1996 MTV Video Music Awards
The 1996 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 4, 1996, honoring the best music videos from June 16, 1995, to June 14, 1996. The show was hosted by Dennis Miller at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The show centered on The Smashing Pumpkins, who led the pack that night with nine nominations. Having lost their touring keyboardist days before this appearance to a heroin overdose, and kicked longtime, original drummer Jimmy Chamberlin out of the band, the band opened the show as a three-piece, performing an awe-inspiring, emotional  version of "Tonight, Tonight." What is more, the Pumpkins ended up winning seven of the awards they were up for: "Tonight, Tonight" earned six wins out of its eight nominations, including Video of the Year, thus making it the night's most nominated and biggest winning video; while their video for "1979" earned the one Moonman it was nominated for: Best Alternative Video. The next biggest nominee and winner that night was Canadian singer Alanis Morissette, who won three out of her six nominations for her video "Ironic." Tying with her in terms of nominations was Icelandic singer Björk, who  also received six; however, her video for "It's Oh So Quiet" only took home one Moonman for Best Choreography. Closely following with five nominations each were Coolio, the Foo Fighters, and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Out of these, though, only the former two ended up taking home some Moonmen for their videos. Coolio won three, as "Gangsta's Paradise" won two out of its three nominations, and "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" won one out of its two nominations, while the Foo Fighters' "Big Me" took home one Moonman for Best Group Video. Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, meanwhile , went home empty-handed. Highlights of the show included a pre-show set by No Doubt, who performed on the entrance marquee of Radio City Music Hall. There was also a short-lived reunion of the four original members of Van Halen, who had not appeared together at that time for more than a decade, presenting the award for Best Male Video, as well as a live interlink with astronauts on the Mir space station. The show also marked Tupac Shakur's final public appearance before being shot four times in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, three  days later on September 7, dying of his wounds on September 13. Background. MTV announced in June that the Video Music Awards would be held at Radio City Music Hall for the third consecutive year. Nominees were announced at a press conference hosted by Hootie & the Blowfish and MTV president Judy McGrath on July 30. Dennis Miller was announced as the host on August 14. The ceremony was preceded by a 90-minute MTV News Opening Act special. Hosted by Kurt Loder and Tabitha Soren with reports from Serena Altschul, Chris Connelly, John Norris, and Alison Stewart, the broadcast featured  red carpet interviews, pre-taped interviews with The Smashing Pumpkins and Oasis, a report on the East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry, and performances from Beck and No Doubt. Winners and nominations. Winners are in bold text. Video of the Year. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" Best Male Video. Beck – "Where It's At" Best Female Video. Alanis Morissette – "Ironic" Best Group Video. Foo Fighters – "Big Me" Best New Artist in a Video. Alanis Morissette – "Ironic" Best Hard Rock Video. Metallica – "Until It Sleeps" Best R&B Video. The Fugees – "Killing Me Softly" Best Rap Video. Coolio (featuring L.V.) – "Gangsta 's Paradise" Best Dance Video. Coolio – "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" Best Alternative Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "1979" Best Video from a Film. Coolio (featuring L.V.) – "Gangsta's Paradise" (from "Dangerous Minds") Breakthrough Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" Best Direction in a Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" (Directors: Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris) Best Choreography in a Video. Björk – "It's Oh So Quiet" (Choreographer: Michael Rooney) Best Special Effects in a Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" (Special Effects: Chris Staves) Best Art Direction in a Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" (Art Directors: K. K.  Barrett and Wayne White) Best Editing in a Video. Alanis Morissette – "Ironic" (Editor: Scott Gray) Best Cinematography in a Video. The Smashing Pumpkins – "Tonight, Tonight" (Director of Photography: Declan Quinn) Viewer's Choice. Bush – "Glycerine" International Viewer's Choice Awards. MTV Asia. Seo Taiji and Boys – "Come Back Home" MTV Brasil. Skank – "Garota Nacional" MTV Europe. George Michael – "Fastlove" MTV India. Colonial Cousins – "Sa Ni Dha Pa" MTV Japan. Kuroyume – "Pistol" MTV Latin America. Soda Stereo – "Ella Usó Mi Cabeza Como un Revólver" MTV Mandarin. Nana Tang – "Freedom"