Guest starring on popular shows is a win-win prospect

Big-name actors can boost ratings and even their careers through one-time stints on TV shows.

When the Emmy nominations were announced recently, the names of Steve Buscemi, Polly Bergen, Robin Williams and Cynthia Nixon were not called out.  Yet they all received Emmy nominations for spectacular performances.  Why the lack of hype for these major stars? Because their categories of competition are “guest actor” and “guest actress.”