Cable network HBO topped the list for the 12^th straight year with 81 nods, including best drama series nominations for “Game of Thrones” and “Boardwalk Empire.” CBS came in second and led broadcast channels with 60 nominations, including comedy “The Big Bang Theory” and contest “The Amazing Race.”

Not far behind was non-profit PBS, best known for historical documentaries, arts programs and “Sesame Street.” In recent years it has begun offering more entertainment programming.

Sixteen of the PBS nods went to “Downton Abbey,” a British World War I era drama about a cast of countesses, cooks and kitchen maids. Six of its actors, including stars Hugh Bonneville and Michelle Dockery, all earned nods.

The episode of the Sherlock Holmes miniseries that led to the nomination was “A Scandal in Belgravia.”

“The big story today is ‘Downton Abbey.’ It’s suddenly poised as the serious rival to ‘Mad Men,’” said Tom O’Neil of awards site goldderby.com in a reference to the Emmy favorite from AMC Networks about Madison Avenue in the 1960s.

“Mad Men” had 17 nominations, more than any drama series and last season earned its fourth straight Emmy for best drama.

Emmy nods bring prestige and can boost viewer interest in shows, which for most networks helps attract more advertisers. For pay-cable channels like HBO and Showtime, Emmy recognition can drive higher subscription fees.

PBS, however, is funded by a mix of donations, sponsorships and taxpayer dollars. Republicans in Congress routinely accuse the network of having a liberal bias and threaten to yank public funding. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney last year was quoted saying, “Big Bird is going to have advertisements.”

The network argues it does not push a political point of view and airs quality programming that commercial networks avoid because it does not bring in big profits. “Downton Abbey” fits that category.

The show “absolutely” has brought more viewers to PBS, said Rebecca Eaton, executive producer of the “Masterpiece” series, which brought “Downton Abbey” to the network.

She said she hoped the Emmy nods would grab the attention of PBS critics in Congress. “We are the ones who brought ‘Downton Abbey’ to America. It wasn’t a commercial network,” she said.

“We do this year-in and year-out,” Eaton added. “People who say ‘Oh, who needs PBS? It will show up anywhere,’ well, that is not the case. It is here because of us.”

PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger, in a statement, said the network was “absolutely thrilled” with the Emmy recognition. In addition to “Downton Abbey,” PBS mainstays including “American Masters” and “Great Performances” were nominated, as well as a number of arts programs, Kerger said.

“Downton Abbey” helped nudge CBS show “The Good Wife” out of the running for best drama, a category that for the first time had no nominees from the major broadcast networks.

“Good Wife” did earn seven nominations including best lead actress for star Julianna Margulies.

Among the other broadcasters, NBC had 51 nominations, ABC came away with 48 and Fox nabbed 26.

The Emmys, the top TV awards in the United States, are given out by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. This year’s Emmy Awards ceremony will take place on September 23 and be broadcast on Walt Disney Co’s ABC television network.

Comcast Corp owns NBC; News Corp owns Fox. (Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Ciro Scotti) REUTERS

UPDATE 1-Wildfire scorches Athens suburb, residents defend homes (Updates with fire receding, resident, fire brigade official)

ATHENS, July 19 (Reuters) - Greek firefighters were on the alert late on Thursday after a wildfire raced through forests near Athens, destroying or damaging several houses and forcing residents to use garden hoses and tree branches to fight the flames.

The blaze, fanned by strong winds, charred the roofs of five houses in the southeast suburb of Keratea and forced people to evacuate their homes, but officials said there were no reports of injuries.

TV pictures showed thick plumes of black smoke rising into the air as the fire tore through vast areas of rural land.

“We were surrounded (by flames) within seconds. The house was destroyed,” resident Giorgos Germanakis told Antenna TV.

Dozens of firefighters with 35 fire engines, five aircraft and two helicopters battled the flames.

The fire died down later in the day but firefighters were ready for the dry summer wind to revive the blaze.

“There’s no longer a threat to houses but we will remain on the ground until we’re certain there are no flare-ups,” said a fire brigade official.

Greece regularly faces wildfires during its dry summer months. But any large outbreak this year could pose a particular challenge for the debt-ridden government, which is struggling to cut spending and pull the country out of an economic crisis.

Shortly after being appointed in June, Citizen Protection Minister Nikos Dendias said Greece was not ready for the forest fire season and faced a shortage of operational aircraft.

The government has already asked for water-bombing aircraft from Spain and Italy to help control the wildfires.

Greeks still vividly recall devastating wildfires in 2007 that killed 65 people, scorched thousands of hectares of forest and farmland, destroyed villages and threatened archaeological sites.

A wildfire in the southern Peloponnese raged unchecked for a second day though the flames appeared to be receding, officials said.