From l to r Claire Danes, Christopher Plummer and Michelle Williams (AP)
Hollywood veterans and newcomers alike took home the big awards at the 69th Annual Golden Globes, with Christopher Plummer, Michelle Williams, Laura Dern and Showtime's "Homeland" winning top honors for awards season's first major show.
Plummer, 82, won the first award for best supporting actor for his role as the elderly widower who comes out of the closet in the father-son drama "Beginners."
Showtime's new runaway hit "Homeland" won best television drama. Based on an Israeli drama and starring Claire Danes and Damian Lewis, the drama beat out "Game of Thrones," "American Horror Story" and "Boardwalk Empire."
Michelle Williams earned a best actress in a musical or comedy win for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in "My Week With Marilyn." Accepting her award, she said she was a "mother first and an actress second" and thanked her young daughter.
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Ricky Gervais, who has ruffled feathers at past shows with sharp wisecracks aimed at Hollywood's elite and the Globes show itself, returned as host for the third-straight year. He started with some slams at the Globes as Hollywood's second-biggest film ceremony, after the Oscars.
Gervais joked that the Globes "are just like the Oscars, but without all that esteem. The Globes are to the Oscars what Kim Kardashian is to Kate Middleton. A bit louder, a bit trashier, a bit drunker and more easily bought. Allegedly. Nothing's been proved."
He also needled early winners, saying the show was running long and stars needed to keep their speeches short.
"You don't need to thank everyone you've ever met or members of your family, who have done nothing," Gervais said. "Just the main two. Your agent and God."
Madonna, Julie Frost and Jimmy Harry won the Globe for best song for "Masterpiece" from the King Edward-Wallis Simpson drama "W.E.", which Madonna also directed.
Among early television winners were Kate Winslet as best actress in a miniseries or movie in "Mildred Pierce,"Idris Elba as best actor in a miniseries or movie in "Luther," Laura Dern as comedy or musical actress in "Enlightened," Kelsey Grammer as dramatic actor in "Boss," "Homeland" for drama series and "Downton Abbey" for miniseries or movie.
A drama with comic touches, "Beginners" was a fitting recipient to start the Globe ceremony, which has a strong lineup of lighter fare to match the more sober-minded films that generally dominate Hollywood awards.
Alongside those heavyweight dramas, the category for best musical or comedy at the Globes usually is more of a lark, with nominees rarely emerging with best-picture prospects at the Academy Awards.
Yet Sunday's musical or comedy contenders made up a strong bunch that could give their best-drama cousins at the Globes a run for their money come Oscar time.
Over the last seven years, only one Globe best-picture winner -- 2008's "Slumdog Millionaire" -- has gone on to claim the top Oscar trophy. Before that stretch, the Globes had been on an eight-year streak in which one of its two best-picture recipients also won the main prize at the Academy Awards.
Last year, "The Social Network" won best-drama at the Globes and looked like the early Oscar favorite. But momentum later swung to eventual Oscar best-picture winner "The King's Speech." The year before, "Avatar" was named best drama at the Globes, while "The Hurt Locker" took best picture at the Oscars.
The Globes have a better track record predicting who will win Oscars for acting. A year ago, all four actors who won Oscars earned Globes first -- lead players Colin Firth for "The King's Speech" and Natalie Portman for "Black Swan" and "The Fighter" supporting stars Christian Bale and Melissa Leo.
This time, "The Help" leads the acting categories with three nominations, for Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain. Along with Clooney, Pitt and Williams, other nominees include Meryl Streep for the Margaret Thatcher story "The Iron Lady," Leonardo DiCaprio for the J. Edgar Hoover biography "J. Edgar" and Glenn Close and Janet McTeer for the Irish drama "Albert Nobbs."
Ryan Gosling has two nominations, as dramatic actor for "The Ides of March" and actor in a musical or comedy for the romance "Crazy, Stupid, Love."
Morgan Freeman will receive the Globes' Cecil B. DeMille award for lifetime achievement at Sunday's Beverly Hilton Hotel ceremony.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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