DAVID GREENE, HOST:
Let's catch up on last night's Golden Globes. They kicked off the big awards season in Hollywood last night. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosted for the third consecutive year.
(SOUNDBITE OF GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS)
TINA FEY: Tonight, we celebrate all the great television shows that we know and love, as well as all the movies that North Korea was OK with.
GREENE: Well, one movie that we seemed to love - "Boyhood." It was the big winner, taking best drama and best director. "The Grand Budapest Hotel" took top honors in the best musical or comedy category. And last night, the Globes highlighted what NPR's TV critic Eric Deggans is calling the next step in a TV revolution. Let's find out what he means. Eric is on the line with us. Eric, good morning.
ERIC DEGGANS, BYLINE: Hey, David.
GREENE: So a lot of the buzz right now seems to be focusing on Amazon's streaming service, which won its first two globes for an original television series called "Transparent." Tell us why this is important.
DEGGANS: Basically, these awards - and "Transparent" won as best TV comedy and also got a win as best comedy actor for its star, Jeffrey Tambor - make Amazon a major player in the quality TV industry. It allows Amazon to claim it's on the same level as an HBO or an AMC in the same way that Netflix's nominations and wins turned it into a major player a few years ago. Amazon's slate of original series haven't always been as consistently good as Netflix's, and there was a sense that they were having trouble finding their way in the original series area, so this award is validation that they're on the right track. And it was a great recognition for Tambor, who's this beloved character actor, who found his greatest success playing a type of character that's often stereotyped by television - a man transitioning to become a female. Let's hear a clip from his acceptance speech.
(SOUNDBITE OF SPEECH)
JEFFREY TAMBOR: I would like to dedicate my performance, and this award, to the transgender community.
(APPLAUSE)
TAMBOR: Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you for your courage. Thank you for your inspiration. Thank you for your patience. And thank you for letting us be a part of the change.
GREENE: All right, so that's actor Jeffrey Tambor, accepting an award last night, one of the awards won by Amazon's streaming service. Let's talk about something that didn't happen last night, Eric, and that is the four broadcast networks - ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX - they didn't win anything.
DEGGANS: So that's very true. PBS won an award, but the real success among broadcasters came for the fifth network, the CW, which also won its first Golden Globe on Sunday. Gina Rodriguez, star of the CW comedy "Jane The Virgin," won as best actress in a comedy or musical. And it's been an amazing time for Rodriguez, who just won a People's Choice Award, and also recently learned that her show was picked up for the next TV season. Viewers last night saw a TV star born at the Globes, as Rodriguez gave this really heartfelt speech about inspiring other Latino girls to dream big. Let's check that out.
(SOUNDBITE OF SPEECH)
GINA RODRIGUEZ: This award is so much more than myself. It represents a culture that wants to see themselves as heroes.
DEGGANS: Her win also showed off the diversity among the Globe's winners that included "Transparent" and the theme song for the civil rights movie "Selma."
GREENE: You know, just a lot of touching moments last night. And I guess we should say the Golden Globes - I mean, the event itself is a form of entertainment. A lot of people are looking to really, you know, get some entertainment value out of going to see this thing.
DEGGANS: Exactly, it has to be an entertaining TV show. And the hosts - Amy Poehler and Tina Fey - were just great. They were funny. They got the show off to a great start. They kept it humming. Even George Clooney, who's been the butt of jokes from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler over the last two Globes broadcasts, said backstage he thinks they should host the show again, even though the two women have said this was their last time.
GREENE: Oh, come on, we've learned from politics that doesn't mean anything if they're saying that now. We'll probably see them up on stage next year. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans - thanks, Eric
DEGGANS: Thanks for having me.