Cory Monteith Emmy's Tribute Upsets Some in the Industry

The organizers of the annual Emmy awards ceremony will include five special memorial tributes, including one for Vancouverite, Cory Monteith. Many in the industry are at odds with his inclusion. 

The “Glee” star Monteith died this summer due to a heroin and alcohol overdose in Vancouver. He will be remembered by fellow cast member Jane Lynch.

The Emmy’s have also called upon Edie Falco to honour James Gandolfini, aka Tony Soprano. Edie played Gandolfini’s wife in the hit television series “The Sopranos.” Gandolfini died of a heart attack at the age of 51.

Now many in the industry are not in agreement with the Emmy’s honouring Cory Monteith’s in a similar fashion to James Gandolfini. Variety’s, Adrew Wallenstein is one of those people. He writes:

That “Glee” star Cory Monteith will be among an exclusive group of actors getting a special memorial tribute at the Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday was to be expected given the industry and its fans are still reeling from his recent loss.

But it is questionable whether the TV Academy is doing the right thing with this tribute.

When Monteith’s name is elevated alongside the other four people who are being elevated from the usual In Memoriam reel — actors James Gandolfini, Jean Stapleton and Jonathan Winters and writer-producer Gary David Goldberg — his inclusion risks coming across ill-considered. The unspoken, uncomfortable truth of the matter is that while the work he did on “Glee” showed great promise, it was not equal to the incredible careers the other four amassed.

That doesn’t make the loss of Monteith any less tragic. Nor should questioning his exclusion be misinterpreted as a judgment being made about the circumstances of his death. To the contrary, the Emmy recognition will put deserved focus on the perils of drug addiction.

But to merit special treatment like what the Academy is doing here, an actor should have a body of work that puts him head and shoulders above his peers. There will surely be disagreement from his ardent fans, but if Monteith had really achieved that status, those accolades would have been coming even before his death. Unlike many of his co-stars, Monteith never received an Emmy nomination.

– Variety (read the rest of the article here)

Other tributes are planned for  “All in the Family Star” Jean Stapleton, Jonathan Winters; and Burnbaby’s own Michael J. Fox honouring the producer of “Family Ties,” Gary David Goldberg.