap Dance in America (Great Performances)		Don Mischer	PBS
	The Debbie Allen Special		Debbie Allen	ABC
	Late Night with David Letterman	"In Chicago"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	The Tracey Ullman Show	"D.U.I." / "Family Therapy" / "9 Minutes & 52 Seconds Over Tokyo" / "Conjugal Visit"	Ted Bessell	Fox

1990s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
1990 [18]
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Dwight Hemion	CBS
	The 62nd Annual Academy Awards	"100 Years at the Movies" (segment)	Chuck Workman	ABC
	Billy Crystal: Midnight Train to Moscow		Paul Flaherty	HBO
	The Jim Henson Hour	"The Song of the Cloud Forest"	Jim Henson	NBC
	Sammy Davis Jr.'s 60th Anniversary Celebration		Jeff Margolis	ABC
1991 [19]
	Late Night with David Letterman	"1425"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	The 63rd Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Dwight Hemion	CBS
1992 [20]
	Unforgettable... with Love: Natalie Cole Sings the Songs of Nat King Cole (Great Performances)		Patricia Birch	PBS
	The 64th Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	Late Night with David Letterman	"10th Anniversary Special"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
	The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson		Bobby Quinn
	The 45th Annual Tony Awards		Walter C. Miller	CBS
1993 [21]
	The 1992 Tony Awards		Walter C. Miller	CBS
	The 65th Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	Black and Blue (Great Performances)		Robert Altman	PBS
	Late Night with David Letterman	"1723"	Hal Gurnee	NBC
1994 [22]
	The Tony Awards		Walter C. Miller	CBS
	The 66th Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	Late Show with David Letterman	"160"	Hal Gurnee	CBS
	Saturday Night Live		Dave Wilson	NBC
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"463"	Ellen Brown
	Tracey Ullman Takes On New York		Don Scardino	HBO
1995 [23]
	The 67th Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	Barbra Streisand: The Concert		Barbra Streisand and Dwight Hemion	HBO
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Louis J. Horvitz	CBS
	Late Show with David Letterman	"384"	Hal Gurnee
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"541"	Ellen Brown	NBC
1996 [24]
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Louis J. Horvitz	CBS
	The 68th Annual Academy Awards		Jeff Margolis	ABC
	Late Show with David Letterman	"503"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	Marsalis on Music	"Sousa to Satchmo"	Michael Lindsay-Hogg	PBS
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"914"	Ellen Brown	NBC
1997 [25]
	Centennial Olympic Games: Opening Ceremonies		Don Mischer	NBC
	The 69th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Bette Midler: Diva Las Vegas		Marty Callner	HBO
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"1062"	Ellen Brown	NBC
	Tracey Takes On...	"1976"	Thomas Schlamme	HBO
1998 [26]
	The 70th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Fleetwood Mac: The Dance		Bruce Gowers	MTV
	Garth: Live from Central Park		Marty Callner	HBO
	Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella		Robert Iscove	ABC
	Stomp Out Loud		Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas	HBO
	Tracey Takes On...	"Smoking"	Don Scardino
1999 [27]
	The 1998 Tony Awards		Paul Miller	CBS
	The 41st Annual Grammy Awards		Walter C. Miller	CBS
	The Kennedy Center Honors		Louis J. Horvitz
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Jennifer Love Hewitt"	Beth McCarthy-Miller	NBC
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"1613"	Ellen Brown

