Carrie Ann Inaba and Bobby Lee Announce the Nominees for the 2008 JC Penney Asian Excellence Awards®

Carrie Ann Inaba and Bobby Lee to Host the 2008 JC Penney Asian Excellence Awards Airing May 1 on E! Entertainment Television.

(LOS ANGELES, March 26, 2008) At a press conference held today in Los Angeles, Carrie Ann Inaba (Dancing with the Stars, Dance Wars: Bruno Vs Carrie Ann ) and Bobby Lee (MADtv ) announced the nominees for the 2008 JCPenney Asian Excellence Awards. This is the third year that the Asian Excellence Awards will honor the outstanding achievements of Asians and Asian Americans in film, television, music, and the performing arts via a national awards telecast.

Carrie Ann Inaba and Bobby Lee will co-host the show that will be taped at UCLA's Royce Hall in Los Angeles. Comedian Russell Peters will serve as backstage host, providing the voice and comic relief. The 2008 JCPenney Asian Excellence Awards will premiere on E! Entertainment Television on May 1 at 6 p.m. ET/PT, 5 p.m. CT. In addition, beginning May 7 and throughout the month of May, the show will be available on Comcast On Demand.

This year's award categories and nominees include:

OUTSTANDING FILM
Finishing the Game Director, Justin Lin
Lust, Caution Director, Ang Lee
Rush Hour 3 Director, Brett Ratner
War Director, Philip G. Atwell

OUTSTANDING FILM ACTOR
Naveen Andrews The Brave One
Jackie Chan Rush Hour 3
Chow Yun-Fat Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Tony Leung Lust, Caution
Jet Li War
Lee-Hom Wang Lust, Caution

OUTSTANDING FILM ACTRESS
Devon Aoki War
Joan Chen Lust, Caution
Vanessa Hudgens High School Musical 2
Sharon Leal This Christmas
Maggie Q Balls of Fury
Tang Wei Lust, Caution

OUTSTANDING TELEVISION ACTOR
Naveen Andrews Lost ABC
Daniel Dae Kim Lost ABC
Masi Oka Heroes NBC
Sendhil Ramamurthy Heroes NBC
B.D. Wong Law & Order, SVU NBC

OUTSTANDING TELEVISION ACTRESS
Yunjin Kim Lost ABC
Lucy Liu Cashmere Mafia ABC
Parminder Nagra ER NBC
Sandra Oh Grey's Anatomy ABC
Lindsay Price Lipstick Jungle NBC
Navi Rawat Numb3rs CBS

SUPPORTING TELEVISION ACTRESS
Moon Bloodgood Journeyman NBC
Michaela Conlin Bones FOX
Janina Gavankar The L Word Showtime
Mindy Kaling The Office NBC
Michelle Krusiec Dirty Sexy Money ABC
Sonja Sohn The Wire HBO

SUPPORTING TELEVISION ACTOR
James Kyson Lee Heroes NBC
Rex Lee Entourage HBO
Will Yun Lee Bionic Woman NBC
Ken Leung Lost ABC
Kal Penn House M.D. FOX
James Saito Eli Stone ABC

Fans will also have the opportunity to vote for their favorites online at http://www.asianexcellenceawards.com in the following categories:
FAVORITE TV PERSONALITY (Internet Voting)
Cheryl Burke Dancing with the Stars ABC
Julie Chen Big Brother CBS
Mark Dacascos Iron Chef America-"The Chairman" Food Network
Padma Lakshmi Top Chef Bravo
Tila Tequila A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila MTV
Vern Yip Deserving Spaces HGTV
Carrie Ann Inaba Dance Wars: Bruno Vs. Carrie Ann ABC
Kimora Lee Simmons Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane The Style Network

FAVORITE REALITY STAR (Internet Voting)
Ronald & Christina The Amazing Race CBS
Yau-Man Chan Survivor: Fans vs. Favorites CBS
Victorya Hong Project Runway Bravo
Hung Hyunh Top Chef Bravo
JabbaWockeeZ America's Best Dance Crew MTV
Kaba Modern America's Best Dance Crew MTV
Ramiele Malubay American Idol FOX
Nicole Niestemski Your Mama Don't Dance Lifetime
Jonathan Silva Your Mama Don't Dance Lifetime

Voting is underway and runs through April 16. The winners will be announced during the telecast.