It isn’t often that you find Betty White as well as the casts of “True Blood” and “Yo Gabba Gabba!” congregating near an open bar.

The Television Critics Association Awards ceremony, however, is a different kind of congratulatory event.  The association’s awards aren’t fancy; often, they’re not even listed in a series or a star’s list of career accolades in their public bios. But over the course of 25 years, we’ve done our part to acknowledge some truly fine programs (“Boomtown,” for example) and actors (Hugh Laurie, twice now) that the Emmys were (are?) content to over look.

It’s also one of the few awards nights in which the recipients know that they’ve won because they’ve been invited. Among the honorees who showed up last night were Jon Hamm, Vincent Kartheiser, John Slattery and executive producer Matthew Weiner of “Mad Men“; Bryan Cranston and his “Breaking Bad” family; and Alexander Skarsgard, Sam Trammell, Rutina Wesley, Nelsan Ellis and “True Blood” series creator Alan Ball.

To accept the program of the year award for “Battlestar Galactica,” co-executive producer Jane Espenson was joined onstage by Michael Hogan, Grace Park, Katee Sackhoff and Tricia Helfer.

Here is the full list of 2009 TCA Award recipients:

PROGRAM OF THE YEAR: “Battlestar Galactica” (Syfy)

OUTSTANDING NEW PROGRAM: “True Blood” (HBO)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA: “Mad Men” (AMC)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY: “The Big Bang Theory” (CBS)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NEWS & INFORMATION: “The Alzheimer’s Project” (HBO)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CHILDREN’S PROGRAMMING: “Yo Gabba Gabba” (Nickelodeon)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MOVIES, MINI-SERIES & SPECIALS: “Grey Gardens” (HBO)

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY: Jim Parsons, “The Big Bang Theory” (CBS)

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA: Bryan Cranston, “Breaking Bad” (AMC)

HERITAGE AWARD: “ER” (NBC)

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT: Betty White

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