Emmys In Memoriam Honors Betty White, Bob Saget, Nichelle Nichols, and More

The 74th annual Primetime Emmy Awards took place on Monday night, honoring the greatest achievements in television. As part of the proceedings, Hollywood also paid tribute to the beloved and iconic figures who have passed away since last year's Emmys, in the form of this year's In Memoriam package. This year's Emmy Awards In Memoriam highlighted a number of memorable figures who passed away in late 2021 and early 2022. This included legendary actors Betty White, Nichelle Nichols, Bob Saget, Louie Anderson, James Caan, Ray Liota, and Anne Heche.

"Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever," White's agent and close friend Jeff Witjas shared when announcing her death in late 2021. "I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don't think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again." 

The In Memoriam was accompanied by a performance of "Pieces", a new song from John Legend.

"Normally we would not do a new song in a situation like this. We listened with skepticism which quickly turned to wild enthusiasm. This is an incredulous powerful moving song," Emmys executive producer Reginald "Reggie" Hudlin said in a statement when Legend's involvement was first announced. "You guys are all fans of John Legend, you know how he can grab straight in your heart and break you down. … A John Legend performance is always something to be excited about and the song is unique and special and uniquely suited to the context we'll be putting it in."

The 74th annual Primetime Emmy Awards take place Monday, September 12th live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles and air live on NBC.