"Now that the Tony Awards are over and the 2008-09 New York theater season has drawn to a close, I thought it would be fun to list all the winners and nominees of all the many theater awards in the acting categories and see how they matched up and who came out on top," notes Back Stage Executive Editor David Sheward.

How perfect — eh? — for award nuts like us, right, Derbyites?

Geoffrey Rush ("Exit the King") comes out royally, claiming the most best-actor crowns: the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League, and Theatre World Awards. Comparing such kudos is tricky, of course, considering they don't all overlap the same kingdoms. For example, the Drama Desks (supposedly) encompass Off-Broadway (in fact, that's only true for its nominees for the most part) while the Tonys exclusively recognize fare on the Great White Way.

David adds this note to Gold Derby readers: "Where various awards groups did not agree which category to place a performance, I just picked the one I thought was most appropriate (i.e., the Drama Desk said Will Swenson in 'Hair' was a leading actor and the Tonys called him a featured actor. I put in as a leading actor, for example),"

While reading his blog item, you should know that Sheward's an unabashed, unashamed, unapologetic kudos lunatic like you and me. He's the author of the excellent "The Big Book of Show Business Awards" (Billboard Books, 1997), which I recommend with enthusiasm.