CBS Leads Thursday Overnights; Vampire Diaries on the Rise on The CW

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERFriday, January 22, 2010 Prime-Time Metered Market Thursday Ratings:CBS Wins; The Vampire Diaries on The CW Picks Up Steam Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air This Weekend:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: A Mousy Question ______________________________________________________________________ Note: Due to the NATPE conference in Las Vegas next week, The Programming Insider will not be published on Monday, Jan. 25 and Thursday, Jan. 28. But check out PIFeedback.com for the updated fast affiliate rating results.________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Thursday Ratings:CBS Wins; The Vampire Diaries on The CW Picks Up Steam Thursday 1/21/10 HH Rtg/Shr CBS 8.0/12ABC 7.2/11Fox 6.2/ 9NBC 3.7/ 6CW 2.4/ 4 ---------- -Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Thursday, January 22, 2009):Fox: +13, CW: + 4, ABC: + 3, CBS: no change, NBC: -18 ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:Bones (Fox), The Vampire Diaries (CW), Grey’s Anatomy (ABC), CSI (CBS), The Mentalist (CBS), Private Practice (ABC) -Honorable Mention:The Office (NBC) -Could Be Better/Could Be Worse:The Deep End (ABC) -Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats):Community (NBC), Parks and Recreation (NBC), The Jay Leno Show (NBC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:CBS led this third January Thursday in the overnights, with an 11 percent advantage over second-place ABC. But ABC could, of course, win the evening among adults 18-49 on the strength of Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice. Third overall was an improved Fox, followed by NBC and The CW, which has some bragging rights of its own. Fox opened the evening on a winning note care of underrated Bones, which rose to a 7.8 rating/12 share in the overnights without CBS’ veteran Survivor in the competitive 8 p.m. mix. In series-premiere news, ABC drama The Deep End got off to a sluggish start with a 5.3/ 8 -- 30 percent below the debut of prior time period occupant FlashForward on Sept. 24, 2009 (7.6/13). Considering most new shows drop in the vicinity of 10 to 20 percent in the second week, this is not all that impressive. Keep in mind that Survivor (themed Heroes vs. Villains) returns on Feb. 11 following a retrospective clips show one week earlier. Also populating the 8 p.m. hour were two repeat episodes of CBS’ riotous The Big Bang Theory (#3, avg. 4.9/ 8), NBC’s struggling Community (#4: 3.5/ 5) and Parks and Recreation (#4: 3.1/ 5), and The Vampire Diaries on The CW (#5: 2.9/ 4). This is, to my knowledge, the second highest-rated overnight performance to-date for The Vampire Diaries, which built by 16 percent from year-ago occupant Smallville (2.5/ 4 on Jan. 22, 2009). As for Parks and Recreation, which dipped by nine percent from failed Kath & Kim one year earlier (3.4/ 5), this is not the kind of mass appeal sitcom the network needs to make inroads. Community and Parks and Recreation, in fact, could not even beat The Big Bang Theory in repeats. At 9 p.m., ABC and CBS tied for top-rated overnight honors, with CSI and Grey’s Anatomy each at a 9.3/14. Grey’s Anatomy will, however, win the hour among adults 18-49. Also in the time period were NBC’s The Office (#3: 5.1/ 7), which always scores among adults 18-49, and 30 Rock (#4: 4.2/ 6), Fox’s Fringe (#4: 4.8/ 7), and Supernatural on The CW (#5: 2.0/ 3). Supernatural did not, unfortunately, benefit from the improved lead-in support. CBS’ The Mentalist, as always, closed the night on a winning overnight note, with a 10.0/16 at 10 p.m. But ABC’s Private Practice (#2: 7.2/12) is still expected to win the time period among adults 18-49. Last, and very least, was NBC failure The Jay Leno Show (#3: 3.3/ 5). Jay Leno, in fact, has broken The Programming Insider record books by being listed the most number of times as a loser. Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat)_____________________________________________________________________________ Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Record White Collar on USA:The winter premiere of USA drama White Collar kicked-off in its new Tuesday 10 p.m. hour as the top-rated program of the day on cable, with 4.7 million viewers. White Collar rose to a series-high performance among adults 18-49 (2.12 million), beating the fourth quarter 2009 average by 30 percent. And it lifted USA to its best performance in the time period among adults 25-54 (2.21 million) in more than five years. -Growing High School Reunion on TV Land:TV Land’s addictive High School Reunion picked up steam this week, with an increase of 55 percent among adults 25-54 (532,000) from the week-ago season-opener. Based on the network’s core 40-54 demographic, High School Reunion (322,000) also increased by 55 percent. Total viewership (788,000) was up by 38 percent, with the median age of 44. -No. 2 Dr. Oz:Based on the final national ratings for the week of Jan. 4, Sony Pictures Television’ Dr. Oz finished second behind Oprah among all talkers in households (3.2 rating) and