ABC and Fox Top First Week in March

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERWednesday, March 10, 2010 Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:CBS Wins; Fox the Network to Beat Among Adults 18-49 National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of March 1, 2010 Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: Life Before Two and a Half Men ________________________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:CBS Wins; Fox the Network to Beat Among Adults 18-49 Tuesday 3/09/10 HH Rtg/Shr CBS 10.8/17Fox 9.8/15NBC 5.2/ 8ABC 4.5/ 7CW 1.2/ 2---------- -Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Tuesday, March 10, 2009):ABC: +50, CBS: +37, CW: + 9, NBC: -13, Fox: -30 ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:American Idol (Fox), NCIS (CBS), NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS), Lost (ABC), The Good Wife (CBS) -Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats):90210 (CW), Melrose Place (CW), The Forgotten (ABC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:Fox will, no doubt, win this second Tuesday in March among adults 18-49 thanks to American Idol. But CBS’ rock-solid combination of NCIS (#2: 12.0 rating/18 share), spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles (#1: 10.6/16) and The Good Wife (#1: 9.7/17) finished first for the evening based on the overnights. Paring down American Idol to one hour (and replacing the 9 p.m. portion with a repeat of Glee) cost Fox its overnight dominance. American Idol opened the evening for Fox with a first-place 14.8/22 in the overnights at 8 p.m., leading into the aforementioned Glee encore at a third-place 5.0/ 8 at 9 p.m. Compared to one year earlier (14.1/22 on March 10, 2009 – a two hour installment), veteran American Idol built by five percent. My prediction for the two female picks to depart tomorrow: Paige Miles and Katelyn Epperly. NBC’s The Biggest Loser, which always scores among adults 18-49, was on the Tuesday map with a 5.5/ 8 in the overnights from 8-10 p.m. But week two of lead-out Parenthood dipped to a second-place 4.5/ 8 at 10 p.m. -- 24 percent below it’s week-ago series opener (5.5/ 9 on March 2). Since ABC’s The Forgotten (3.6/ 6) finished last in the time period, Parenthood is not labeled a “loser.” But retention out of the 9:30 p.m. portion of The Biggest Loser (6.2/ 9) was a modest 73 percent. Let’s wait and see what happens next week. As for The Biggest Loser, here is the half-hour breakdown: The Biggest Loser (NBC)8:00 p.m.: 5.1/ 8 (#3)8:30 p.m.: 4.9/ 7 (#3)9:00 p.m.: 5.9/ 9 (#3)9:30 p.m.: 6.2/ 9 (#3) Over at ABC, demo friendly Lost finished second at 9 p.m. with a 6.9/10 (which should translate into a very respectable low-4 rating among adults 18-49; hence the “winners” listing). But ABC’s Tuesday problem remains the 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. time periods. A repeat of Lost finished fourth from 8-9 p.m., with a 3.2/ 5 in the overnights, while aforementioned The Forgotten fizzled at a last-place 3.6/ 6 at 10 p.m. The return of ABC’s V steps into the Tuesday 10 p.m. hour on March 30, following a clips edition one week earlier. The news was grim, meanwhile, on The CW, which aired original episodes of sophomore 90210 (#5: 1.4/ 2), which does not deserve a third season, and waiting-to-be-axed Melrose Place (#5: 0.9/ 1), which not even Heather Locklear can save. Not airing original episodes of either drama for three months was certainly not beneficial. Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat)_____________________________________________________________________________ National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of March 1, 2010 Led by top-rated The 82nd Annual Academy Awards, ABC finished this first week in March No. 1 in households and total viewers, with year-to-year growth of as much as 51 percent in total viewers. Keep in mind, of course, that the Academy Awards did not air during the year-ago week. Comparably, the 82nd annual festivities were the most-watched entertainment telecast on any network since Feb. 27, 2005, building by 5.0 million viewers from 2009. Also of note on ABC was the Monday season-finale of The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love at a hefty 15.15 million viewers (#10 overall) and a 5.3 rating/14 share among adults 18-49 (#8t). Three nights of American Idol was enough to keep Fox dominant in adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and