Celebrity Chatter: So What Did You Think Of The Emmys?

So, what did you think of the Emmy Awards? They were nice enough. Ellen DeGeneres was an affable host, the "Desperate Housewives" dresses were nice, the tributes to some television giants who passed on were kind and gentle, and the opening with Earth, Wind and Fire with a dose of Black Eyed Peas thrown in was an attention getter.

The problem with it was it was what it was -- just "nice." It wasn't that Hurricane Katrina put a damper on the festivities -- talk around the water cooler here is that none of us thought the show had the doldrums because it was trying to be less intense because of the disaster.

Actually, when sparks flew both during the show and backstage, many times it was because Katrina was at the center of the conversation.

Actress Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow's mom, used her acceptance speech to refer to Katrina and the war in Iraq. Danner, was nominated three times, but picked up the Emmy for supporting actress in a drama for Showtime's "Huff."

"I know Bruce (late husband, Bruce Paltrow) would want me to pay tribute to New Orleans, his favorite city, and all the Gulf Coast and our kids in Iraq. Let's get the heck out of there," she said.

Backstage, Patricia Arquette took her turn to talk about Hurricane Katrina's victims.

"I wouldn't feel right about telling people what they should do. But this is wartime. There's half a million people homeless overnight. And all the poor, all the working poor who live from paycheck to paycheck, and the middle class," she said, her voice trailing off. "I mean, I know Trent Lott's gonna get a new house. But a lot of people aren't," Variety reported Arquette said backstage.

I think the problems with awards shows is this: We like to see our favorite celebrities, but we're still on the outside looking in -- sometimes we just don't feel like we fit in. As I watched the 57th Annual Emmys I felt like I was standing behind the red ropes at the door of a swanky party eavesdropping on something I wasn't invited to.

I even related to Eva Longoria interviewed high above in the cheap seats of the Shrine Auditorium, a gesture to the fact that she wasn't nominated with the rest of her co-stars. That could've been me in the cheap seats.

Yet, Eva's in OK shape. She's become a household name overnight for her role on "Desperate Housewives," has a knock-out bathing suit that she brought home from wearing the Video Music Awards, dates basketball player Tony Parker, and is frequently seen having power meals at Los Angeles hot spot The Ivy.

Next time I watch an awards show, I'm putting on my full-length gown, writing my acceptance and delivering it to anyone who will listen.

And maybe I'll drag out my tiny imposter of an Emmy bought one day while trying to get in an awards show, but relegated to strolling the Hollywood Walk of Stars.

But if I heed the wisdom of Ellen I won't feel bad.

"I think overall in the scheme of things winning an Emmy is not important. Let's get our priorities straight. I think we all know what's really important in life -- winning an Oscar."

So what did you think of the Emmys? E-mail me and I'll print some of the best responses next week. Please include your first name and city.

Renee Cries Fraud

No, it isn't that Renee Zellweger woke up to discover that Kenny Chesney wasn't Jack White.

"Hey, wait a minute. You're not Jack White."

And you know I have a soft spot in my heart for Zellweger after she and I shared a conversation one afternoon in the Los Angeles airport.

If you don't know what I'm referring to, the media has been climbing all over a line in Zellweger's paperwork that would annul their marriage, citing fraud as the reason for the split.

While Zellweger has asked for privacy, the rumor mill is buzzing about what kind of fraud Zellweger alleges. The legalese of all of it?

"The most common ground for annulment is fraud; that is, one spouse never disclosed to the other spouse information about such things as a previous marriage, a criminal record, an infectious disease, the inability to have children, or the desire not to have children. In addition, an annulment might be granted because one party is already married, the parties are too closely related (i.e. incest has been committed), or one party is underage, and did not obtain appropriate parental consent," according to Free Advice.

"Annulments are rare. If someone asks to have their marriage annulled, they must appear at a hearing with a judge," according to the California courts Web site.

London's Telegraph newspaper speculated that the basis of the annulment could be in living arrangements. Chesney has homes in Nashville and in the Caribbean, while Zellweger has been spending time in Connecticut. Zellweger may have wanted him to live with her there, Chesney said he would, but did not keep his promise.

The Telegraph cites a Hollywood divorce lawyer who said "a promise was made before the marriage, but the person who made it had no intention of keeping it."

Maybe Chesney has his own grounds for fraud. Did Zellweger really think Chesney's tractor song was sexy? One of his hits is "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy."

Michelle Solomon's gossip column, Celebrity Chatter, appears each Monday. You can email Michelle at Michelle Solomon@Celebrity Chatter.