Larry Hagman’s Son Says Emmy ‘In Memoriam’ Segment Was Too Short
Larry Hagman’s son, Preston, said Sunday night’s Emmy Awards telecast didn’t go far enough in properly honoring his father.
The Dallas star died on November 23, 2012, of complications from acute myeloid leukemia. He was 74. Emmy producers singled out five people — James Galdofini, Jonathan Winters, Jean Stapleton, Cory Monteith and Gary David Goldberg — for a longer, more personal tribute. But Hagman and others only received brief mentions during the “In Memoriam” segment. Preston Hagman told Entertainment Tonight that he didn’t think the spot was long enough.
“I think three seconds was short. I think all of them were short,” he said. “If you are going to honor [the ‘In Memoriam’ recipients], honor them with the respect and dignity that they portrayed. Do it for everyone.”
Hagman added, “These are very talented people. The actors that they’re honoring have done so much for the industry… If you’re going to respect and recognize them then do it correctly.”
Hagman said he wasn’t angry, but disappointed.
“Again, I think my dad was a trailblazer in the industry to set the stage for other actors,” he said. “So it’s not anger, it’s definitely disappointment for what he contributed to the profession.”
Preston Hagman wasn’t the only person who was unhappy with the telecast. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Adam Klugman, the son of Jack Klugman, was upset the producers chose to honor Glee star Cory Monteith instead of his father.
“I think it’s criminal,” he said. “My dad was at the inception of television and helped build it in the early days.”
The Odd Couple star died on December 24 last year from prostate cancer at 90. Monteith was 31 at the time of his death and died on July 13 from a drug overdose.
“It’s an insult and it really seems typical of this youth-centric culture that has an extremely short attention span and panders to only a very narrow demographic,” Adam Klugman said.
“What about the people who should be introduced to somebody like my father,” he added. “I don’t mean to say anything disparaging about Cory, but he was a kid who had won no Emmys and it was a self-induced tragedy.”
[Photo credit: Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com]