LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Fun facts about Thursday’s Emmy nominations:

___

A NEW BREED

Make way, “Modern Family” and “Mad Men.” In the lead performer categories, more than half of this year’s nominees are either first-time contenders or from brand-new series, including Kyle Chandler of “Bloodline,” Viola Davis of “How to Get Away with Murder,” Taraji P. Henson of “Empire,” Tatiana Maslany of “Orphan Black” and Bob Odenkirk of “Better Call Saul.”

___

FREAK OUT

The Emmys could turn out to be a real circus. “American Horror Story: Freak Show” earned the most acting nods with six nominations in limited series categories. “Freak Show” cast members Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Sarah Paulson, Denis O’Hare and Finn Wittrock are up for the supporting actress and actor trophies, while Jessica Lange is nominated as lead actress.

___

WONDER WOMEN

Hello ladies! Behind the camera, there’s a 60 per cent boost in female writers and directors nominated in the comedy, drama and long-form categories since 2014, such as Amy Schumer of “Inside Amy Schumer” for comedy series directing, Jill Soloway of “Transparent” for comedy series writing and Dee Rees of “Bessie” for movie directing and writing.

___

MR. EMMY

Hector Ramirez might need to build a larger mantle. The camera operator received his 73rd and 74th nods for an episode of “Dancing with the Stars” and the Kennedy Center Honors. Ramirez maintains his record as the most nominated individual in Emmy history. He’s followed by Sheila Nevins, the president of HBO Documentary Films. She now has 71 nominations.

___

LAST HURRAH

For many series, this year’s ceremony will be the final chance to nab trophies. The list of recently departed shows up for Emmy consideration include “The Colbert Report,” ”Late Show with David Letterman,” ”Mad Men,” ”Sons of Anarchy,” ”Boardwalk Empire,” ”The Newsroom” and “Community.” Well, maybe not the ever-rebounding “Community.”

___

Online:

http://www.emmys.com

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang .