There were clean sweeps and inspiring moments, as Jon Stewart's The Daily Show, HBO's Olive Kitteridge and Amazon's Transparent walked away the big winners at the 67th annual primetime Emmy Awards.
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The night's biggest award, outstanding drama, however, went to Game of Thrones, a surprise win given the reticence Emmy voters have shown in the past
The comedian Andy Samberg, who stars in the television comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine, played master of ceremonies, but kept the banter light, quick and very, very musical.
Only one Australian was in contention in one of the major categories, Ben Mendelsohn, who was nominated in the outstanding supporting actor in a drama category, for his work on the Netflix drama Bloodline. He lost to Peter Dinklage from Game of Thrones for genre shows. It caps off a stunning year of storytelling for the show.
Mad Men star Jon Hamm took out the award for outstanding actor in a drama, beating a tight field including Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul), Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan) and Kevin Spacey (House of Cards).
There was so much anticipation around his nomination, and that this was the last possible year he would win for the role, that he was rewarded with an immediate standing ovation.
Viola Davis won the Emmy for outstanding actress in a drama, for her work on How To Get Away With Murder. She beat out an astonishingly tight race: Claire Danes (Homeland), Taraji P. Henson (Empire), Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black), Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) and Robin Wright (House of Cards)
Davis is the first African American woman in Emmy history to win in the leading actress category.
"The only thing that separates women of colour from anyone else is opportunity," Davis said, in an emotional acceptance speech. "You can not win an Emmy for roles that are not there."
The political satire Veep won outstanding comedy series, beating a field which included Modern Family, Transparent and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Veep's star, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, also won outstanding actress in a comedy.
Transparent star Jeffrey Tambor won outstanding actor in a comedy. The win was significant because Tambor is playing one of the few transgender characters on television, and will be seen my many as part of a larger turning point in the issue of transgender visibility.
The highly anticipated "in memoriam" segment honoured a raft of legends who lost their lives in the past year, including Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy, Australian actor Rod Taylor, 60s sitcom star Donna Douglas and veteran producer Glen A. Larson.
Television miniseries queen Jackie Collins, who died the day before the telecast, was not included in the segment, presumably because there was little time to edit the package prior to broadcast.
Each winner takes home an Emmy statue, designed to represent the muse of art upholding the electron of science - a bow to the organising body, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences - which weighs in at roughly 3kg of copper, nickel, silver and gold.
The event was held at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles.
The telecast's presenters included talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, Ray Donovan star Liev Schreiber, actors Jamie Lee Curtis, Rob Lowe and Gina Rodriguez, and Empire's Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson.
The events caps of a week of hard partying in Los Angeles, culminating with four Emmy-eve parties.
Among the key pre-event tickets were the official Academy of Television Arts and Sciences nominees reception at the Pacific Design Center (guest list: Bryan Cranston, Tony Hale, Armando Iannucci) and a Showtime channel party at the Sunset Tower Hotel (guest list: Liev Schreiber, Claire Danes, William H. Macy).
The two other hot pre-Emmy tickets were the NBC party at the trendy restaurant Boa (guest list: Eva Longoria, America Ferrera, Amy Poehler) and the annual BAFTA afternoon "tea party" at the SLS Hotel (guest list: Adrian Brody, Julian Fellowes, Jonathan Banks).
There are no less than seven official after parties, including the event's main official after party, the Governors Ball, which is held in the LA Convention Centre immediately following the telecast. The theme for the party is "reigning with radiance", with 27-foot tall chandeliers accentuating the note.
The three course menu comprised a wildflower honey poached forelle pear salad, a filet of beef tenderloin with herb-scented potato terrine and a chocholate brownie with zephyr popcorn chantilly.
The other parties include Fox (at Vibiana, in downtown LA), AMC (at the restaurant Boa), Amazon (on the rooftop of The Standardin downtown LA) and Comedy Central (at the nightclub Boulevard3).
The night's hottest tickets are the HBO after-party at the Pacific Design Centre and the Netflix party at Hollywood's iconic Chateau Marmont.
Earlier on Monday
The Emmys will be held in the 7,100-seat Microsoft Theatre, formerly known as the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live.
Fairfax's entertainment guru Michael Idato is there. Follow his live coverage here
