Kathy Griffin,
who shook up an Emmy ceremony last year with her rowdy
acceptance speech, is bringing her act to this year's
prime-time awards show.
Griffin and Don
Rickles, a comedian who's legendary for his combative
style, will team up as presenters at the September 21
ceremony airing on ABC, the TV academy says.
"As we near the
telecast, there will be more sets of presenters that
will surprise almost everyone," executive producer Ken
Ehrlich said in a statement
Kristin Chenoweth
and Neil Patrick Harris, who helped announce the Emmy
nominations in July, will join again to present an award,
the academy said Thursday.
Conan O'Brien of
NBC's Late Night, Christian Slater (NBC's
upcoming My Own Worst Enemy), and Kate Walsh
(ABC's Private Practice) also were included in
the third set of presenters selected for the ceremony.
Broadway star
Chenoweth is a nominee for ABC's Pushing Daisies,
while Harris received a nod for CBS's How I Met
Your Mother. Rickles earned a nomination for
HBO's Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project.
Griffin received
a nod for Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-list
and another for the special Kathy Griffin: Straight to
Hell, both on Bravo.
Last year Griffin
joked about Jesus while accepting an Emmy Award for My
Life on the D-list at the creative arts
ceremony that precedes the main broadcast show. Reports of
her remarks provoked criticism from some Christian
groups.
This year's
creative arts ceremony will be held September 13 and air on
E! as a two-hour special on September 20.
Previously
announced presenters for ABC's Emmy show include the stars
of Desperate Housewives, Tina Fey, and Amy
Poehler. (AP)
