Burton Nabs Daytime Emmy Nods

LeVar Burton (Geordi La Forge) yesterday received two nominations for the 30th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards for his PBS children's series, Reading Rainbow, which he has hosted since its inception 20 years ago.

Burton was recognised in the category of Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series, according to the Daytime Emmys web site. To take home the gong, which he won in 2001 and 2002, the actor will have to beat off competition from Noel McNeal (Bear in the Big Blue House), Shia Labeouf and Donna Pescow from Even Stevens and Kevin Clash, who plays Elmo on Sesame Street.

Reading Rainbow was also nominated for Outstanding Children's Series, with Burton picking up his second nod in his role as the show's executive producer. The competition includes the Discovery Channel's Assignment Discovery, Disney's Even Stevens, and fellow PBS series Between the Lions and Zoom.

The series scored seven nominations overall, including Outstanding Achievement in Single Camera Editing and Outstanding Directing in a Children's Series. Perennial favourite Sesame Street led the children's categories with 13 nods, while Bear in the Big Blue House and Clifford the Big Red Dog both nabbed four nominations.

While Burton will have to wait a few months to see if he'll be walking away with two more Daytime Emmys, the actor's mantelpiece has already become a little bit more crowded in the past week. On Saturday night Burton picked up the award for Outstanding Performance in a Children's Series or Special at the 34th Annual NAACP Image Awards, Zap2it reported.

This was Burton's fourth Image win for his role as host of Reading Rainbow, having previously taken home the gong in 2002, 1999 and 1995. Bestowed by the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, the Image Awards seek to recognise positive portrayals of African-Americans in the media.

The 34th Annual NAACP Image Awards will air tonight at 8:00 p.m. on the Fox network; further information is available at Zap2it. The Daytime Emmys will be awarded during a live broadcast on ABC at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, May 16. A full list of nominations can be found at this page.

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