Rodney Ho, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LOS ANGELES – Donald Glover took home two Emmys on Sunday night: one for best comedic actor and one for directing in a comedic series for his FX series, “Atlanta.”
The latter Emmy was groundbreaking: He is the first black director to ever win in that category.
The episode he directed that won the Emmy featured Paper Boi on a Charlie Rose-type talk show. It was a “show within a show” with fake ads inserted, as well.
Glover, at the dais after winning best comedic actor, joked that President Donald Trump should take credit in his win for helping make black people “No. 1 on the most oppressed list.”
RELATED: Jaws dropped when Stephen Colbert invited a special guest to the Emmys stage
The last black actor to win an Emmy in that category was Robert Guillaume in 1985 for “Benson.”
The second season of “Atlanta” is in pre-production and should return in 2018. The series debuted last year. The reason there are no new episodes in 2017 is Glover’s busy schedule, which includes starring as Lando Calrissian in the “Star Wars” Han Solo project.
“Atlanta” did not win best comedic series. That went to HBO’s “Veep” for the third year in a row. And Glover lost in writing to Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe for Netflix’s “Master of None.”
Also, Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” also shot in Atlanta, didn’t win best drama. Hulu’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale” took home the prize in a competitive field that also included Netflix’s “The Crown” and HBO’s “Westworld.”