adults 18-34, with an overall performance on par from one year earlier. Excluding a fourth-place finish among adults 18-34, CBS ranked third across the board, with minor losses. NBC was just the opposite (third in adults 18-34 and fourth elsewhere) at levels consistent to the year-ago week. But 90 percent of its schedule in repeats did not bode well for The CW, which dipped by margins of 25 to 35 percent. This week marked the debut of NBC’s revamped Monday to Friday 10 p.m. slate, which replaced failed Jay Leno Show. While I always say that one week does not a hit or miss make, there was optimistic news across the board for NBC, with each of the five series building from departed Mr. Leno. Take a look: Monday 9-11 p.m.Law & Order (NBC) – new day and time (two hours)Viewers: 7.76 million (#34), A18-49: 2.0/ 5 (#45t) Tuesday 10 p.m.Parenthood (NBC) – series premiereViewers: 8.10 million (#30), A18-49: 3.1/ 9 (#26t)Grade: B Wednesday 9-11 p.m.Law & Order: SVU (NBC) – new day and time (two hour episode)Viewers: 8.14 million (#27t), A18-49: 2.7/ 7 (#30t) Thursday 10 p.m.The Marriage Ref (NBC) – time period premiereViewers: 7.71 million (#35), A18-49: 3.4/10 (#18t)Grade: B Friday 9-11 p.m. (expanded to two hours)Dateline (NBC) Viewers: 7.11 million (#38), A18-49: 1.7/ 6 (#51t) In other season premiere news, NBC’s Who Do You Think You Are? opened with a modest 6.91 million viewers (#40) and a 1.6/ 6 among adults 18-49 (#55t) in the Friday 8 p.m. hour. Comparably, that tied CBS’ competing (and deteriorating) Ghost Whisperer in the demo, while trailing by 450,000 viewers. In season-premiere news, CBS sitcom Rules of Engagement was a solid fit out of How I Met Your Mother, with 9.72 million viewers (#22) and a 3.4/ 9 among adults 18-49 (#18t) in the Monday 8:30 p.m. half-hour. Comparably, retention out of How I Met Your Mother was 94 percent in total viewers and 89 percent in the demo. In specials news, not everything Oprah touches turns to ratings gold, with The Oprah Winfrey Oscar Special on ABC a bust in the Wednesday 10 p.m. hour, with just 4.34 million viewers (#70) and a 1.3/ 4 among adults 18-49 (#65t). Considerably stronger was Barbara Walters’ final Academy Awards themed special at its largest audience (Viewers: #11, 14.99 million; A18-49: #17, 3.6/10 on Sunday at 7 p.m.) in eight years. Here are the final national ratings for the week of March 1, 2010 (with percent change versus the comparable year-ago week in parentheses), followed by the top 30 rated programs of the week and the top rated networks on basic cable. -Households:ABC: 7.4 rating/12 share (+42), Fox: 6.5/11 (no change), CBS: 6.4/11 (- 9), NBC: 4.1/ 7 (+ 8), CW: 0.8/ 1 (-33) -Total Viewers: ABC: 12.09 million (+51), Fox: 11.26 (no change), CBS: 10.37 (- 8), NBC: 6.42 (+ 6), CW: 1.17 (-35) -Adults 18-49:Fox: 4.1 rating/11 share (no change), ABC: 3.8/11 (+41), CBS: 2.6/ 7 (- 7), NBC: 2.1/ 6 (- 5), CW: 0.5/ 1 (-29) -Adults 25-54:Fox: 4.6/12 (- 4), ABC: 4.4/11 (+37), CBS: 3.5/9 (- 5), NBC: 2.5/ 6 (- 4), CW: 0.5/ 1 (-29) -Adults 18-34:Fox: 3.4/11 (- 3), ABC: 3.2/10 (+45), NBC: 1.7/ 6 (no change), CBS: 1.6/ 5 (- 6), CW: 0.6/ 2 (-25) -------------------- Top 30 Rankings -Total Viewers:The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (ABC): 41.70 million, Oscar’s Red Carpet (ABC): 25.33, American Idol – Wednesday (Fox): 23.65 million, American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 23.53, NCIS (CBS): 19.62, American Idol – Thursday (Fox): 19.42, Two and a Half Men (CBS): 16.86, The Big Bang Theory (CBS): 15.73, CSI (CBS): 15.59, The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love (ABC, season finale): 15.15, The Barbara Walters Special (14.99), The Mentalist (CBS):14.87, NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS): 14.84, The Bachelor: After the Finale Rose (ABC): 13.91, The Good Wife (CBS): 13.32, Criminal Minds (CBS): 13.00, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains (CBS): 12.72, NCIS: NY (CBS): 12.35, CSI: Miami (CBS): 12.07, Grey’s Anatomy (ABC): 11.83, How I Met Your Mother (CBS): 10.37, Rules of Engagement (CBS, season premiere): 9.72, Lost (ABC): 9.29, The Office (NBC): 9.02, 24 (Fox): 8.63, The Biggest Loser (NBC): 8.27, Numb3rs (CBS) and Law & Order: SVU (NBC, Wed. 10 p.m. time period premiere): 8.14 each, The Amazing Race (CBS): 8.11, Parenthood (NBC, series premiere): 8.10 -Adults 18-49:The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (ABC): 13.3 