Tonic's Top Ten Emmy Moments

After the runaway success of some shows at this year's Golden Globes and SAG awards, it was really anyone's guess who would take home television's most coveted prize. In the end, though, it didn't really matter who won, because this was one of the most enjoyable Emmy telecasts in recent memory. It had pep, decent pacing, positive messages and George Clooney. A lot of Clooney. So, note to future award show producers: when in doubt, add a dash of Clooney and a glee club number. In addition to all the Clooney, here are our favorite moments from the 2010 Emmy Awards:

1. Jimmy Fallon is "Born to Run" - Who doesn't love a solid opening number that features the stars of Glee, Betty White teaching Jon Hamm how to shimmy and "back that mother up," Kate Gosselin taking a joke at her own expense, Jorge Garcia and Vampire Diaries star Nina Dobrev crooning to one another on an escalator, Jane Lynch throwing a Slushie on Jimmy Fallon and Tina Fey, Joel McHale, Tim Gunn and Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run?" Answer: No one.

2. Jon Hamm and Betty White - They brought their stellar opening number chemistry back when they presented the first award of the night. "How about our sexual chemistry during that opening number?" Hamm asked Betty. "How about our sexual chemistry just now in the quick change room?" Our national hero (and the voice of our collective conscious), Betty White,  fired back.

3. Modern Family Gets Pitched - Sure, they won the Best Comedy Series Emmy, but a random pitchman seemed to think the fledgling comedy could somehow benefit from "intranetwork-crosspollinetworki-synerganism." Cam and Mitchell adopted Stewie Griffin, the show went 3-D (which we're pretty sure most males in America would appreciate), the show went "not gay," until finally, they nailed it. Phil (Ty Burrell) is unfortunately killed, but Claire's (Julie Bowen) sorrows are soon heeled by a relatively unknown actor known as George Clooney, who soon becomes romantically entangled with the entire extended family. "I gotta get a film," Clooney says as he sits in bed between Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet.

4. Jim Parsons Wins! - The actor took home the Emmy for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series for his role as Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory, beating out fellow category-mates such as Glee's Matthew Morrison and 30 Rock's Alec Baldwin. Not only was his win a triumph for nerds everywhere, he also took the opportunity to reveal a few interesting secrets about himself, like the fact that he's a "Big reader of almanacs" who can sing the kola kola bird's song from Rudyard Kipling's The Elephant's Child from memory.

5. Ryan Murphy Promotes the Arts - Even though Glee wasn't one of the biggest winners of the night, it did pick up a few prizes, including one for Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series. In his speech, series creator and director Ryan Murphy dedicated his program to performing arts and teachers. "“Glee is about the importance of arts education, so I would like to dedicate this to all my teachers, who taught me to sing and finger paint."

To learn what you can do to support the arts in schools, click here.

6. Ricky Gervais Meets Bucky Gunts - Not that Jimmy Fallon didn't surpass all of our expectations last night, but once Ricky Gervais takes the stage it's all over. First, he bought everyone in the audience beers (although Alexander Skarsgard later said they were non-alcoholic), and then he couldn't get enough of nominee and winner Bucky Gunts' name. It even became a trending topic on Twitter and Google last night after the "Gervais bump."

7. Jimmy Fallon Says "Good Riddance" - On SNL, his song parodies could get annoying, but at the Emmys, Fallon could do no wrong when he picked up his guitar or sat down at the piano. In this touching tribute, he bid a fond farewell to three shows we lost this year. 24 was serenaded with a reworded "Candle in the Wind," Law & Order's Boyz II Men tribute made me feel nostalgic about a show I never even watched and, finally, LOST saw Fallon dressed up as Green Day's lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong singing "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)." If only they'd known to pan to Lea Michele's boyfriend, Theo Stockman, an actual cast member from Green Day's Broadway show who plays the song on a nightly basis and happened to be sitting right behind Jane Lynch, during the song. We could have completely closed the circle of love and angsty sorrow.

8. George Clooney Wins the Bob Hope Award - In her introduction, Julianna Margulies presented all of the reasons why Clooney was the fitting fourth winner for this humanitarian honor. "In times of tragedy, we turn to television to find out what has happened, and how we can help. Tonight George Clooney becomes the fourth recipient of this award. This award goes to someone whose humanitarian work brings credit to the television industry, and whose actions have had a lasting impact... Time and time again, George Clooney has used the power of television to raise money where it is needed most, and to transform hopelessness into hope."

When Clooney took to the stage to accept his award, it was with his usual dose of humility and charm. "It’s important to remember how much good can get done, because we live in strange times where bad behavior sucks up all the attention of the press. People who really need the attention, the Sudanese, the Gulf Coast on the 5 year anniversary, people in Pakistan — they can’t get any. I tried to combine the two: I have offered to go to the south Sudan and have a wardrobe malfunction, but it was pointed out to me that I am 49, and the consensus was that it would just be kind of sad."

Click here to learn more about relief efforts in Sudan, the Gulf Coast and Pakistan.

9. Temple Grandin Sweeps - The HBO movie based on true inspiration won nearly every category in the "Movie and Mini-Series" portion of the show. Temple Grandin is an autistic woman who did not let education, social or professional roadblocks stand in her way. Not only did she receive a Ph.D., she revolutionized the cattle industry and became a teacher, lecturer and advocate for autism spectrum disorder.

When Claire Danes took the stage to accept her award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie, she had this to say about Grandin: "You are the most brave, intrepid person I’ve ever known, and you have dedicated your life to helping those who are misunderstood or misrepresented. So this is in service of your work."

To learn more about Temple Grandin's work and autism, click here.

10. Kim Kardashian Sings - In the moment of the night that definitely made you shake your fist at your television bemoaning the rapidly growing genre that is reality, Jimmy Fallon handed audience member Kim Kardashian the microphone so she could belt out the word, "Reality." At least we got a nice laugh out of her being there.

Click here for the complete list of Emmy winners!

Photos: First 2 screengrabs via YouTube, via YouTube, via Hulu.