The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series is an annual award presented as part of the

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

s. It recognizes writing excellence in regular comedic series, most of which can generally be described as situation comedies.In 1969 and 1970, the nominees for the comedy writing award were variety programs. It was first presented in 1955 as Outstanding Written Comedy Material.

Winners and nominations

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Total awards by network

* CBS – 22 * NBC – 19 * ABC – 8 * Fox – 5 * FX – 2 * HBO – 2 * HBO Max — 2 * Netflix – 2 * Prime Video – 2 * Pop TV – 1

Individuals with multiple awards

;3 awards *

Allan Burns Allan Pennington Burns (May 18, 1935January 30, 2021) was an American screenwriter and television producer. He was best known for co-creating and writing for the television sitcoms ''The Munsters'' and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show''. Early life ...

* Nat Hiken * Coleman Jacoby *

Carl Reiner Carl Reiner (March 20, 1922 – June 29, 2020) was an American actor, author, comedian, director and screenwriter whose career spanned seven decades. He was the List of awards and nominations received by Carl Reiner, recipient of many awards and ...

* Arnold Rosen * Tony Webster * Ed. Weinberger ;2 awards * David Angell * Lucia Aniello * Aziz Ansari * George Balzer * James L. Brooks * Louis C.K. * Stan Daniels * Sam Denoff * Paul W. Downs *

Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (; born May 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. Known for her comedic roles in sketch comedy, television and film, Fey has received List of awards and nominations received by Tina Fe ...

* Anne Flett-Giordano * Billy Friedberg * Hal Goldman * Al Gordon * Mitchell Hurwitz * Michael Leeson * Steven Levitan * Christopher Lloyd * David Lloyd * Sam Perrin * Bill Persky * Chuck Ranberg * Terry Ryan * Jen Statsky * Leonard Stern

Individuals with multiple nominations

;9 nominations * David Lloyd ;8 nominations * Alec Berg ;7 nominations * George Balzer *

Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He is known for his dry wit, portrayals of awkward social situations, and brutally honest takes on everyday life. He has received two Prim ...

* Larry Gelbart * Hal Goldman * Al Gordon * Sam Perrin * Garry Shandling ;6 nominations * Glen Charles * Les Charles * Nat Hiken * Arnie Rosen * Peter Tolan ;5 nominations *

* Louis C.K. * David Crane * David Isaacs * Coleman Jacoby * Joe Keenan * Ken Levine * Mel Tolkin * Tony Webster ;4 nominations *

Alan Alda Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner and a three-time Tony Award nominee, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pier ...

* Gary Belkin * James L. Brooks *

Mel Brooks Melvin James Brooks (né Kaminsky; born June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and songwriter. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodie ...

* Jack Burditt * Robert Carlock *

Greg Daniels Gregory Martin Daniels (born June 13, 1963) is an American screenwriter, television producer, and director. He has worked on several television series, including writing for ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The Simpsons'', adapting '' The Office'' ...

Diane English Diane English (born May 18, 1948) is an American screenwriter, producer and director. She is best known for creating the television show ''Murphy Brown'' which won multiple awards, including 18 Primetime Emmy Awards from 62 nominations. She also ...

Bill Hader William Thomas Hader Jr.''Finding Your Roots'', January 26, 2016, PBS. (born June 7, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and director. He was a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 20 ...

* Sheldon Keller *

Michael Patrick King Michael Patrick King (born September 14, 1954) is an American director, writer, and producer. He is best known for directing and writing for ''Sex and the City'', '' And Just Like That...'' and its film adaptations, and for co-creating the tele ...

* Jeffrey Klarik * Michael Leeson * Steven Levitan * Christopher Lloyd * David Panich *

* Bob Schiller * Michael Schur *

Jay Tarses Michael Jay Tarses (born July 3, 1939) is an American screenwriter, producer and actor. He created and produced ''The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd'' and ''The Slap Maxwell Story'', co-created Buffalo Bill (TV series), ''Buffalo Bill'' (with To ...

* Ed. Weinberger * Bob Weiskopf ;3 nominations * Lucia Aniello *

Danny Arnold Danny Arnold (born Arnold Rothmann; January 23, 1925 – August 19, 1995) was an American producer, writer, comedian, actor and director known for producing '' Barney Miller'', '' That Girl'', and '' Bewitched''. Early life Born in New York C ...

* Jim Carlson * Bob Carroll, Jr. * Peter Casey * Stan Daniels * Sam Denoff * Jack Douglas * Paul W. Downs *

Buck Henry Buck Henry (born Henry Zuckerman; December 9, 1930 – January 8, 2020) was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. Henry's contributions to film included his work as a co-writer for Mike Nichols's ''The Graduate'' (1967) for which he re ...