rating/33 share, American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 8.6/22, American Idol – Wednesday (Fox): 8.5/23, Oscar’s Red Carpet (ABC): 6.9/19, American Idol – Thursday (Fox): 6.5/19, The Big Bang Theory (CBS): 5.9/14, Two and a Half Men (CBS): 5.7/14, The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love (ABC, season finale) and The Bachelor: After the Finale Rose (ABC): 5.3/14 each, The Office (NBC): 4.7/12, Lost (ABC): 4.1/10, NCIS (CBS) and Grey’s Anatomy (ABC): 4.0/11 each, How I Met Your Mother (CBS): 3.9/11, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains (CBS): 3.8/11, CSI (CBS): 3.7/10, Barbara Walters Oscar Special (ABC): 3.6/10, The Marriage Ref (NBC, time period premiere): 3.4/10, Rules of Engagement (CBS, season premiere), CSI: Miami (CBS), Criminal Minds (CBS) and Modern Family (ABC): 3.4/ 9 each, Kitchen Nightmares (Fox): 3.3/ 9, The Mentalist (CBS): 3.2/ 9, The Biggest Loser (NBC): 3.2/ 8, Parenthood (NBC, series premiere): 3.1/ 9, NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS): 3.1/ 8, CSI: NY (CBS): 3.0/ 9, Family Guy R (Fox, Sun. 9:30 p.m.): 2.8/ 7, The Good Wife (CBS), private Practice (ABC) and Family Guy R (Fox, Sun. 9 p.m.): 2.7/ 8 each, Law & Order: SVU (NBC, Wed. 10 p.m. time period premiere): 2.7/ 7 CABLE What follows are the top 10 rated networks on cable in prime-time for the week of Feb 22 based on total viewers and the three key demos: Total Viewers:USA: 2.94 million, Fox News: 2.24, TNT: 1.82, TBS: 1.75, History: 1.74, Nick at Nite: 1.67, ABC Family: 1.51, ESPN and A&E: 1.47 each, HGTV: 1.25 Adults 18-49:USA: 1.15 million, TBS: 1.11 million, TNT: 876,000, History: 818,000, ESPN: 678,000, A&E: 669,000, FX: 660,000, ABC Family: 643,000, Comedy Central: 559,000, Discovery: 548,000 Adults 25-54:USA: 1.26 million, History: 909,000, TBS and TNT: 894,000 each, A&E: 701,000, ESPN: 663,000, Syfy: 597,000, ABC Family: 583,000, FX: 581,000, Discovery and Fox News: 543,000 each Adults 18-34:TBS: 674,000, USA: 508,000, MTV and TNT: 400,000 each, Comedy Central and History Channel: 352,000 each, FX: 349,000, ESPN: 335,000, ABC Family: 323,000, A&E: 296,000 Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Academy Awards Boost the Syndie Magazines:Ignited by coverage of The 82nd Annual Academy Awards, growth was the operative observation for the syndicated magazine strips in the metered markets on Monday, March 8. Here are the weighted overnight averages for Monday (with percent change in rating from one week earlier in parentheses): Entertainment Tonight (CBS Television Distribution): 5.7 rating/10 share (+27), Inside Edition (CBS): 3.4/ 7 (+ 6), Access Hollywood (NBC Universal): 3.2/ 6 (+28), Extra (Warner Bros.): 2.6/ 5 (+24), The Insider (CBS): 2.2/ 5 (+16), TMZ (Warner Bros): 2.1/ 4 (no change) ---------- -Updated National Ratings in Syndication:What follows are the final national ratings in households in syndication (first-run and off-network) for the week of Feb. 22: Wheel of Fortune (CBS Television Distribution): 7.4 rating, Jeopardy (CBS): 6.4, Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros.): 5.5, Judge Judy (CBS) and Oprah (CBS): 4.7 each, Entertainment Tonight (CBS): 4.2, Wheel of Fortune – Weekend (CBS): 3.7, Family Guy (Twentieth Television): 3.6, CSI: NY (CBS): 3.3, Inside Edition (CBS), The Office (NBC Universal) and Two and a Half Men – Weekend (Warner Bros.): 3.1 each, Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBCU): 3.0, Seinfeld (Sony Pictures Television) and George Lopez (Warner Bros.): 2.8 each, Live With Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC) and Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS): 2.7 each, Dr. Oz (SPT), Dr. Phil (CBS), Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (Disney-ABC), King of the Hill (Twentieth), CSI: Miami (CBS) and Seinfeld – Weekend (SPT): 2.6 each ---------- -iCarly Leads the Friday Troops:Nickelodeon sensation iCarly, a Morgan Berman favorite, topped basic cable overall on Friday, March 5 in total viewers (5.3 million), kids 2-11 (3.0 million), kids 6-11 (2.4 million) and tweens 9-14 (1.9 million), building from the year-ago Friday 8 p.m. time period by as much as 126 percent in tweens. Recently introduced lead-out Big Time Rush scored its highest-rated and most-watched telecast since premiering on Jan. 18 in total viewers, kids 2-11 (2.4 million), kids 6-11 (1.9 million) and tweens 9-14 (1.5 million). Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Wednesday 3/10/10 ABC: 8:00 p.m. Scrubs 8:30 p.m. The Middle 9:00 p.m. Modern Family 9:30 p.m. Cougar Town 10:00 p.m. Ugly Betty CBS: 8:00 p.m. The New Adventures of Old Christine 8:30 p.m. Gary Unmarried 9:00 p.m. Criminal Minds 10:00 p.m. CSI: NY NBC: 8:00 p.m. Mercy 9:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (R)10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU Fox: 8:00 p.m Human Target 9:00 p.m. American Idol CW 8:00 p.m. America’s Next Top Model (season premiere, 90 minutes) 9:30 p.m. High Society (Premiere) Also of note is the series-premiere of relationship driven First Love, Second Chance on TV Land at 10 p.m. ET. ----- New Program Descriptions High Society (CW)The “Park Avenue Princess,” Tinsley Mortimer, and her circle of New York friends is the focus of this new reality docudrama. -The Scoop:Given The CW’s target audience, young females, and the current appetite for non-scripted melodramas, it makes perfect sense for the network to try to cash in on it. -The Reality:Airing out of a 90-minute installment of America’s Next Top Model for the next two weeks offers lead-in support (High Society moves to 9 p.m. Wednesday on March 24 into new non-scripted half-hour Fly Girls). But competing opposite Fox’s American Idol will be no easy feat. -Odds of Survival for High, Society (Based on 1-1 to 10-1):7-1______________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -More Undercover Boss:CBS has renewed recently introduced Undercover Boss for a second season, with an undetermined number of new episodes for the 2010-11 season. Previewing following the Super Bowl at a record 38.7 million viewers, Undercover Boss now ranks as the biggest new series premiere since 1987, while outdelivering ABC’s competitive Desperate Housewives in its first two head-to-head battles. -KISS Partners With E1 Entertainment:Legendary rock band KISS, featuring the one and only Gene Simmons, has finalized a production and development deal with independent studio E1 Entertainment for a comedic half-hour kids -oriented television series. -TV Land Announces Airdate for The 8th Annual TV Land Awards:The 8th Annual TV Land Awards, which pays tribute to past and current TV favorites, will air on Sunday, April 25 at 9 p.m. ET. _________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Life Before Two and a Half Men Which one of the following five series did not feature an actor or actress from current CBS hit Two and a Half Men? Bosom BuddiesThe Famous Teddy ZThe Hot L Baltimore Once and AgainSports Night The answer to yesterday’s question… What did Harriette Winslow do for a living on sitcom Perfect Strangers? Administrative assistant Bus driver Elevator operator Telephone solicitor Waitress Is: c) Elevator operator. Two seasons into Perfect Strangers, Jo Marie Payton-France was spun-off into Family Matters, which started off as a warm and fuzzy family sitcom and quickly morphed into “The Steve Urkel Show.” Needless to say, Payton-France was not pleased. All together now… Sometimes the world looks perfect, Nothing to rearrange. Sometimes you get a feeling Like you need some kind of change. No matter what the odds are this time, Nothing's going to stand in my way. This flame in my heart, And a long lost friend Gives every dark street a light at the end. Standing tall, on the wings of my dream. Rise and fall, on the wings of my dream. The rain and thunder The wind and haze I'm bound for better days. It's my life and my dream, Nothing's going to stop me now. -Current kudos goes to:Suzanne Ackley, Steve Albright, Dino Alexander, Gerry Bixenspan, Michael Cerafini, Larry Collins, Tom Condosta, Kay Copeland, Audrey Davis, Reid Davis, John Ferlazzo, Arleen Fong, Karen Gardner, Adam Giagni, Maureen Goldman, Robert Gori, Michelle Harrington, Shannon Herlihy, Bob Ingersoll, David Jackino, Cara Jacobs, Greg Janover, Kevin Jones (2x), Deb Kainer, Tom Kilgallon, Kristopher Koller, Synda Kollman, Mark Krause, Andi Kupersmith, Steve Kurtzer, Charmaine Leary, Patty Lynch, Michael Murphy, Jay Ogletree, Aaron Paquette, Alan Perris, Sandra Pettway, Greg Phelan, Mary Politano, Francine Purcell, Michael Ratliffe, Con Rigg, Joe Rubi, Ron Salmon, Marc Schacher, Sonya Shaw, Maxine Shulman (2x), Michelle Stanton, Julie Stowell, Ronnie Tallant, Meredith Wayne, Myndi Weinraub

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ABC and Fox Top First Week in March

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