{"id":5818,"date":"2026-08-12T23:35:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T23:35:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818"},"modified":"2026-08-12T23:35:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T23:35:40","slug":"as-the-comeback-and-hacks-end-valerie-cherish-and-deborah-vance-are-emmy-competitors-for-the-first-and-last-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818","title":{"rendered":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n\n

\n\n

\"AWARDS<\/figure>\nIn the Season 5 opener of \u201cHacks,\u201d Jean Smart\u2019s beleaguered character Deborah Vance is eager to reclaim her legacy \u2014 and comes up with the perfect way to do it. She wants to be an EGOT.<\/p>

Read more \u2018Reacher\u2019 Season 4 Cast Guide: Who\u2019s Who in the Prime Video Action Series<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tThe idea of the EGOT \u2014 someone who wins all of the \u201cBig Four\u201d entertainment awards at some point in their career (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony) \u2014 has been around for a while but became even more of a talking point as stars and producers began to move between TV, film, stage and music more effortlessly.\n\n\t\n\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the \u201cHacks\u201d episode (also titled \u201cEGOT\u201d), Deborah notes that she\u2019s already halfway there. She has a Daytime Emmy for hosting \u201cBegongle,\u201d a game show on the USA Network in 1992 where celebrities played Boggle on a constantly shaking floor. And she has a Tony Award as a producer: \u201cIn a post-coital haze, Eric Idle convinced me to put some money into \u2018Spamalot\u2019 [which actually won the Tony best musical in 2005].\u201d\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n

\n\tOf course, Deborah is already putting a bit of an asterisk in her EGOT journey, as there\u2019s much debate over whether a Daytime (or News & Documentary or Sports) Emmy counts \u2014 or if EGOT should only include the more competitive Primetime Emmy space.<\/p>\n

\n\tThere are approximately 22 EGOT title holders at present time \u2014 but some got there through the Daytime Emmys (like Whoopi Goldberg, Jennifer Hudson and Alan Menken) and others landed there as one of dozens of producers on a Tony-winning play. This year, that was Steven Spielberg, whose Grammy win surprisingly earned him an EGOT \u2014 since it was previously undisclosed that he had won a Tony in 2022 as an uncredited producer on \u201cA Strange Loop.\u201d\n\n\t\n<\/p>\n

\n\tAdd in honorary awards from the Big Four, and the EGOT tally actually climbs to 28. I expect that number to jump even more in the coming years as more stars make EGOT a goal and find random awards categories to try and secure a win. (For non-singers needing a Grammy, the audio book, spoken word or comedy categories might be the best path \u2014 as opposed to Deborah\u2019s attempt on \u201cHacks\u201d to release a Regional Mexican\/Tejano album.)<\/p>\n

\n\tIn \u201cHacks,\u201d we learn that Deborah was tricked out of a co-creator and writing credit on her 1970s sitcom \u201cWho\u2019s Making Dinner,\u201d or otherwise she might have actually won a Primetime Emmy. Thankfully, Smart has been much luckier \u2014 with seven Emmys and counting, plus an eighth very likely on the way. She won two as a \u201cFrasier\u201d guest star in 2000 and 2001 as guest comedy actress, and picked up another in 2008 as supporting comedy actress for \u201cSamantha Who?\u201d<\/p>

Read more Phylicia Rashad on Her Historic Career and the Current State of TV: \u2018If There\u2019s Something on That I Don\u2019t Like, I Simply Don\u2019t Watch It\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tThen came Smart\u2019s \u201cHacks\u201d ride, with comedy actress wins in 2021, 2022, 2024 and 2025 \u2014 every year the show was on the air. If she completes that trick in 2026, Smart will be just one behind Julia Louis-Dreyfus (who has six for \u201cVeep\u201d) for most wins playing the same character on the same show. With five as Deborah Vance, Smart will tie Don Knotts (\u201cThe Andy Griffith Show\u201d) and Candice Bergen (\u201cMurphy Brown\u201d) for second place.<\/p>\n

\n\tNot a bad run. Smart may not have an EGOT, but she can already boast having EGGS \u2014 that\u2019s \u201cEmmy, Golden Globes, SAG-AFTRA Actor.\u201d (Yes, I just made that up.)<\/p>\n

\n\tBut Deborah Vance isn\u2019t the only fictional Emmy winner on the real-life outstanding comedy actress Emmy ballot. In \u201cThe Comeback,\u201d Valerie Cherish (played by Lisa Kudrow) won an outstanding comedy supporting actress Emmy at the end of Season 2, for playing a gritty version of herself in the fictional HBO dramedy \u201cSeeing Red.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAs for Kudrow, this year reps her third time landing a lead actress nom for \u201cThe Comeback\u201d (following 2006 and 2015) and her first in outstanding comedy writing (which she shares with Michael Patrick King). Like Valerie, Kudrow has one Emmy so far \u2014 also in the outstanding comedy supporting actress field, for \u201cFriends\u201d in 1998.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a Valerie Cherish\/Deborah Vance Emmy smackdown, we probably have to give the edge to Deborah, given Smart\u2019s unstoppable winning streak. But no matter how this year goes, with \u201cHacks\u201d and \u201cThe Comeback\u201d ending their storied runs, it\u2019s the last time we\u2019ll get a chance to see those two iconic characters go head-to-head. Hopefully it won\u2019t be the last for the stars who play them.<\/p>

Read more Amazon Game Studios Divests MMOs \u2018Lost Ark,\u2019 \u2018Throne and Liberty\u2019 in Strategy Shift<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As ‘Hacks’ and ‘The Comeback’ End, it’s Deborah Vance and Valerie Cherish in a battle of the Emmy icons this year, for the first and last time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5817,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[908,220,1013,4536],"class_list":["post-5818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tv","tag-awards-circuit-column","tag-emmys","tag-hacks","tag-the-comeback"],"yoast_head":"\nAs \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As 'Hacks' and 'The Comeback' End, it's Deborah Vance and Valerie Cherish in a battle of the Emmy icons this year, for the first and last time.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Relocation Observer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/df3cb944d1fc1b2bf376f7299cdf57f7.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"538\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"632\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\"},\"headline\":\"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818\"},\"wordCount\":791,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"Awards Circuit Column,\",\"Emmys,\",\"Hacks,\",\"The Comeback\"],\"articleSection\":[\"TV\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818\",\"name\":\"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":563},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?p=5818#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Relocation Observer\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/relocationobserver.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer","og_description":"As 'Hacks' and 'The Comeback' End, it's Deborah Vance and Valerie Cherish in a battle of the Emmy icons this year, for the first and last time.","og_url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818","og_site_name":"Relocation Observer","article_published_time":"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00","og_image":[{"width":538,"height":632,"url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/df3cb944d1fc1b2bf376f7299cdf57f7.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e"},"headline":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time","datePublished":"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818"},"wordCount":791,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp","keywords":["Awards Circuit Column,","Emmys,","Hacks,","The Comeback"],"articleSection":["TV"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818","name":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time - Relocation Observer","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp","datePublished":"2026-08-12T23:35:40+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/cf04cdd2d9d7b0f9c99354e92dd2ef48.webp","width":1000,"height":563},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5818#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"As \u2018The Comeback\u2019 and \u2018Hacks\u2019 End, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance Are Emmy Competitors for the First and Last Time"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/","name":"Relocation Observer","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2243ff062b31c5195cd0d9f83884e83e","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/relocationobserver.com"],"url":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5818"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5818\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5818"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}