* Matt Hubbard * Brendan Hunt * Mitchell Hurwitz * Coslough Johnson *

Milt Josefsberg Milt Josefsberg (June 29, 1911 – December 14, 1987) was an American screenwriter. Career Milt Josefsberg's first big break came in 1938, when he was hired as writer on Bob Hope's radio program.Josefsberg, Milt: ''The Jack Benny Show'' (Arlin ...

* Joe Kelly *

Norman Lear Norman Milton Lear (July 27, 1922December 5, 2023) was an American screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear created and produced numerous popular 1970s sitcoms, including ''All in the Family'' (1 ...

* David Lee * Marc London *

David Mandel David Mandel (born ) is a writer, actor, director, and producer. He was an executive producer and showrunner of '' Veep'', and also an executive producer and director of ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' and ''Seinfeld''. He is also a comedian, and one ...

* Allan Manings * Thomas Meehan * Dave O'Brien * Bill Persky * Madelyn Pugh * Martin Ragaway * John Rappaport * Stefani Robinson * Roswell Rogers * Philip Rosenthal * Terry Ryan * Herbert Sargent * Paul Simms *

Red Skelton Richard Bernard Skelton (July 18, 1913September 17, 1997) was an American entertainer best known for his national old-time radio, radio and television shows between 1937 and 1971, especially as host of the television program ''The Red Skelto ...

* Jen Statsky * Leonard B. Stern * Jason Sudeikis ;2 nominations * David Angell * Aziz Ansari * Simon Blackwell * Linda Bloodworth-Thomason * James Bobin *

Quinta Brunson Quinta Brunson (; born December 21, 1989) is an American actress, comedian, writer, and producer. She is best known for creating, executive producing, and co-writing the ABC comedy series '' Abbott Elementary'' (2021–present), in which she s ...

* John Carsey * Tucker Cawley * Ernest Chambers * Larry Charles * Cindy Chupack * Jemaine Clement * Richard Day * Gary Dontzig * Robert Emmett * Maya Erskine * Ken Estin * Gene Farmer * Paul Feig * Anne Flett-Giordano *

Donald Glover Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his musical stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American actor, comedian, musician, and filmmaker. While he studied at New York University and after working in Derrick ...

* Maya Forbes * Gerald Gardner *

Ricky Gervais Ricky Dene Gervais ( ; born 25 June 1961) is an English comedian, actor, writer, television producer and filmmaker. He co-created, co-wrote, and acted in the British television sitcoms ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003) ...

* Everett Greenbaum * Jeff Greenstein * Alex Gregory *

Chris Hayward Christopher Robert Hayward (June 19, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American television writer and producer. He was the co-creator, with Allan Burns, of the television shows ''The Munsters'' (1964) and '' My Mother the Car'' (1965), and the ...

* Paul Henning * Don Hinkley * John Hoffman * Peter Huyck *

Armando Iannucci Armando Giovanni Iannucci (; born 28 November 1963) is a Scottish satirist, writer, director, producer and performer. Born in Glasgow to Italian parents, Iannucci studied at the University of Glasgow followed by the University of Oxford. St ...

* Hal Kanter * Chris Kelly * David E. Kelley * Paul Keyes *

Ernie Kovacs Ernest Edward Kovacs (January 23, 1919 – January 13, 1962) was an American comedian, actor, and writer. Kovacs's visually experimental and often spontaneous comedic style influenced numerous television comedy programs for years after his dea ...

* Jeremy Lloyd * John Markus * Mike Marmer * Bret McKenzie *

Stephen Merchant Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974) is an English comedian, writer, director, and actor. He was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series ''The Office (British TV series), The Office'' (2001–2003), and co-writer ...

Lorne Michaels Lorne Michaels (born Lorne David Lipowitz; November 17, 1944) is a Canadian and American television writer and film producer. He created and produced ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1980, 1985–present) and produced the ''Late Night (franchise) ...

* Jim Mulligan * Lorenzo Music *

Jess Oppenheimer Jessurun James Oppenheimer (November 11, 1913 – December 27, 1988) was an American radio and television writer, producer, and director. He was the producer and head writer of the CBS sitcom ''I Love Lucy''. Lucille Ball called Oppenheimer � ...

* Tom Patchett * Steven Peterman * Arthur Phillips *

Amy Poehler Amy Meredith Poehler ( ; born September 16, 1971) is an American actress and comedian. Known for her roles in sketch comedy, sitcoms and comedy films, she has earned acclaim and several accolades including a Primetime Emmy Award (out of 26 nom ...

Earl Pomerantz Earl Pomerantz (February 4, 1945 – March 7, 2020) was a Canadian-born screenwriter, who spent almost the entirety of his career working in U.S. television comedy. Career Pomerantz wrote a weekly column for the '' Toronto Telegram'' in the late ...