2000s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
2000 [28]
	The 72nd Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Chris Rock: Bigger & Blacker		Keith Truesdell	HBO
	The Gershwins' "Crazy for You" (Great Performances)		Matthew Diamond	PBS
	Late Show with David Letterman	"1294"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	Saturday Night Live: The 25th Anniversary Special		Beth McCarthy-Miller	NBC
	The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	"1770"	Ellen Brown
2001 [29]
	Cirque Du Soleil's Dralion		David Mallet	Bravo
	The 73rd Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Live in New York City		Chris Hilson	HBO
	Late Show with David Letterman	"1527"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	The 54th Annual Tony Awards		Paul Miller
2002 [30]
	Opening Ceremony Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games		Bucky Gunts, Ron de Moraes and Kenny Ortega	NBC
	The 74th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	America: A Tribute to Heroes		Joel Gallen and Beth McCarthy-Miller	[note 2]
	From Broadway: Fosse (Great Performances)		Matthew Diamond	PBS
	Late Show with David Letterman		Jerry Foley	CBS
2003 [31]
	The 56th Annual Tony Awards		Glenn Weiss	CBS
	The 75th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Live in Barcelona		Chris Hilson	CBS
	Late Show with David Letterman	"1876"	Jerry Foley
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Christopher Walken"	Beth McCarthy-Miller	NBC
2004 [32]
	The 76th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Bill Maher: Victory Begins at Home		John Moffitt	HBO
	Chappelle's Show	"204"	Neal Brennan, Andre Allen and Scott Vincent	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"8086"	Chuck O'Neil
	Elaine Stritch: At Liberty		Andy Picheta, Nick Doob, Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker	HBO
	Late Show with David Letterman	"2170"	Jerry Foley	CBS
2005 [33]
	The Games of the XXVIII Olympiad - Opening Ceremony		Bucky Gunts	NBC
	The 77th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	Da Ali G Show	"Rekognize"	James Bobin	HBO
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"9010"	Chuck O'Neil	Comedy Central
	Late Show with David Letterman	"2269"	Jerry Foley	CBS
2006 [34]
	The 78th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	American Idol	"Finale"	Bruce Gowers	Fox
	The Colbert Report	"110"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"10140"	Chuck O'Neil
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Steve Martin"	Beth McCarthy-Miller	NBC
2007 [35]
	Tony Bennett: An American Classic		Rob Marshall	NBC
	American Idol	"The Final Two"	Bruce Gowers	Fox
	The Colbert Report	"2161"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"12061"	Chuck O'Neil
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Alec Baldwin"	Don Roy King	NBC
2008 [36]
	The 80th Annual Academy Awards		Louis J. Horvitz	ABC
	The Colbert Report	"4051"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	Company (Great Performances)		Lonny Price	PBS
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"13050"	Chuck O'Neil	Comedy Central
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Tina Fey"	Don Roy King	NBC
2009 [37]	Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series
	American Idol	"833 (The Final Three)"	Bruce Gowers	Fox
	The Colbert Report	"4159"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"13107"	Chuck O'Neil
	Late Show with David Letterman	"2932"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	Real Time with Bill Maher	"705"	Hal Grant	HBO
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Justin Timberlake"	Don Roy King	NBC

2010s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
2010 [38]	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Betty White"	Don Roy King	NBC
	The Colbert Report	"5076 (in Iraq)"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"15054"	Chuck O'Neil
	Late Show with David Letterman	"3289"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien	"146"	Allan Kartun	NBC
2011 [39]	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Justin Timberlake"	Don Roy King	NBC
	American Idol	"1024/1025A"	Gregg Gelfand	Fox
	The Colbert Report	"6112"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"16048"	Chuck O'Neil
	Late Show with David Letterman	"3333"	Jerry Foley	CBS
2012 [40]	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Mick Jagger"	Don Roy King	NBC
	The Colbert Report	"7121A"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"17087"	Chuck O'Neil
	Late Show with David Letterman	"3602"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	Portlandia	"One Moore Episode"	Jonathan Krisel	IFC
2013 [41]	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Justin Timberlake"	Don Roy King	NBC
	The Colbert Report	"8131"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"17153"	Chuck O'Neil
	Jimmy Kimmel Live!	"13-1810"	Andy Fisher	ABC
	Late Show with David Letterman	"3749"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	Portlandia	"Alexandra"	Jonathan Krisel	IFC
2014 [42]	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Jimmy Fallon"	Don Roy King	NBC
	The Colbert Report	"9135"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"18153"	Chuck O'Neil
	Portlandia	"Getting Away"	Jonathan Krisel	IFC
	The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon	"Episode 1 (Will Smith/U2)"	Dave Diomedi	NBC
2015 [43]	The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	"20103"	Chuck O'Neil	Comedy Central
	The Colbert Report	"11040"	Jim Hoskinson	Comedy Central
	Inside Amy Schumer	"12 Angry Men Inside Amy Schumer"	Amy Schumer and Ryan McFaul
	Late Show with David Letterman	"4214"	Jerry Foley	CBS
	The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon	"203"	Dave Diomedi	NBC
2016 [44]
	Inside Amy Schumer	"Madonna/Whore"	Ryan McFaul	Comedy Central
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"303"	Paul Pennolino	HBO
	The Late Late Show with James Corden	"Post-Super Bowl Episode"	Tim Mancinelli	CBS
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Tina Fey & Amy Poehler"	Don Roy King	NBC
	The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon	"325"	Dave Diomedi
2017 [45]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Jimmy Fallon"	Don Roy King	NBC
	Drunk History	"Hamilton"	Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner	Comedy Central
	Jimmy Kimmel Live!	"The (RED) Show"	Andy Fisher	ABC
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Multi-Level Marketing"	Paul Pennolino	HBO
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"0179"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
2018 [46]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Donald Glover"	Don Roy King	NBC
	Full Frontal with Samantha Bee	"2061"	Andre Allen	TBS
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"421"	Paul Pennolino	HBO
	The Late Late Show with James Corden	"0416"	Tim Mancinelli	CBS
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"438"	Jim Hoskinson
	Portlandia	"Riot Spray"	Carrie Brownstein	IFC
2019 [47]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Adam Sandler"	Don Roy King	NBC
	Documentary Now!	"Waiting for the Artist"	Alex Buono and Rhys Thomas	IFC
	Drunk History	"Are You Afraid of the Drunk?"	Derek Waters	Comedy Central
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Psychics"	Paul Pennolino	HBO
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"Live Midterm Election Show"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
	Who Is America?	"Episode 102"	Sacha Baron Cohen, Nathan Fielder, Daniel Gray Longino and Dan Mazer	Showtime

