'Pose' Star Breaks Ground As First Transgender Actress With Lead Emmy Nod

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LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — "Pose" co-star Mj Rodriguez made Emmy history Tuesday by becoming the first transgender performer to be nominated for a leading-performance Emmy Award in a primetime series.

The nomination marked the third time a transgender performer has received an Emmy nomination.

Previously, Laverne Cox received multiple nominations for "Orange is the New Black" and Rain Valdez was nominated last year for her role in "Razor Tongue."

Sarah Kate Ellis, president/CEO of the LGBT advocacy organization GLAAD, called the nomination a "breakthrough for transgender women in Hollywood" while also hailing the success of "Pose" at the nominations announcement.

"Additionally, the show's nomination for outstanding drama series, as well as Billy Porter's third nomination for outstanding lead actor in a drama series, mark a historic show that undoubtedly raised the bar for trans representation on television and changed the way viewers around the world understand the trans community," Ellis said.

"As over 40 leading LGBTQ organizations pointed out in our open letter about `Pose' to Emmy Award voters, representation matters. Congratulations, Michaela Jae, Billy Porter and the entire `Pose' team. The world is standing with you and applauding your talents."

The 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards will be presented Sept. 19 at the Microsoft Theater, with what the Television Academy described as "a limited audience of nominees and their guests."

Cedric the Entertainer is scheduled to be the host. See the full list of nominees here.

KCAL 9