* Larry Rhine *

Tony Roche Anthony Dalton Roche Order of Australia, AO Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 17 May 1945) is an Australian former professional tennis player. A native of Tarcutta, Roche played junior tennis in the New South Wales regional city of Wagga ...

* Ray Romano * Julie Rottenberg * Mike Royce * Meredith Scardino * Sarah Schneider * Al Schwartz * Sherwood Schwartz * Phil Sharp * Tony Sheehan *

Amy Sherman-Palladino Amy Sherman-Palladino (born January 17, 1966) is an American television writer, Television director, director, and producer. She is the creator of the comedy drama series ''Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), ''Bunheads'' (2012–2013), and ''The Marv ...

* Rosie Shuster *

Larry Siegel Lawrence H. Siegel (October 29, 1925 – August 20, 2019) was an American comedy writer and satirist who wrote for television, stage, magazines, records, and books. He won three Emmys as Head Writer during four seasons of ''The Carol Burnett Show ...

* Ed Simmons *

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He received three ...

* Stephen Spears * Michael Stewart * Christopher Storer * Burt Styler * Saul Turteltaub * Jim Vallely * Jon Vitti * Hugh Wedlock Jr. * Michael J. Weithorn * Hugh Wilson * Harry Winkler * Elisa Zuritsky * Alan Zweibel

Programs with multiple awards

;5 awards * ''

The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from September 19, 1970 ...

'' (CBS) (4 consecutive) ;4 awards * '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (CBS) (3 consecutive) * ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey (screenwriter), Peter Casey, and David Lee (scr ...

'' (NBC) (3 consecutive) ;3 awards * ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...

'' (NBC) (2 consecutive) * ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American sitcoms in the United States, sitcom television series that aired on CBS for nine seasons from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979, with a total of 205 episodes. It was later produced as ''Archie Bunker's Pla ...

'' (CBS) (2 consecutive) * '' The Phil Silvers Show'' (CBS) (consecutive) ;2 awards * ''

Arrested Development ''Arrested Development'' is an American satire, satirical television sitcom created by Mitchell Hurwitz. It follows the Bluths, a formerly wealthy, dysfunctional family and is presented in a Serial (radio and television), serialized format, inco ...

'' (Fox) (consecutive) * ''

Cheers ''Cheers'' is an American television sitcom, created by Glen and Les Charles, Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows, that aired on NBC for eleven seasons from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/C ...

'' (NBC) (consecutive) * '' Hacks'' (HBO Max) * '' The Jack Benny Show'' (CBS) (consecutive) * '' Louie'' (FX) * ''

Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons consisting of 151 episodes. The ...

'' (Fox) (consecutive) * ''

Master of None ''Master of None'' is an American comedy drama television series, which was released for streaming on November 6, 2015, on Netflix. The series was created by Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, with the first two seasons starring Ansari in the lead rol ...

'' (Netflix) (consecutive) * '' Modern Family'' (ABC) (consecutive) * ''

Murphy Brown ''Murphy Brown'' is an American television sitcom created by Diane English that premiered on November 14, 1988, on CBS. The series stars Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news presenter, news anch ...

'' (CBS) * ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It ...

'' (NBC) (consecutive) * ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

'' (ABC) (consecutive)

Programs with multiple nominations

;13 nominations * ''

'' (NBC) * ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. Created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein, the show ran for six seasons and List of The Larry Sanders Show episodes, ...

'' (HBO) ;12 nominations * '' M*A*S*H'' (CBS) ;11 nominations * ''

'' (NBC) ;10 nominations * ''

'' (CBS) ;9 nominations * ''

'' (NBC) * ''

'' (CBS) ;8 nominations * ''

'' (ABC/NBC) ;7 nominations * '' The Jack Benny Show'' (CBS) * ''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

'' (NBC) * ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO, based on Sex and the City (newspaper column), the newspaper column and 1996 book by Candace Bushnell. It premiered in th ...

'' (HBO) * ''

Veep ''Veep'' is an American political satire comedy television series that aired on HBO from April 22, 2012, to May 12, 2019. The series was created by Armando Iannucci. The series follows Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the fictional Vice Pres ...

'' (HBO) ;6 nominations * '' Barry'' (HBO) * '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (CBS) * ''

Everybody Loves Raymond ''Everybody Loves Raymond'' is an American television sitcom created by Philip Rosenthal that aired on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005, with a total of 210 episodes spanning nine seasons. It was produced by Where's Lunch and Wor ...

'' (CBS) * ''

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

'' (HBO) * '' What We Do in the Shadows'' (FX) * '' The Wonder Years'' (ABC) ;5 nominations * ''

'' (Fox) * '' Louie'' (FX) ;4 nominations * ''

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

'' (FX) * ''

Barney Miller ''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th Street in Greenwich Village (Lower Manhattan). The series was broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from Janu ...

