The Gold Rush

The ''Desperate Housewives'' stars snubbed by the Emmy nominations will get a moment in the ceremony's spotlight anyway.

Marcia Cross, Dana Delany, Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Eva Longoria Parker and Nicollette Sheridan were on the first list of presenters announced today by the TV academy.

Rihanna is back for another performance at the MTV Video Music Awards, along with Pink, Paramore and T.I., who will be making his first appearance at a major awards show since his arrest right before an awards ceremony last year.

The flashback finale of Bob Newhart's "Newhart" series is one of the choices in the Emmys' hunt for TV's most memorable momets.

The most memorable moments in television history will be revealed during the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards next month, and it's up to voters to decide which bits should take top honors.

Forty ''moments'' -- 20 dramatic and 20 comedic -- are in the running. Comedy contenders include ''M-A-S-H,'' ''Mork & Mindy,'' ''Sex and the City'' and ''The Cosby Show,'' while ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer,'' ''Miami Vice,'' ''Moonlighting'' and ''The Sopranos'' are among the drama candidates.

After delivering one of the worst performances in the history of the MTV Video Music Awards, Britney Spears has a chance to be crowned this year as the absolute best.

The rebounding pop queen is nominated for video of the year for ''Piece of Me,'' a clip that had fun with her reputation as a tabloid queen. Other nominees included the Jonas Brothers for ''Burnin Up,'' Chris Brown for ''Forever,'' the Pussycat Dolls for ''When I Grow Up'' and newcomers The Ting Tings for ''Shut Up and Let Me Go.''

Other nominees announced today -- Paramore, Fall Out Boy, Slipknot, Linkin Park and Foo Fighters -- were in the category of best rock video.

Here's something to file in both the Grammy and Emmy categories: In yesterday's Emmy announcement, the Grammys got five nominations!

Reality-show contestants are just that, contestants. Today, the Emmy finally began recognizing the talents of the hosts who work with them, like Tom Bergeron (left) of "Dancing With the Stars."

Three minutes to showtime, and Cristian de la Fuente still hadn't decided whether he would continue after tearing a tendon in his biceps. The producers of ABC's ''Dancing With the Stars,'' the mega-popular live dancing competition, had themselves in a tizzy.

Tom Bergeron, meanwhile, was loving it.

The affable host thrives on the adrenaline rush of anything-can-happen live TV -- and he can handle anything that comes his way.

A contestant strains a muscle mid-dance? Bergeron has it all under control. Marie Osmond faints on the air? He cuts to commercial -- and reports back to the audience that all's OK. The judges acting up? He keeps a straight face, cracks a joke and winks at viewers back home.

Bergeron has been driving this top-rated circus show for three years -- and now, he's finally getting recognized for it. The 53-year-old was nominated Thursday for an Emmy Award in the new category of best host for a reality or reality-competition show.

Daily Variety asked Chicago-area native Jeremy Piven how he received his Emmy news this morning -- nominated again for best comedy actor, for his role in "Entourage" -- and he replied:

"I was sitting in a hot-air balloon somewhere over the Indian Ocean, and I had nothing but a rusty compass in my hand, and I was shivering, and a carrier pigeon delivered the news to me ... or my publicist called me."

Piven won his second Emmy for that role last year.

Other celebrities reacted ...

As a reminder of the fertile training ground still yukking it up right here in Old Town, Second City sent out these congratulations today on news of the Emmy nominations:

Congratulations to the plethora of Second City alumni who received Emmy nominations this morning. The list of nominees includes Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Jeff Garlin, Amy Poehler, Stephen Colbert, Shelly Berman, Jack McBrayer, John Lutz, Kevin Dorff, Brian Stack, Peter Grosz, Peter Gwinn, Tom Purcell, Jeremy Piven and Laura Krafft.