Emmy countdown begins this weekend

Lots of pre-Emmy events coming up in the next week. On the heels of Saturday's Creative Arts ceremony (start time: 2:30 -- no kidding), the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in hosting a bash for this year's producer nominees on Sunday at Social Hollywood....

The Writers Guild of America West hosts its usual panel featuring writing nominees on Wednesday (Sept. 17) at the WGA Theater in BevHills. Slated to appear for the jawboning sesh moderated by Larry Wilmore are Kirk Ellis ("John Adams"); Bryan Fuller pictured left ("Pushing Daisies"); Danny Strong ("Recount"); and Matthew Weiner and Robin Veith ("Mad Men")...

Meanwhile, Josh Groban is warming up his pipes to deliver a tribute to television theme songs during the Sept. 21 Emmycast on ABC. (Nevermind that theme songs are nearly extinct these days -- one more reason we fell for "The Big Bang Theory" last season.) Emmy exec producer Ken Ehrlich promises Groban (pictured right) will perform a "once-in-a-lifetime medley" of tube tunes, including the themes from "Friends," "The Simpsons" and "The Brady Bunch."