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A visual history · Emmys

The winners who defined Variety Special.

40 ceremonies on record, 1966–2017. 34 different winners. The longest run belongs to The Kennedy Center Honors, with 5 straight wins.

Who won most recently?
Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special 2017 in 2017.
Who has won the most?
The Kennedy Center Honors, 7 wins (1994, 1996, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013).
  1. Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special 2017CBS
  2. The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Primetime SpecialCBS
  3. Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary SpecialNBC
  4. AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Mel BrooksTNT
  5. The Kennedy Center HonorsCBS
  6. The Kennedy Center HonorsCBS
Years explored
1966–2017
Different winners
34
Category leader
The Kennedy Center Honors · 7
About this record

Outstanding Variety Special was first awarded in 1966, so it does not run the full 1951–2025 window.

It was awarded for the last time in 2017.

It was previously known as Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special.

For 2018 it was restructured into Outstanding Variety Special (Live) and Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded).

We are still missing 12 years in that window, so treat the totals below as what is on record rather than the complete history.

From 2018 the Emmys awarded Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) instead.

2000–2017

18 ceremonies

19662017

01 / The reigns

The Kennedy Center Honors set the longest run.

The timeline turns the 2000–2017 record into a sequence of reigns. Longer bands reveal sustained runs; color shows the credited network.

  1. 01
    The Kennedy Center Honors5 wins
Each band is one winner’s reign. Wider means a longer run. Colored by network; hover for details.
Saturday Night Live: The 25th Anniversary Special'00
Cirque du Soleil's Dralion'01
America: A Tribute to Heroes'02
Cher: The Farewell Tour'03
Elaine Stritch at Liberty'04
The 58th Annual Tony Awards'05
The XX Olympic Winter Games - Opening Ceremony'06
Tony Bennett: An American Classic'07
Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project'08
The Kennedy Center Honors'09–'13×5
AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Mel Brooks'14
Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special'15
The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special'16
Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special 2017'17

02 / The power map

Who stood behind the winners?

CBS leads the recorded network credits with 8 wins, 2000–2017. The full distribution shows whether power was concentrated or shared.

CBS8 wins
NBC5 wins
HBO2 wins
Bravo1 win
Syndicated1 win
TNT1 win
Wins by network
  1. CBS844%
  2. NBC528%
  3. HBO211%
  4. Bravo16%
  5. Syndicated16%
  6. TNT16%

03 / The near misses

The names that kept coming back without the ending they wanted.

Counting nominations in this category only, 2000–2017.

Most losses in this category

  1. 01
    The Kennedy Center Honors
    5L · 5W

04 / The archive

Every year.
Every winner.

The complete reference behind the story, showing 2000–2017. Open any year to see the rest of the field when nominee records are available.

YearWinnerNetwork
2017Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special 2017
beat 4 others
  • Full Frontal with Samantha Bee Presents Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner
  • Louis C.K. 2017
  • Sarah Silverman: A Speck of Dust
  • Stephen Colbert's Live Election Night Democracy's Series Finale: Who's Going to Clean Up This Sh*t?
CBS
2016The Late Late Show Carpool Karaoke Primetime Special
beat 4 others
  • Adele: Live in New York City
  • Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo
  • The Kennedy Center Honors
  • Lemonade
CBS
2015Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special
beat 5 others
  • Bill Maher: Live from D.C.
  • The Kennedy Center Honors
  • Louis C.K.: Live at the Comedy Store
  • Mel Brooks: Live at the Geffen
  • Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek Live!
NBC
2014AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Mel Brooks
beat 5 others
  • Billy Crystal: 700 Sundays
  • Best of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Primetime Special
  • The Kennedy Center Honors
  • The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to The Beatles
  • Sarah Silverman: We Are Miracles
TNT
2013The Kennedy Center Honorsrepeat
beat 4 others
  • Louis C.K.: Oh My God
  • Mel Brooks Strikes Back! with Mel Brooks and Alan Yentob
  • Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday (Part One)
  • 12-12-12: The Concert for Sandy Relief
CBS
2012The Kennedy Center Honorsrepeat
beat 4 others
  • Betty White's 90th Birthday: A Tribute to America's Golden Girl
  • Kathy Griffin: Tired Hooker
  • Mel Brooks and Dick Cavett Together Again
  • Tony Bennett: Duets II (Great Performances)
CBS
2011The Kennedy Center Honorsrepeat
beat 4 others
  • Bette Midler: The Showgirl Must Go On
  • Carrie Fisher in Wishful Drinking
  • Lady Gaga Presents the Monster Ball Tour: At Madison Square Garden
  • The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway
CBS
2010The Kennedy Center Honorsrepeat
beat 5 others
  • Bill Maher... But I'm Not Wrong
  • Hope for Haiti Now
  • Robin Williams: Weapons of Self Destruction
  • The 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert
  • Wanda Sykes: I'ma Be Me
CBS
2009The Kennedy Center Honors
beat 4 others
  • Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger
  • Kathy Griffin: She'll Cut a Bitch
  • Ricky Gervais: Out of England - The Stand-Up Special
  • Will Ferrell: You're Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush
CBS
2008Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project
beat 5 others
  • Bill Maher: The Decider
  • George Carlin: It's Bad for Ya!
  • James Taylor: One Man Band (Great Performances)
  • Kathy Griffin: Straight to Hell
  • The Kennedy Center Honors
HBO
2007Tony Bennett: An American Classic
beat 5 others
  • The Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner
  • The Kennedy Center Honors
  • Lewis Black: Red, White and Screwed
  • A Tribute to James Taylor (Great Performances)
  • Wanda Sykes: Sick and Tired
NBC
2006The XX Olympic Winter Games - Opening Ceremony
beat 4 others
  • The 78th Annual Academy Awards
  • Bill Maher: I'm Swiss
  • George Carlin: Life Is Worth Losing
  • McCartney in St. Petersburg
NBC
2005The 58th Annual Tony Awardsunverified
beat 4 others
  • The 77th Annual Academy Awards
  • Dave Chappelle: For What It's Worth
  • Everybody Loves Raymond: The Laugh Laugh
  • The Games of the XXVIII Olympiad - Opening Ceremony
CBS
2004Elaine Stritch at Liberty
beat 4 others
  • A&E In Concert: Paul McCartney in Red Square
  • The 76th Annual Academy Awards
  • Chris Rock: Never Scared
  • Ellen DeGeneres: Here and Now
HBO
2003Cher: The Farewell Tour
beat 4 others
  • The 75th Annual Academy Awards
  • Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band: Live in Barcelona
  • Robin Williams: Live on Broadway
  • Rolling Stones - Licks World Tour, Live from Madison Square Garden
NBC
2002America: A Tribute to Heroes
beat 5 others
  • The 74th Annual Academy Awards
  • Carol Burnett: Show Stoppers
  • Cirque du Soleil's Alegria
  • The Concert for New York City
  • Opening Ceremony: Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games
Syndicated
2001Cirque du Soleil's Dralion
beat 4 others
  • The 73rd Annual Academy Awards
  • Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Live in New York City
  • Ellen DeGeneres: The Beginning
  • Saturday Night Live: Presidential Bash 2000
Bravo
2000Saturday Night Live: The 25th Anniversary Special
beat 4 others
  • The 72nd Annual Academy Awards
  • Chris Rock: Bigger & Blacker
  • Cirque du Soleil: Quidam
  • Eddie Izzard: Dress to Kill
NBC