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Jimmy Kimmel<\/a> walked away with a trophy at Sunday night\u2019s (September 7) 77th Creative Arts Emmy Awards and used his acceptance speech to thank the late Regis Philbin<\/a>.<\/p>\n The late-night host won the Emmy for Outstanding Host For A Game Show for Who Wants To Be A Millionaire<\/a>, beating out Jeopardy!<\/a>\u2018s Ken Jennings<\/a>, Pop Culture Jeopardy!<\/a>\u2018s Colin Jost<\/a>, Celebrity Family Feud<\/a>\u2018s Steve Harvey<\/a>, and Press Your Luck<\/a>\u2018s Elizabeth Banks<\/a>.<\/p>\n After collecting the trophy, Kimmel praised Millionaire\u2018s original host, Philbin, who won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host back in 2001. Kimmel said Philbin, who died in 2020, was \u201cwatching over all of us right now,\u201d per Deadline<\/a>.<\/p>\n He spoke more about Philbin backstage, telling the press, \u201cRegis was the best at this. I don\u2019t think the show would still be on the air if Regis hadn\u2019t hosted it to start with. He was such an unusual pick at the time. I don\u2019t think people remember that because it became such a big sensation, not just a hit, but like a cultural phenomenon. So people didn\u2019t think about how Regis was a very unlikely choice.\u201d<\/p>\n The Jimmy Kimmel Live!<\/a> host went on to say how Philbin was \u201calways nice\u201d to him, adding, \u201cIt\u2019s exciting to have this [award] and to know that he has this same Emmy somewhere in his family\u2019s collection as well.\u201d<\/p>\n During his speech, Kimmel also thanked the show\u2019s executive producer, Michael Davies<\/a>, who was also the producer on Win Ben Stein\u2019s Money<\/a>, the late 1990s Comedy Central game show that won Kimmel his first Emmy.<\/p>\n In recent years, Kimmel won Emmys for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for his Live in Front of a Studio Audience<\/a> collaborations with Norman Lear<\/a>. The specials saw recreations of some of Lear\u2019s classic sitcoms, including All in the Family<\/a>, The Jeffersons<\/a>, Good Times<\/a>, The Facts of Life<\/a>, and Diff\u2019rent Strokes<\/a>.<\/p>\n When asked backstage whether he would do another Live in Front of a Studio Audience, Kimmel suggested it wouldn\u2019t feel right to do it without Lear, who passed away in December 2023. \u201cIt would be too emotional to do it without Norman Lear, you know, I don\u2019t know if my heart could take it,\u201d he shared.<\/p>\n Kimmel, who signed a three-year deal with ABC in 2022, was also asked about his future in late-night and whether he\u2019s thought about retirement.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not prepared to answer that question,\u201d he responded. \u201cIt\u2019s something I think about a lot. Things have changed a lot over the last few years, over the last nine years, I guess, and each day is a new adventure, and I kind of take them as they come.\u201d<\/p>\n