From left, Kristin Bauer, Alexander Skarsgard and Patrick Gallagher portray vampires in a scene from the second season of the HBO series True Blood.  From left, Kristin Bauer, Alexander Skarsgard and Patrick Gallagher portray vampires in a scene from the second season of the HBO series True Blood. (Jaimie Trueblood/HBO/Associated Press)

True Blood, the HBO vampire series overlooked by the Emmy Awards, has earned a nomination for the Producers Guild of America Awards.

It will be vying in the drama category with the critically acclaimed Mad Men, which won the Emmy for drama series of the year in September. Also nominated are the cable series Breaking Bad and Dexter and ABC's Lost.

The annual Producers Guild awards single out the best producers of TV series and non-fiction TV. The awards nominations were released Monday afternoon in Los Angeles.

Last week, the guild announced it would give its Vanguard Award, which recognizes achievements in new media and technology, to Joss Whedon, producer of the new media hit Dr. Horrible's Singalong Blog. Whedon has been a producer, writer, director and the creator of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Dollhouse and also wrote the screenplay for Toy Story.

The nominees for comedy producer of the year:

  • 30 Rock.
  • Californication.
  • Entourage.
  • The Office.
  • Weeds.

The nominees for non-fiction TV are:

  • 60 Minutes.
  • Deadliest Catch.
  • Intervention.
  • Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List.
  • This American Life.

The nominees for producer of the year in live entertainment and competition TV are:

  • The Amazing Race.
  • American Idol.
  • The Colbert Report.
  • Project Runway.
  • Top Chef.

The PGA Awards ceremony is scheduled for Jan. 24 at the Hollywood Palladium.