The 2009 Golden Globe Nominations were announced Thursday, December 11, 2008. The Golden Globe awards recognize artistic achievement and excellence in film and television. The prestigious awards are distributed every year at a formal dinner held by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Although the Golden Globes are widely believed to be predictors for Oscar Winners, the different makeup of the awards' voting members and statistical analysis means that a relatively small percentage of Globe winners have gone on to win Academy Awards.Predicting Oscar Winners: by Iain Pardoe (October 7, 2008) FOX: Golden Globes Won't Predict Oscars (December 14, 2006)

• HBO: 22 nominations
• Showtime: 8
• NBC: 6
• ABC: 5
• AMC: 5
• FOX: 3
• PBS: 3
• USA Network:2
• CBS: 1
• Lifetime: 1
• TNT: 1

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : 5
• Doubt: 5
• Frost Nixon: 5
• The Reader: 4
• Revolutionary Road: 4
• Slumdog Millionaire: 4
• Vicky Cristina Barcelona : 4
• In Bruges: 3
• The Wrestler: 3

• In Treatment : 5
• Recount : 5
• John Adams: 4
• 30 Rock: 3
• Bernard and Doris: 3
• Cranford: 3
• Entourage: 3
• Mad Men: 3

• Warner Bros. Pictures: 11
• Universal Pictures: 9
• The Weinstein Company: 8
• FOX Searchlight: 7
• Miramax: 7

The first Golden Globes Awards ceremony was held in 1944 at the 20th Century Fox studios. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association established a special award that recognized "outstanding contributions to the entertainment industry". The award was first presented to Cecil B. DeMille in 1952. The award was then named in his honor. The following year, the first recipient of the "Cecil B. DeMille Award" was Walt Disney.

Before 1958, the awards had typically been presented by journalists who were part of the association. In 1958, the Golden Globes were first broadcast on television with, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis, Jr. handling the hosting duties. In 1983, Dick Clark Productions took over production of the ceremony.

Today the show is seen as a popular precursor to the Academy Awards and Emmys, as well as a prestigious and celebrated event in its own right.

In 2008, the 65th Annual Golden Globe Awards did not telecast a live ceremony due to the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike. In 2009, the threat of an actor's strike was averted and the show will go on as scheduled without incident.

• Official Site: Golden Globes

• E! News: Golden Globe Noms Announced