women 25-54 (1.6/ 2 – tied with Dr. Phil). Compared to the already solid opening levels for the week of Sept. 14, Dr. Oz built by 33 percent in households, 23 percent in women 25-54 and 22 percent in women 18-49. Source: Nielsen Media Research data_______________________________________________________________________________ On the Air This Weekend:Prime-Time Programming Options Friday 1/22/10 ABC: 8:00 p.m. Supernanny 8:00 p.m. Hope for Haiti (2-hours)10:00 p.m. 20/20 CBS: 8:00 p.m. Hope for Haiti (2-hours)10:00 p.m. Numbers NBC: 8:00 p.m. Hope for Haiti (2-hours) 10:00 p.m. The Jay Leno Show Fox: 8:00 p.m. Hope for Haiti (2-hours) CW: 8:00 p.m. Hope for Haiti (2-hours) --------------- Saturday 1/23/10 ABC: 8:00 p.m. Grey’s Anatomy (R) 9:00 p.m. The Deep End (R)10:00 p.m. Castle (R) CBS: 8:00 p.m. CSI (R) 9:00 p.m. Criminal Minds (R)10:00 p.m. 48 Hours Mystery NBC: 8:00 p.m. Mercy (R) 9:00 p.m. U.S. Figure Skating Championships Fox: 8:00 p.m. Cops (original and repeat) 9:00 p.m. America’s Most Wanted --------------- Sunday 1/24/10 ABC: 7:00 p.m. America’s Funniest Home Videos 8:00 p.m. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (two hours)10:00 p.m. Desperate Housewives (R) CBS: 7:00 p.m. 60 Minutes 8:00 p.m. CSI: NY (R) 9:00 p.m. Cold Case (R)10:00 p.m. CSI: Miami (R) NBC: 7:00 p.m. Dateline (two hours) 9:00 p.m. AT&T Figure Skating Championships Fox: 7:00 p.m. NFC Championship Game ________________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -Conan Update:Its official…Conan O’Brien is exiting NBC’s The Tonight Show this evening, with a record number of viewers expected to tune in. The network has shelled out a reported $33 million to Conan, plus an additional $19.6 million in severance for sidekick Andy Richter, producer Jeff Ross and the staff members. Jay Leno will return as host on March 1, while Conan is free to return to the airwaves effective on September 1. Fox, of course, has expressed interest in a late night talker for Conan, but other reported networks putting feelers out include Comedy Central, FX, HBO, Showtime, TBS, TNT and USA. Jay Leno, meanwhile, is expected to appear on Oprah next week to try to repair his now damaged reputation. -Big Brother Fans, Take Note:Big Brother 11 winner Jordan Lloyd and her former housemate (and apparent boyfriend) Jeff Schroeder have a new TV gig: The Amazing Race. The reality love birds will be competing in the upcoming 16th edition of the Emmy winning reality/competition, which opens on CBS on Sunday, Feb. 14 at 8 p.m. ET. -The “Hoff” Heads to A&E:Recently ousted America’s Got Talent judge David Hasselhoff will be the subject of an untitled docu-reality series on A&E, which will air later this year. The show will take a behind-the-scenes look at Hasselhoff’s multiple entertainment and business endeavors and role as a single dad trying to help his teenage daughters’ break into the recording industry. It premieres later this year. -Upcoming on TNT:TNT has expanded its original programming slate with the acquisition of three additional new dramas: an untitled alien invasion series from DreamWorks Television and Steven Spielberg; Delta Blues, the story of a Memphis police officer (Jason Lee) who lives with his mother; and Rizzoli & Isles, with Angie Harmon as a Boston detective who works closely with a medical examiner (Sasha Alexander) to fight crimes. The Spielberg project features former ER star Noah Wyle as the leader of a group of soldiers and civilians struggling against an occupying alien force. Ten episodes have been ordered for each of the three series, with Delta Blues and Rizzoi & Isles scheduled to debut this year: and the Noah Wyle drama in 2011. -Scripps Networks Strikes Deal With Cablevision:Three weeks after their dispute, Scripps Networks and Cablevision have struck a deal for HGTV and The Food Network to return to the estimated 3.1 million subscribers. Scripps, initially, was looking to secure a 200 percent increase for coverage of the two cable nets. What this means, of course, is that my favorite guilty pleasure, House Hunters, is back!_________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:A Mousy Question Remember Topo Gogio, the cute little Italian mouse? What show did he make over 50 appearances on? a) The Ed Sullivan Showb) Howdy Doodyc) The Jackie Gleason Show d) Pee-wee’s Playhousee) The Shari Lewis Show The answer to yesterday’s question… What sitcom did Happy Days replace when it debuted on ABC on January 15, 1974? a) Bewitchedb) Paper Moonc) The Partridge Familyd) The Paul Lynde Show e) Temperatures Rising Is: e) Temperatures Rising, which exited after two seasons with two different casts. -Current kudos goes to:Gerry Bixenspan, Barbara Bloomfield, Paul Certo, Larry Collins, Tom Condosta, John Ferlazzo (2x), Maureen Goldman, Kerry Hughes, Bob Ingersoll, David Jackino, Ken Jobe, Synda Kollman, Steve Kurtzer, Tom Lawrenson, Jim Moore, Tony Naldrett, Gordon Purcell, Joe Rubi, David Ruckman, Greg Salerno, Ron Salmon, Maxine Schulman

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CBS Leads Thursday Overnights; Vampire Diaries on the Rise on The CW

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