'Young and the Restless' Star Gets a Replacement Emmy After Devastating House Fire

The Young and the Restless legend Tracey E. Bregman needed a new Emmy trophy after her original award was destroyed during the 2018 Woosley Fire in Malibu. During a stop on CBS' The Talk, Bregman, 59, was surprised with a replacement Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Bregman is celebrating 40 years of playing Lauren Fenmore this year.

Bregman won her Emmy for Outstanding Ingenue in a Drama Series in 1985 for The Young and The Restless. She was nominated in the category, since renamed to Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series, again in 1987. Bregman also earned Daytime Emmy nominations for Oustanding Supporting Actress in 2006 and 2008, and for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2016. She has been playing Lauren Fenmore since 1983 and also played the character on The Bold and The Beautiful.

During Tuesday's episode of The Talk, Bregman's on-screen husband, Christian LeBlanc, presented her with a new Emmy award. "It has been one of the most extraordinary and heartfelt experiences of my career," Bregman said, reports Variety. "I tried not to go into the 'ugly cry' in the air. Thanks to my Young and Restless family, NATAS, The Talk, and everyone who made this moment happen. My heart is so full."

"We were devastated to learn of the destruction of Tracey's home, and with it, her well-earned Emmy Award," NATAS President and CEO Adam Sharp said. "As our judges acknowledged, the Emmy statuette is a symbol of her hard work and outstanding dedication to her craft. We are happy it's back home where it belongs."

When Bregman was cast as Lauren back in 1983, there was no plan to make her a long-running character. "Lauren didn't even have a last name," she told TV Insider. The character was just envisioned as a friend of Beth Maitland's Traci Abbott. After their first scene together, executive producer Bill Bell decided Lauren would be a "mean girl," Bregman recalls.

The Wednesday, Jan. 25 episode of The Young and The Restless marked Bregman's 40th anniversary on the CBS daytime soap. Lauren is shown picking up her own award, a Lifetime Achievement Award for Leadership in Fashion. This leads to a retrospective of her life on the show, including her 17-year marriage to LeBlanc's character, lawyer Michael Baldwin. "We're not afraid to be bad, because we've been bad. We've killed people and gotten away with it," Bregman told TV Insider of the couple. "Not a bad gig."