Sitcom Gowns And Drama Duds

Sandra Oh wore a frothy lilac ruffled gown by Vera Wang. And then she embarked on fashion anarchy by piling on a mass of gold and platinum chains and sparkling ropes. Oh described the jewelry as being a blend of a czarina and Run-D.M.C. The effect was fabulous if only because of that description.

But none other than "Project Runway's" Tim Gunn pronounced the ensemble a failure. And Gunn -- he of the dapper suits, the perfectly clipped hair and the lock-jawed quips -- is always right.

What other dresses lacked in beading, they made up for with elaborate draping, swirls, pleats and hunks of cloth tacked artfully -- and sometimes clumsily -- around the body. Portia de Rossi wore a Zac Posen slate gray gown with fabric flower details. She also donned a look of impatience when E! Entertainment's Ryan Seacrest noted that he had no idea who Posen was and wasn't the least bit embarrassed.

Seacrest, who had apparently been dispatched to man E!'s red carpet "glam cam" without a fashion cheat sheet, had never heard of Badgley Mischka, either. The design team created a dress for Jaime Pressly of "My Name Is Earl." But Pressly hadn't heard of them, either, so she and Seacrest stood there staring at each other and chuckling over their mutual ignorance, which must have made Mark Badgley and James Mischka really happy that they'd spent all that time specially whipping up that nice beaded chantilly lace extravaganza.

When Leah Remini from "The King of Queens" made her entrance in a merlot-colored gown, Seacrest inquired about the mysterious, unseen baby Suri, spawn of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, whom Remini has reportedly actually laid eyes on. Seacrest was good-natured with his questions; it wasn't as if he said something like, "Is that baby really ugly?" But Remini got huffy as if a mere mention of the child's name would bring down the wrath of TomKat. Remini broke one of the cardinal rules of the red carpet: Do not get angry or frustrated because this will make you forget to tell people who made your dress.

Actress Kyra Sedgwick broke one of the other rules: Do not wear a dress that makes you look like a corpse. Sedgwick's gown was by Giorgio Armani from his couture collection. It was a flowing sea of dove gray organza with a large spiraling hip corsage. She looked like a mummy trailing strips of papier-mache.

Candice Bergen looked like she really didn't feel like being bothered, with fashion, formal wear or a mirror. She wore a white blouse, long turquoise skirt and a low-slung Western belt that managed to camouflage the existence of her waist, create the impression of a potbelly and leave one wondering how a single accessory could be so cruel to such an attractive woman.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus's black-and-white Narciso Rodriguez gown was refined and sophisticated. Debra Messing wore a romantic Alberta Ferretti white, tiered dress.

And the "Charlie's Angels" trio -- Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith -- were color-coordinated in black-and-chocolate-brown gowns that flattered each of them. One has to give them credit for marching onstage for the Aaron Spelling tribute when they had to know that the entire audience would be judging how well they were aging. (Admit it, you leaned in toward the TV to get a better look.) Farrah, Kate: God bless. Jaclyn: You win.