Dolly Parton and Catherine O'Hara honoured at the Emmys

Actress Catherine O'Hara and singer-songwriter Dolly Parton were remembered during the In Memoriam segment last night at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards.

Catherine O'Hara, who died this January, received tribute from her three on-screen children. Macaulay Culkin plays O'Hara's son in the Home Alone series, while Dan Levy and Annie Murphy play her children in Schitt's Creek.

"She was my mum. She was our mama. By extension, she's all of our mama", said Culkin.

Levy said the most valuable thing he learned from the actress was to "always say yes to any opportunity to revel in the presence of greatness".

Dolly Parton, primarily known for her music, also acted in several movies. Co-star Sally Field from the 1989 film Steel Magnolias was the first speaker to honour Dolly. She was joined by Reba McEntire, who performed Parton's song 'Appalachian Memories'.

"If there are truly angels on Earth, then we just lost one: Dolly Parton", Field said. "Over the years, I never stopped loving her though we lived very far apart. I adored her from day one. How could you not?

"She was genuine and humble, supportive and blisteringly funny with a bawdy sense of humour that would send any rude guy looking for a place to hide.

"I couldn’t see then what a real giant Dolly was – not just as an artist, but as a human."

Other stars mourned include actress Hayden Panettiere, director Rob Reiner, and actors James Van Der Beek and Eric Dane.

Elsewhere, Welshman Matthew Rhys won Outstanding Lead Actor twice: for The Beast in Me, as well as for Widow's Bay. The latter broke a record for most awards for a comedy, with 14 in total.

Sally Field also won Outstanding Lead Actress for Remarkably Bright Creatures. 

Jean Smart won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, her eighth Emmy, for her role as Deborah Vance in Hacks.

The drama winner was The Pitt, with 25 nominations total, the most of any show. Of these, it won six.