When the television industry gathers to hand out its highest honors, the evening rarely goes entirely according to script. Over decades of live broadcasts, television’s biggest night has delivered everything from spontaneous musical numbers and wardrobe surprises to unforgettable walk-offs and emotional, career-defining tears. While some of the most memorable stunts were carefully orchestrated, the absolute magic usually happens when the telecast goes delightfully off the rails. 

Ahead of tonight’s ceremony - hosted by Mariska Hargitay on September 14 - revisit more surprising, heartwarming, and hilarious highlights from Emmy history.

Live television has a habit of providing heart-stopping moments when you least expect them, and the 1961 Emmy Awards delivered an absolute classic courtesy of screen legend Barbara Stanwyck. While making her way up to the stage to accept a well-deserved trophy, Stanwyck experienced an unexpected wardrobe malfunction when her dress snagged and nearly gave way on live television. 

Displaying the ultimate grace under pressure, she smoothly recovered with a dazzling smile, turning a potentially cringeworthy broadcast mishap into an unforgettable display of old-Hollywood poise, just like the next famous entry on the list.

Taking the stage at the 27th Emmy Awards to present a major honor, television royalty Lucille Ball faced a classic live-television nightmare: she had completely forgotten her reading glasses. Standing in front of a packed auditorium and millions at home, the comedy legend squinted at the cue cards, ad-libbing and fumbling through her notes with effortless comedic timing. Fellow comedy icon Milton Berle rushed onto the stage to help, jokingly offering her an empty wine glass to look through before someone managed to track down proper reading glasses.

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While these few slip-ups make for great comedic moments, the next one is epic because it was both funny and serious at the same time.

Live television is a magnet for pranksters, but few pulled off a stunt as brazen as Barry Bremen - better known as "The Great Imposter." Posing as a television producer, Bremen walked right up onto the Emmy stage to accept an award on behalf of Betty Thomas, who won for Best Supporting Actress. However, the main twist here is that Thomas was actually present in the building at that time, ready to accept her award. The producers had to cut to commercials to deal with the situation. 

Helen Mirren, a well-known British actress, has always exuded a sense of royalty. The 2006 Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie winner's somewhat fiery acceptance speech was so unexpected. Stepping up to the microphone in a grand formal gown, she caught the audience and censors off guard with her opening line.

"My great triumph is not falling a** over t** as I came up those stairs," she began.  

“If you saw the shoes I’ve got on, you’d understand,” she continued amid a chorus of roaring laughter.

During the 2008 Emmys, presenter Tom Bergeron decided to add a bit of physical comedy to the reality host category by sweeping supermodel Heidi Klum off her feet as she walked on stage. Unfortunately, the grand gesture went slightly awry when Bergeron lost his footing, sending both of them tumbling to the stage floor in a heap. Klum handled the tumble with absolute model grace, laughing off the live-TV mishap while millions watched in stunned amusement.

The 65th Primetime Emmy Awards delivered one of the most stunning category upsets in recent history. In 2013, Jeff Daniels took home the trophy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Up against heavily favored titans like Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) and Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Daniels looked genuinely floored when his name was announced for The Newsroom. His stunned, humble reaction and joyous speech instantly electrified the room and shook up the predicted odds.

However, the next year Bryan Cranston got more than an Emmy at the event.

When Julia Louis-Dreyfus won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Veep, she did not even make it to the microphone before television history was made. As she walked up to the stage, presenter Bryan Cranston intercepted her and planted a full, deeply committed, lingering kiss right on her lips - a callback to an old Seinfeld bit they had shared years prior. Louis-Dreyfus famously deadpanned to the audience afterward, "Yeah, he was on Seinfeld," leaving the crowd in stitches over the out-of-nowhere romantic ambush.

Winning an Emmy for directing the Oscars is a massive career milestone on its own, but Glenn Weiss decided to turn his moment at the podium into something entirely life-changing. After thanking his late mother, Weiss turned his attention to his girlfriend, Jan Svendsen, sitting in the audience. Calling her his "wife" because he wanted to clear up any confusion, he dropped to one knee on the live telecast, pulled out a ring that once belonged to his mother, and proposed in front of millions. The stunned, tearful "yes" sent a wave of ecstatic applause through the entire theater.

During the virtual, pandemic-era Primetime Emmy Awards, host Jimmy Kimmel and presenter Jennifer Aniston were tasked with announcing the nominees for Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. To sanitize the envelope, Kimmel decided to light it on fire in a metal wastebasket - only for the flames to quickly spiral out of control. While Kimmel panicked, Aniston calmly grabbed a fire extinguisher and casually put out the blaze live on air, turning a genuinely hazardous unscripted mishap into one of the wildest moments of the night.

When the well-liked FX/Hulu series won Best Comedy Series at the 2023 Emmys, fans of The Bear, which recently concluded, were shocked to see co-star Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who portrays Richie, giving real-life chef and actor Matty Matheson, who plays Fak, a passionate kiss on the lips as he spoke on behalf of the ensemble. Matheson just said "I love you, Ebon," and carried on with his speech.

The Emmy Awards are moments of celebration of television brilliance, but more than that it is like any other award show that can get a bit offbeat and into the unexpected. It is how live events are, there are too many variables involved and it is quite literally impossible to be able to control all of them. So, a few slip-ups are expected, and who knows they might turn into a comedy goldmine with the right push.

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Which Emmy moment according to you is the wildest of them all? Do let us know in the comments.