It looks like the perennial disappointment Saturday Night Live will be receiving a public honor from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences this Saturday. The program's "digital short" (the series that produced internet favorite "Lazy Sunday") entitled "Dick in a Box" won an Emmy Award at the Creative Arts ceremony this past Saturday night. Says Andy Samberg, who co-starred in the video with Justin Timberlake, "I think it's safe to say that when we first set out to make this song, we were all thinking 'Emmy!'" The Creative Arts ceremony will be televised on the E! network. The full Primetime Emmy Awards show will air the next day.The 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, televised last Sunday, have been the source of much intrigue over the past few days. Rapper Kanye West was particularly surprised that Britney Spears was chosen to open the show: "I can't believe she would perform. She hasn't had a hit record in years." He went on to say, "Maybe my money's not right. Maybe my skin's not right," with regards to the fact that he was not chosen as the show's opener. The Foo Fighters singer (and, some will remember, Nirvana drummer) Dave Grohl said: "You know those things that you put batteries in, and they just vacuum the floor without anyone touching them? That's what I think of Britney Spears." The pop icon appeared "bleary and unprepared," according to one Associated Press writer. Many entertainment blogs remarked on the singer's faded lip-synching skills.

According to an article in the New York Times, the awards show has seen falling ratings four years running, with a 28 percent fall last year. The move to Las Vegas' Palms Casino Resort (location of The Real World season 12, from which readers will remember itinerant reality star Trishelle Cannatella) is deemed to be an effort to revitalize the show and the network itself, which has previously been a much more prominent force in American culture.

Another rapper, Ludacris, celebrated his 30th birthday at the Rio Hotel in Vegas this Friday. Celebrities such as Quincy Jones and Gabrielle Union attended his dinner, where video screens showed some of Luda's favorite movies (including Scarface and Friday), as well as his own movie, Crash.