We’re nearly a month away from the 85th Academy Awards, and Oscar prognosticators now turn their attention to the various guild awards ceremonies that will be taking place over the next couple of weeks.  The guilds are a major bellwether for Oscar since the crossover between guild voters and Oscar voters is significant, and the Producers Guild Awards were handed out last night, making this already wide open race even more interesting.  Argo won the top prize at the ceremony, positioning the film as a serious Best Picture contender despite Ben Affleck’s lack of a Best Director nomination.  Hit the jump for the full list of winners and what this means for Argo’s Oscar chances.

Just the other day we mentioned that producer/director Shawn Levy (Real Steel) had added another project to his plate; it looks like he’ll be doubling that order with the addition of a Sesame Street feature.  20th Century Fox recently picked up the rights to the long-running educational kids program for Levy to produce through his 21 Laps banner.  Since it’s debut in 1969, Sesame Street has hauled in 138 Emmys.  More importantly, it’s created iconic and educational characters like Big Bird, Bert and Ernie and Oscar the Grouch, who are recognized all around the world by children of all ages.  But this won’t be the first time for Big Bird to be on the big screen.  Hit the jump for more on the Sesame Street feature film. 

Yesterday we brought you the Critics’ Choice Award nominees.  Tonight belongs to the Television Critics Association.  Homeland tops the list with 4 nominations.  While it got the extra boost over established veterans in the Outstanding New Program category, the taut thriller earned its spots in Best Drama and Program of the Year as well as the nod to Claire Danes for her stellar performance.  The critics understandably still love Breaking Bad and Bryan Cranston, Mad Men and Jon Hamm, Louie and Louis C.K., Game of Thrones and Peter Dinklage, Parks and Recreation and Amy Poehler.  Creator/star Lena Dunham is the freshest face in the bunch, representing in both Individual Achievement in Comedy and Outstanding New Program with Girls.  But as always, there are a few head-scratchers.  Jessica Lange for American Horror Story is a legacy vote, and while her scenery-chewing was very entertaining—for Individual Achievement in Drama?  No.  And Smash somehow sneaked into Outstanding New Program rather than, say, Veep or Awake.

Still, the TCA always gets more right than they do wrong, especially with their neat Heritage Award.  (This year’s eclectic contenders are Cheers, Lost, Saturday Night Live, Star Trek, and Twin Peaks.)  Read the full list after the jump.

The Artist has yet again taken home a major Oscar precursor award. The black-and-white silent film was recognized for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Pictures at the 23rd Annual Producers Guild Awards last night. This is yet another notch in the column that points to a very big night for The Artist at the upcoming 84th Academy Awards. In a slight surprise, The Adventures of Tintin was the winner among animated films, besting critical favorite Rango. On the television side of things, Boardwalk Empire won for excellence in dramatic series (beating out fare like Mad Men and Game of Thrones), Modern Family was the winner for the comedies, and the fantastically addictive Downton Abbey won in the movies of the week/mini-series category.

Hit the jump to see the full list of winners.

Elmo is an international icon, but few people know the inspiring story of his creator, Kevin Clash. The documentary Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey, opening on October 21^st in theaters and then premiering on PBS in Spring 2012, tells the story of someone who displayed his creativity and talent from a young age. Dreaming of working with his idol, master puppeteer Jim Henson, he ultimately found a home on Sesame Street, where he has been making children and their families happy, ever since. Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, the film includes rare archival footage, a behind-the-scenes look at Sesame Street and the Jim Henson Workshop, and a showcase of just how much those lovable characters mean to people of all ages, all over the world.

During this exclusive interview with Collider, puppeteer Kevin Clash talked about how the documentary came about, that the dream of being on Sesame Street started when he was nine years old, how honored he was to work alongside Jim Henson and continue his legacy, how quickly the personality and voice for Elmo came to him, the responsibility of fulfilling a last wish for a sick child, and how fun it was to be a part of the return of the Muppets, voicing a character for the new feature film. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

The Television Critics Association honored the best in television tonight, and NBC’s Friday Night Lights was named Program of the Year for its fifth and final season. Though the show was never a ratings juggernaut, it has been beloved by critics throughout its tenure, and garnered a small but passionate fanbase. AMC’s Mad Men took home the Best Drama prize, while ABC’s Modern Family won Best Comedy at the 27^th annual awards show.

It warms my heart to report that Nick Offerman shared the Best Individual Achievement in Comedy award with Modern Family’s Ty Burrell for his genius portrayal of Ron Swanson on NBC’s stellar comedy Parks and Recreation. HBO didn’t go home empty handed, as their smash-hit Game of Thrones won Best New Series. Hit the jump for the full list of winners.

Sure it was pretty great to have Betty White snag an Emmy winning hosting gig on Saturday Night Live thanks to an online campaign, but that’s so last season. The new hotness comes straight from a place where the air is sweet, a little place called Sesame Street. The clever minds behind the long-running children’s program are trying to give Cookie Monster the opportunity of a lifetime by crafting an audition tape featuring the furry, blur glutton lampooning the staple sketch comedy series with the help of some cookie humor. The audition tape (which you can see in its entirety below) has quickly spawned an online campaign via Facebook for the favorite muppet character to actually host Saturday Night Live.

While the thought itself is ripe with opportunities, I’m not sure the Children’s Television Workshop would be too keen on one of their iconic characters appearing on a late night sketch show more accustomed to adult humor (although he did make an appearance on The Colbert Report in 2008). However, it would be great if something could be arranged to have a special primetime episode with Cookie Monster that the whole family can enjoy. In the meantime, enjoy Cookie Monster’s entertaining audition tape for SNL after the jump.

While most of us are focused on all the new and returning network shows this week, another show premieres in a few days: Sesame Street.  Yes, everyone’s favorite show when they were growing up returns for its 41st season on September 27th.

Of course no season of Sesame Street would be complete without the show making fun of pop culture, so they’ve created a parody of HBO’s True Blood called True Mud.  Imagine the opening diner scene from the series premiere with puppets.  It’s really worth watching.  Hit the jump to check it out:

Kevin Kline is misunderstood.  His performances on stage and screen over the past four decades are so seamless that audiences often attribute his characters’ traits to him.  That is, of course, a tricky proposition that he observes with a healthy dose of humor.

Kline mused on the topic and several more in an interview leading up to the release of The Extra Man, which opened in several major markets this weekend as part of its continued national rollout.  Hit the jump for the audio and transcript, along with tales of his love for Ricky Gervais, why he’d never run for President and John Cleese’s humorous take on Kline’s performance in The Big Chill.