The Emmys Go Gay

Nominees for the 2012 Primetime Emmy Awards were announced today and, despite being mostly business as usual, there were a few surprises thrown in. Reigning Best Comedy winner Modern Family was the most recognized sitcom, scoring recognition in Best Comedy category and a nomination for Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Late-bloomer The Big Bang Theory was also nominated for Best Comedy, as was its leading man (and recently fully out actor) Jim Parsons.

Lena Dunham's polarizing HBO series Girls was also nominated for three Emmys, including Best Comedy and Best Lead Actress.

Dan Savage also scored a nomination in the Children's Nonfiction, Reality or Reality-Competition Program for his MTV special "It Gets Better".

Another Emmy favorites this year wasDownton Abbey, which received 16 nominations, including ones in the Best Drama and Best Lead Actress (Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary) categories. However, it'll face stiff competition from this year's most nominated television series, critic and fan favorite Mad Men, which scooped up 17 in total.

Winners of the coveted television accolades will be announced on September 23 in Los Angeles, where the awards show hosted by late night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel.

See a full list of nominees below:

DRAMA SERIES
"Boardwalk Empire" (HBO)
"Breaking Bad" (AMC)
"Homeland" (Showtime)
"Downton Abbey (Masterpiece)" (PBS)
"Game Of Thrones" (HBO)
"Mad Men" (AMC)

ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Steve Buscemi, "Boardwalk Empire" (HBO)
Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad" (AMC)
Michael C. Hall, "Dexter" (Showtime)
Damien Lewis, "Homeland" (Showtime)
Jon Hamm, "Mad Men" (AMC)
Hugh Bonneville, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)

ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Glenn Close, "Damages" (DirecTV)
Michelle Dockery, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
Claire Danes, "Homeland" (Showtime)
Julianna Margulies, "The Good Wife" (CBS)
Kathy Bates, "Harry's Law" (NBC)
Elisabeth Moss, "Mad Men" (AMC)

COMEDY SERIES
"Curb Your Enthusiasm" (HBO)
"The Big Bang Theory" (CBS)
"Girls" (HBO)
"Modern Family" (ABC)
"30 Rock" (NBC)
"Veep" (HBO)

ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Lena Dunham, "Girls" (HBO)
Melissa McCarthy, "Mike & Molly" (CBS)
Zooey Deschanel, "New Girl" (Fox)
Edie Falco, "Nurse Jackie" (Showtime)
Amy Poehler, "Parks and Recreation" (NBC)
Tina Fey, "30 Rock" (NBC)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, "Veep" (HBO)

ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jon Cryer, "Two and A Half Men" (CBS)
Jim Parsons, "The Big Bang Theory" (CBS)
Larry David, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (HBO)
Louis C.K., "Louie" (FX)
Don Cheadle, "House of Lies" (Showtime)
Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock" (NBC)

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Ed O'Neill, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Eric Stonestreet, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Ty Burrell, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Bill Hader, "Saturday Night Live" (NBC)
Max Greenfield, "New Girl" (Fox)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Mayim Bialik, "The Big Bang Theory" (CBS)
Merritt Wever, "Nurse Jackie" (Showtime)
Julie Bowen, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Sofia Vergara, "Modern Family" (ABC)
Kristen Wiig, "Saturday Night Live" (NBC)
Kathryn Joosten, "Desperate Housewives" (ABC)

SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Giancarlo Esposito, "Breaking Bad" (AMC)
Aaron Paul, "Breaking Bad" (AMC)
Peter Dinklage, "Game Of Thrones" (HBO)
Jim Carter, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
Jared Harris, "Mad Men" (AMC)
Brendan Coyle, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Archie Panjabi, "The Good Wife" (CBS)
Anna Gunn, "Breaking Bad" (AMC)
Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
Joanne Froggatt, "Downton Abbey" (PBS)
Christina Hendricks, "Mad Men" (AMC)
Christine Baranski, "The Good Wife" (CBS)

MINI-SERIES OR MOVIE
"Game Change" (HBO)
"American Horror Story" (FX Networks)
"Hemingway & Gellhorn" (HBO)
"Sherlock" (PBS)
"Luther" (BBC America)
"Hatfields & McCoys" (History)

LEAD ACTRESS IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOVIE
Julianne Moore, "Game Change" (HBO)
Connie Britton, "American Horror Story" (FX Networks)
Nicole Kidman, "Hemingway & Gellhorn" (HBO)
Emma Thompson, "The Song of Lunch" (Masterpiece)
Ashley Judd, "Missing" (ABC)

LEAD ACTOR IN A MINI-SERIES OR MOVIE
Woody Harrelson, "Game Change" (HBO)
Clive Owen, "Hemingway & Gilhorn" (HBO)
Benedict Cumberbatch, "Sherlock Holmes" (Masterpiece)
Idris Elba, "Luther" (BBC America)
Kevin Costner, "Hatfields & McCoys" (History)
Bill Paxton, "Hatfields & McCoys" (History)

VARIETY SERIES
"The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" (Comedy Central)
"The Colbert Report" (Comedy Central)
"Real Time With Bill Maher" (HBO)
"Saturday Night Live" (NBC)
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" (ABC)
"Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" (NBC)

REALITY COMPETITION
"So You Think You Can Dance" (FOX)
"The Amazing Race" (CBS)
"Dancing With the Stars" (ABC)
"Top Chef" (Bravo)
"Project Runway" (Lifetime)
"The Voice" (NBC)

REALITY COMPETITION HOST
Cat Deeley, "So You Think You Can Dance" (FOX)
Phil Keoghan, "The Amazing Race" (CBS)
Ryan Seacrest, "American Idol" (FOX)
Betty White, "Betty White's Off Their Rocker" (NBC)
Tom Bergeron, "Dancing With the Stars" (ABC)