My fondest wish for this year’s Emmy ceremony (Sept. 20): that first-time Emmy host Neil Patrick Harris also becomes a first-time Emmy winner. NPH should be a shoo-in for a nomination in the Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy category when the noms are announced Thursday morning (8:40AM ET at Emmys.com).

Who will rack up Emmy nods in the other categories? Will it be a good year for the Mad Men (and women!) of AMC? (I think yes.) Will Tina Fey and her 30 Rock cohorts dominate the comedy categories? (All signs point to yes.) And will last year’s surprise – and totally deserving – Best Actor in a Drama winner, Breaking Bad‘s Bryan Cranston, be a two-time winner? (I’d bet against that one.)

Here are the rest of my picks about who will be on the ballots when Grey’s Anatomy star Chandra Wilson and Big Bang Theory‘s Jim Parsons – who should both be among the contenders – announce the 2009 Emmy Awards nominees (note: each category will have six, instead of five, contenders this year, as the major networks try to avoid a sweep by the cable networks; note 2: these are my predictions for who/what WILL be nominated, not necessarily who/what I WANT to be nominated, i.e. in a perfect world, Sons of Anarchy would be a Best Drama contender and Two and a Half Men would never get another nod again):

Best Drama Series
– 24
– Damages
– Dexter
– Lost
– Mad Men
– True Blood
My Dream Pick(s): Sons of Anarchy

Best Actor in a Drama
– Jon Hamm – Mad Men (who also deserves a Guest Actor in a Comedy nod for his 30 Rock stint)
– Kiefer Sutherland – 24
– Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad
– Hugh Laurie – House
– Michael C. Hall – Dexter
– Simon Baker – The Mentalist
My Dream Pick(s): Charlie Hunnam – Sons of Anarchy

Best Actress in a Drama
– Glenn Close – Damages
– Mariska Hargitay – Law & Order: SVU
– Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men
– Holly Hunter – Saving Grace
– Kyra Sedgwick – The Closer
– Anna Paquin – True Blood
My Dream Pick(s): Katey Sagal – Sons of Anarchy

Best Comedy Series
– 30 Rock
– The Office
– Two and a Half Men
– Entourage
– Weeds
– The Big Bang Theory
My Dream Pick(s): It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Chuck

Best Actor in a Comedy
– Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock
– Steve Carell – The Office
– Charlie Sheen – Two and a Half Men
– Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory
– Tony Shaloub – Monk
– David Duchovny – Californication
My Dream Pick(s): James Roday and Dule Hill – Psych and Zachary Levi – Chuck

Best Actress in a Comedy
– Tina Fey –30 Rock
– Christina Applegate – Samantha Who?
– Julia Louis-Dreyfus – The New Adventures of Old Christine
– Mary-Louise Parker – Weeds
– America Ferrera – Ugly Betty
– Toni Collete –The United States of Tara
My Dream Pick(s): Yvonne Strahovksi – Chuck and Portia de Rossi – Better Off Ted

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama
– Michael Emerson – Lost
– John Slattery – Mad Men
– John Mahoney – In Treatment
– William Hurt – Damages
– William Shatner – Boston Legal
– Josh Holloway – Lost
My Dream Pick(s): Jorge Garcia – Lost, Carlos Bernard – 24 and Kim Coates – Sons of Anarchy

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama
– Rachel Griffiths – Brothers & Sisters
– Diane Wiest – In Treatment
– Chandra Wilson – Grey’s Anatomy
– Elizabeth Mitchell – Lost
– Cherry Jones – 24
– Chloe Sevigny – Big Love
My Dream Pick(s): Annie Wersching – 24, Christina Hendricks – Mad Men and Maggie Siff – Sons of Anarchy

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy
– Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother
– Kevin Dillon – Entourage
– Jeremy Piven – Entourage
– Jon Cryer – Two and a Half Men
– Justin Kirk – Weeds
– Rainn Wilson – The Office
My Dream Pick(s): Charlie Day – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, John C. McGinley – Scrubs, John Krasinski – The Office, Ethan Suplee – My Name Is Earl and Bill Hader – Saturday Night Live

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy
– Jean Smart – Samantha Who?
– Holland Taylor – Two and a Half Men
– Jane Krakowski – 30 Rock
– Jenna Fisher – The Office
– Elizabeth Perkins – Weeds
– Vanessa Williams – Ugly Betty
My Dream Pick(s): Kaitlin Olson – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Kristen Wiig – Saturday Night Live

Are any of your favorites MIA from my predictions?