Award Shows September 18, 2016
Julia Louis-Dreyfus Reveals Billionaire Father’s Death During Tearful Emmys Acceptance Speech
Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus dedicated her Emmys acceptance speech to her late father on Sunday.
The “Veep” star, who won Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series, broke down in tears as she revealed that her father, billionaire energy tycoon and art collector William Louis-Dreyfus, had died on Friday.
"Lastly, I'd like to dedicate this to my father, William Louis-Dreyfus, who passed away on Friday,” she said. “I'm so glad that he liked 'Veep' because his opinion was the one that really mattered," she said.
The 84-year-old, who was worth an estimated $3.4 billion, was the chairman of Louis Dreyfus Energy Services. According to DailyMail.com, the company was involved in oil trading, gas investments and infrastructure.
Before speaking out about her father's passing, Julia's speech had a lighter tone.
She told the crowd, "I'd also like to take this opportunity to personally apologize for the current political climate. I think that 'Veep' has torn down the wall between comedy and politics. Our show started out as a political satire but it feels now like sobering documentary. So I certainly do promise to rebuild that wall and make Mexico pay for it."
This is Julia's eighth Emmy, and fifth consecutive Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy.