Strong Opening Results for Game 1 of The World Series on Fox

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERThursday, October 29, 2009 Prime-Time Metered Market Wednesday Ratings:Strong Opening Results for Game One of The World Series on Fox Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman________________________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Wednesday Ratings:Strong Opening Results for Game One of The World Series on Fox Wednesday 10/28/09 HH Rtg/Shr Fox 13.1/21CBS 5.9/ 9NBC 4.2/ 7ABC 4.0/ 6CW 1.8/ 3 ---------- -Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Wednesday, October 29, 2008):Fox: +19, ABC: -11, NBC: -16, CW: -22, CBS: -26 ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:Baseball World Series, Game 1 (Fox) -Honorable Mention:Criminal Minds R (CBS), CSI: NY R (CBS), Modern Family (ABC) -Yesterday’s Losers:Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (NBC), The Middle (ABC), The Jay Leno Show (NBC), Eastwick (ABC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:Fox stood head and shoulders above the overnight competition last night care of game one of The Baseball World Series (Phillies 6, Yankees 1), which outdelivered second-place CBS by a hefty (and estimated) 7.2 rating points. In the distant No. 3 spot was NBC, followed by ABC and The CW. The soggy game one match-up averaged an estimated 13.1 rating/21 share in the overnights in primetime, with the half-hour breakdown as follows: Baseball World Series (Fox) 8:00 p.m.: 11.4/19 (#1) 8:30 p.m.: 12.8/21 (#1) 9:00 p.m.: 13.4/21 (#1) 9:30 p.m.: 14.7/23 (#1)10:00 p.m.: 15.2/24 (#1)10:30 p.m.: 10.0/16 (#1) – post-game Keep in mind, of course, that results for any live sporting event are approximate. Comparably, this was similar to game five of the Philadelphia versus Tampa Bay World Series match-up, which translated into 19.84 million viewers and a 6.2 rating/16 share among adults 18-49 based on the final Live Plus Same Day nationals on the year-ago evening (Oct. 29, 2008). Over at CBS, encore telecasts of 8-9 p.m. comedies The New Adventures of Old Christine (#2: 4.2/ 7) and Gary Unmarried (#2: 4.1/ 6) were close to original levels (which could be a positive sign for the eventual off-network runs). Repeats of Criminal Minds (#2: 6.9/11), which will be celebrating episode No. 100 on Nov. 25, and CSI: NY (#2: 6.7/11) were on the Eye net map from 9-11 p.m. despite the baseball competition. In the battle of the 8-8:30 p.m. holiday specials, the debut of NBC’s Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (#3: 3.8/ 6), which was nothing spectacular, inched past a repeat of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on ABC (#4: 3.5/ 6) by nine percent in the overnights. Next on NBC was an immediate repeat of Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (#4: 3.1/ 5 at 8:30 p.m.), followed by Law & Order: SVU (#3t, 5.1/ 8 at 9 p.m.), which was slightly below average opposite baseball, and ongoing flop The Jay Leno Show (#3: 3.9/ 6). The one bit of positive news for Leno was outdelivering ABC’s competing Eastwick (#4: 3.3/ 5) by 18 percent (which is still not saying much). Leading out of the encore telecast of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was ABC’s sitcom rotation as follows: ABC/Wednesday8:30 p.m. – The Middle: 3.7/ 6 (#3)9:00 p.m. – Modern Family: 5.4/ 8 (#3)9:30 p.m. – Cougar Town: 4.7/ 7 (#4) The good news for both Modern Family and Cougar Town was growth over the week-ago performances. Take a look at the six week overnight tracks: Modern Family (ABC)9/23/09: 7.8/129/30/09: 5.8/ 910/06/09: 5.1/ 810/13/09: 5.4/ 810/20/09: 4.9/ 810/27/09: 5.4/ 8 Cougar Town (ABC)9/23/09: 6.8/109/30/09: 5.5/ 910/06/09: 4.7/ 710/13/09: 4.8/ 810/20/09: 4.2/ 710/27/09: 4.7/ 7 But The Middle at 8:30 p.m. could not, unfortunately, beat a repeat of CBS’ Gary Unmarried. Word of advice to the producers of The Middle: don’t have little Brick whisper to himself anymore. What was cute early on has now become very tiresome. As for Modern Family, here is an early Emmy pick for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy: Eric Stonestreet, who continues to standout amongst the very talented ensemble cast. Over at The CW, tired America’s Next Top Model (#5: 2.6/ 4) led into a repeat of The Vampire Diaries (#5: 1.2/ 2), which has replaced encore telecasts of Melrose Place. Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Top Rated NBA Doubleheader on TNT:The two NBA match-ups on TNT this Tuesday, Oct. 27, Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers vs. Los Angeles Clippers, scored an above average 2.3 household rating and 3.7 million viewers. Comparably, that was the cable net’s top-rated doubleheader since Feb. 2, 1996. -Also on Tuesday:Sophomore FX drama Sons of Anarchy finished the evening as basic cable’s No. 1 program among adults 18-49 (2.39 million), edging out second-place The Hip-Hop Awards on BET (2.35 million). Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Thursday 10/29/09 ABC: 8:00 p.m. FlashForward 9:00 p.m. Grey’s Anatomy 10:00 p.m. Private Practice CBS: 8:00 p.m. Survivor: Samoa 9:00 p.m. CSI 10:00 p.m. The Mentalist NBC: 8:00 p.m. Community 8:30 p.m. Parks and Recreation 9:00 p.m. The Office 9:30 p.m. 30 Rock10:00 p.m. The Jay Leno Show Fox: 8:00 p.m. Baseball World Series, Game 2 (Yankees versus the Phillies) CW 8:00 p.m. The Vampire Diaries 9:00 p.m. Supernatural ______________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -ABC Retools Tuesday:Retooled sitcom Scrubs, which will shift from the hospital to a med school setting, and sophomore Better Off Ted will fill the Tuesday 9 p.m. hour in between seasons of Dancing With the Stars. Scrubs will return on Tuesday, Dec. 1 at 9 p.m. with back-to-back episodes on that evening, while Better Off Ted moves into the Tuesday 9:30 p.m. time period on Dec. 8. -NBC Changes:Freshman medical drama Trauma, which has floundered in the Monday 9 p.m. hour minus any lead-in support from relocated Heroes, will be concluding after the initial 13 episode order. But there is good news for fans of NBC’s Chuck, which is expected to fill in for Heroes at 8 p.m. in January. The upcoming third season episode order has been expanded from 13 to 19. -Marc Cherry Extends Deal With ABC:Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry has extended his deal with ABC that could keep the domestic dramedy on the air through the 2012-13 season. At present, the show’s core cast -- Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria Parker -- are only committed through next season, so ABC better have plenty more of the green stuff handy. Also signing a two-year extension is Housewives’ second-in-command, Bob Daily. Other potential projects for Cherry at ABC are a new dramedy and a multicamera comedy about two bothers, one gay and one straight, who share a gynecological practice. -Coming Up at truTV:Cable net truTV has ordered eight episodes of a yet-to-be titled series set behind-the-scenes at the Las Vegas Clark County Detention Center. Scheduled to premiere in January, the non-scripted series comes from Langley Productions, which produces Fox’s long-running Cops and truTV’s Inside American Jail. Next up at truTV, meanwhile, is Full Throttle Saloon, which is set at Michael Ballard’s legendary biker watering hole. It premieres on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 10 p.m. ET. -Glee’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” Goes Gold:The Glee cast’s rendition of Journey song “Don’t Stop Believin’” has just been certified for digital sales of more than 500,000 downloads. To-date, seven songs from Glee now occupy spots in the top 200 of iTunes Top Songs chart. With American Idol waiting in the wings for a January return, chances are you will see a Glee crossover. -SOAPnet Holiday Marathons:Relationship-driven non-scripted Holidate will be featured in a five episode marathon on SOAPnet themed “Home for the Holidates” beginning at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 26 -- Thanksgiving. One day later, everyone’s favorite rebel, Dylan McKay, will be the focus of an eight episode “Chillin’ With Dylan” Beverly Hills, 90210 marathon on Friday, Nov. 27. It begins at 1 p.m. ET. Leading into and out of the Dylan stunt will be episodes of Being Erica, including a sneak peak of the upcoming second season. -Coming Up on CBS in November:As we begin the official November 2009 sweeps period tonight, here are some programming items of note for the most-watched network, CBS: Specials-CBS/Strikeforce/M-1 Global Saturday Night Fights: Saturday, Nov. 7, 9 p.m. ET Guest Stars-Aida Turturro (The Sopranos) on Medium: Friday, Oct. 30, 9 p.m. ET-Daniel Baldwin and Michael Learned (The Waltons) on Cold Case: Sunday, Nov. 1, 10 p.m. ET-Marion Ross (Happy Days) on The New Adventures of Old Christine: Wednesday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. ET-Alan Thicke on How I Met Your Mother: Monday, Nov. 9, 8 p.m. ET-Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) on The New Adventures of Old Christine: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 8 p.m. ET-Lou Diamond Phillips on Numb3rs: Friday, Nov. 13, 10 p.m. ET-Mandy Patinkin on Three Rivers: Sunday, Nov. 15, 9 p.m. ET-Kadeem Hardison (A Different World) on Cold Case: Sunday, Nov. 15, 10 p.m. ET-Skeet Ulrich (Jericho) and actor/musician Nelly on CSI: NY: Wednesday, Nov. 18, 10 p.m. ET Miscellaneous: -CSI: Miami, CSI: NY and CSI cross-over episodes featuring Laurence Fishburne: week of Nov. 9-Criminal Minds – episode No. 100: Wednesday, Nov. 25, 9 p.m. ET _________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman What state did Mary Hartman live in? a) Connecticutb) Michiganc) New Jerseyd) Ohioe) Pennsylvania The answer to yesterday’s question… Which sitcom was anchoring NBC’s Thursday line-up right before The Cosby Show premiered in the fall of 1984? a) Cheersb) The Facts of Lifec) Family Tiesd) Gimme a Breake) Mama’s Family Is: d) Gimme a Break, with the late and great Nell Carter. All together now…Gimme a break I sure deserve it It's time I made it to the top. Gimme a break I’m looking forward Get behind me pull out every stop I want a happy ending I'm tried of pretending Won't let em get the best of me Wo wo wo wo Gimme a break the game is survival Gimme a break and plan my arrival Gimme a break for heaven's sake to my piece of the cake Gimme a break Gimme a break Gimme a break-Current kudos goes to:Mark Amato, Gerry Bixenspan, Larry Collins, Tom Condosta, John Ferlazzo, Bob Ingersoll, Ken Jobe, Tom Kilgallon, Synda Kollman, Mark Krause, Steven Kurtzer, Cyndy Murietta, Michael Natale, Alan Perris, Greg Phelan, Gordon Purcell, Colleen Roth, Joe Rubi

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Strong Opening Results for Game 1 of The World Series on Fox

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