Shonda Rhimes Spent Her Hiatus Picking Up Awards, What Did You Do For The Holidays?

Even though her shows are on hiatus for the winter — they will return on January 29 — Shonda Rhimes has spent her holiday accepting awards for her work. The creator of some television’s most popular dramas will be honored by being inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in April, and Rhimes was also selected by the Writers Guild of America West to receive the Paddy Chayefsky Award for Television Writing Achievement.

As Variety reported, WGA West President Chris Keyser said that Rhimes has shown no fear in tackling controversial issues on her television shows, and she has given characters a voice who had been previously voiceless.

“Few writers in television have had the impact on the medium that Shonda Rhimes has. Her ability to create, consistently, television that is, at once, excellent, provocative and crowd-pleasing is almost the least of it. She is a breaker of barriers.”

This isn’t the first WGA award for Rhimes. She won the 2006 WGA Award for a new series for Grey’s Anatomy. She has also been honored with a Producers Guild Award in 2007, the Golden Globe for Outstanding TV Drama in 2007, consecutive NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Dramatic Series from 2007 to 2011, and five wins for Outstanding Drama Series.

For Scandal, Rhimes has been honored with the 2013 AFI Award, a Peabody Award, and a NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series. Another of her shows, Private Practice, won Television Academy Honors in 2010 and 2011, along with the Prism Award for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series in 2011.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Rhimes will be inducted into the NAB Hall of Fame during a luncheon ceremony on April 13 in Las Vegas. As noted by Gordon Smith, who is the Chief Executive for the NAB, Rhimes’ shows dominate broadcast TV on Thursday nights.

“Shonda Rhimes’ creative talent is undeniable and on display every Thursday night on ABC. The characters and storylines she creates draw in viewers and keep them coming back for more. Her hit shows serve as Exhibit A on why broadcast television remains the most popular destination for scripted entertainment programming.”

Rhimes was also honored with the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award during the Hollywood Reporter’s 23rd annual Women in Entertainment Breakfast. The award recognizes women who are leaders and pioneers within their industries. Rhimes doesn’t mince words when it comes to issues she believes in and portrays in her shows. As the Inquisitr reported, this fall, she took on critics complaining about the gay content in her shows.

[Image by Getty Images]