2020s

Year	Program	Episode	Nominee(s)	Network
2020 [48]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Eddie Murphy"	Don Roy King	NBC
	A Black Lady Sketch Show	"Born at Night, But Not Last Night"	Dime Davis	HBO
	The Daily Show with Trevor Noah	"Dr. Fauci Answers Trevor's Questions About Coronavirus"	David Paul Meyer	Comedy Central
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Episode 629"	Paul Pennolino and Christopher Werner	HBO
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"Live Show; Chris Christie; Nathaniel Rateliff"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
	Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready	"Flame Monroe"	Linda Mendoza	Netflix
2021 [49]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Dave Chappelle"	Don Roy King	NBC
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Trump & Election Results / F*ck 2020"	Christopher Werner	HBO
	Late Night with Seth Meyers	"Episode 1085a"	Alexander J. Vietmeier	NBC
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"Live Show Following Capitol Insurrection; Senator Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, Performance By Jamila Woods"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
	Real Time with Bill Maher	"Episode 1835"	Paul G. Casey	HBO
2022 [50]
	A Black Lady Sketch Show	"Save My Edges, I'm a Donor!"	Bridget Stokes	HBO
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Union Busting"	Paul Pennolino and Christopher Werner	HBO
	Late Night with Seth Meyers	"Episode 1252"	Alexander J. Vietmeier	NBC
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"Artistic Musical Performance by Chance The Rapper; Monologue: Ukraine & Russian War, January 6 Committee Evidence on Trump & Donald Jr.; Guest Beanie Feldstein"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Billie Eilish"	Don Roy King and Liz Patrick	NBC
2023 [51]
	Saturday Night Live	"Co-Hosts: Steve Martin & Martin Short"	Liz Patrick	NBC
	Jimmy Kimmel Live!	"20th Anniversary Special"	Andy Fisher	ABC
	Last Week Tonight with John Oliver	"Afghanistan"	Paul Pennolino	HBO
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"John Oliver; Broadway Cast of the Lion King"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS
	The Problem with Jon Stewart	"Chaos, Law, and Order"	André Allen	Apple TV+
2024 [52]
	Saturday Night Live	"Host: Ryan Gosling"	Liz Patrick	NBC
	The Daily Show	"Jon Stewart Returns to The Daily Show"	David Paul Meyer	Comedy Central
	Jimmy Kimmel Live!	"Trump Still Mad About Oscars Joke and Thinks Jimmy is Al Pacino, Chris Stapleton's Ballad for John Stamos, Guest Rob McElhenney & The Return of Our Outdoor Stage!"	Andy Fisher	ABC
	The Late Show with Stephen Colbert	"December 21, 2023: GOP Wants Biden Kicked Off Ballot, Bankrupt Rudy Hawks Supplements, Elf on the Shelf For Parents; Meanwhile; Anderson Cooper & Andy Cohen; Louis Cato and The Late Show Band"	Jim Hoskinson	CBS

Programs with multiple wins

13 wins Saturday Night Live

4 wins The Carol Burnett Show

Programs with multiple nominations

Totals include nominations for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming.

25 nominations Saturday Night Live 15 nominations Late Show with David Letterman 13 nominations The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 10 nominations The Colbert Report 8 nominations Last Week Tonight with John Oliver The Late Show with Stephen Colbert 7 nominations Late Night with David Letterman

6 nominations American Idol The Carol Burnett Show The Tonight Show with Jay Leno 4 nominations Jimmy Kimmel Live! Portlandia 3 nominations The Flip Wilson Show The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

2 nominations A Black Lady Sketch Show Da Ali G Show Drunk History Inside Amy Schumer The Jim Henson Hour Late Night with Seth Meyers The Late Late Show with James Corden The Muppet Show Real Time with Bill Maher Tracey Takes On... The Tracey Ullman Show

Individuals with multiple wins

10 wins

• Don Roy King

6 wins

• Louis J. Horvitz

5 wins

• Dwight Hemion

4 wins

• Dave Powers

3 wins

• Don Mischer

2 wins

• Patricia Birch
• Bucky Gunts
• Walter C. Miller

Notes

1. In 1979, there were no variety programs nominated for the comedy directing award.
2. America: A Tribute to Heroes was simulcast live on 35 network and cable outlets. The Emmys listed no individual network with this nomination.