'' (ABC) * ''

The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom created by (along with Ed. Weinberger and Michael J. Leeson) and starring Bill Cosby that originally aired on NBC from September 20, 1984, to April 30, 1992, with a total of 201 half-hour e ...

'' (NBC) * ''

Episodes Episodes may refer to: * Episode, a part of a dramatic work * Episodes (TV series), ''Episodes'' (TV series), a British/American television sitcom which premiered in 2011 * Episodes (journal), ''Episodes'' (journal), a geological science journal ...

'' (Showtime) * '' The Phil Silvers Show'' (CBS) * ''

Ted Lasso ''Ted Lasso'' ( ) is an American sports film, sports comedy-drama television series developed by Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence (TV producer), Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt, and Joe Kelly. It is based on a character Sudeikis portrayed in a series ...

'' (Apple TV+) ;3 nominations * '' Buffalo Bill'' (NBC) * '' Caesar's Hour'' (NBC) * ''

Father Knows Best ''Father Knows Best'' is an American sitcom starring Robert Young (actor), Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray (actor), Billy Gray and Lauren Chapin. The series, which began on radio in 1949, aired as a television show for six ...

'' (NBC/CBS) * ''

The Golden Girls ''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. The show's ensemble cast stars Beatrice Arthur, Betty ...

'' (NBC) * '' Hacks'' (HBO Max) * ''

The Red Skelton Show ''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his tele ...

'' (CBS) * ''

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for six seasons from January 22, 1968, to July 23, 1973, on the NBC television network. The show, hosted by comed ...

'' (NBC) ;2 nominations * '' Abbott Elementary'' (ABC) * ''

Ally McBeal ''Ally McBeal'' is an American legal comedy-drama television series created by David E. Kelley that originally aired on Fox from September 8, 1997, to May 20, 2002. It revolves around Calista Flockhart in the title role as a lawyer working ...

'' (Fox) * '' The Associates'' (ABC) * '' The Bear'' (FX) * ''

The Bernie Mac Show ''The Bernie Mac Show'' (often shortened to ''Bernie Mac'' in syndication) is an American sitcom television series created by Larry Wilmore, that aired on Fox for five seasons from November 14, 2001, to April 14, 2006. The series featured Ber ...

'' (Fox) * ''

Car 54, Where Are You? ''Car 54, Where Are You?'' is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 1961 to April 1963. Filmed in black and white, the series starred Joe E. Ross as Gunther Toody and Fred Gwynne as Francis Muldoon, two mismatched New York City Po ...

'' (NBC) * '' The Danny Thomas Show'' (ABC/CBS) (originally known as ''Make Room for Daddy'') * '' The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd'' (NBC/Lifetime) * '' Ellen'' (ABC) * '' Extras'' (HBO) * '' Family Ties'' (NBC) * '' Flight of the Conchords'' (HBO) * ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near ...

'' (NBC) * ''

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...

'' (NBC) * ''The George Gobel Show'' (NBC) * ''

Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the Spy fiction, secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Bu ...

'' (NBC) * '' Girls5eva'' (Peacock / Netflix) * '' The Good Place'' (NBC) * '' He & She'' (CBS) * ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...

'' (CBS) * '' It's Garry Shandling's Show'' (Showtime) * ''

'' (Fox) * ''

'' (Netflix) * '' Modern Family'' (ABC) * ''

Newhart ''Newhart'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, respe ...

'' (CBS) * '' Only Murders in the Building'' (Hulu) * '' The Other Two'' (Max) * '' Parks and Recreation'' (NBC) * '' PEN15'' (Hulu) * '' Russian Doll'' (Netflix) * ''

Schitt's Creek ''Schitt's Creek'' (stylized as ''Schitt$ Creek'') is a Canadian television sitcom created by Dan Levy (Canadian actor), Dan Levy and his father, Eugene Levy, that aired on CBC Television from 2015 to 2020. It consists of 80 episodes spread ove ...

'' (Pop TV) * ''

That Was the Week That Was ''That Was the Week That Was'', informally ''TWTWTW'' or ''TW3'', is a satirical television comedy programme that aired on BBC Television in 1962 and 1963. It was devised, produced, and directed by Ned Sherrin and Jack (aka John) Duncan, and pr ...

'' (NBC)

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Primetime Emmy Award For Outstanding Writing - Comedy Series Writing, comedy Screenwriting awards for television

Winners and nominations

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Total awards by network

Individuals with multiple awards

Individuals with multiple nominations

Programs with multiple awards

Programs with multiple nominations

See also

Notes

References