The Hurt Locker Dominates The Oscars

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERMonday, March 8, 2010 Primetime Ratings:Weekend Highlights Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time:Solo Shows_______________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Ratings:Weekend Highlights Friday 3/05/10Note: The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data). HH Rtg/Shr CBS 4.9/ 9NBC 4.7/ 9ABC 3.9/ 7Fox 2.1/ 4CW 0.9/ 2 -Total Viewers:CBS: 7.79 million, NBC: 7.06, ABC: 5.79, Fox: 3.58, CW: 1.39 -Adults 18-49:CBS and NBC: 1.7 rating/6 share, ABC: 1.4/ 5, Fox: 1.2/ 4, CW: 0.6/ 2 -------------------- Note: Any prior rating results are based on the final nationals. Since the level of DVR penetration has increased from 27 percent at this same point last year to approximately 33 percent at present, the overall results may be negatively impacted. ---------- -Friday’s Winners:Nothing -Friday’s Losers (excluding repeats):The night overall. Sadly, Friday looks more and more like deteriorating Saturday every week. ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:CBS was the most-watched network on this first Friday in March, while CBS and NBC tied for No. 1 among adults 18-49. But with fewer than 8 million viewers and just a 1.7 rating in the demo for the dominant network, Friday, no doubt, is in need of a complete overhaul next season. In series-premiere news, NBC’s Who Do You Think You Are? finished second in the 8 p.m. hour with 6.85 million viewers and a 1.6 rating/6 share among adults 18-49. Had this been Monday through Thursday, I would have considered this a “loser,” but for low level Friday it could be worse. Let’s see what happens next week. Who Do You Think You Are? led into a two-hour edition of Dateline, which averaged 7.17 million viewers and a 1.7/ 6 among adults 18-49 from 9-11 p.m., building by half-hour as follows: Dateline (NBC)9:00 p.m. – Viewers: 6.48 million (#2), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#2t)9:30 p.m. – Viewers: 6.71 million (#2), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#2t)10:00 p.m. – Viewers: 7.50 million (#2), A18-49: 1.8/ 6 (#2t)10:30 p.m. – Viewers: 7.98 million (#2), A18-49: 2.0/ 7 (#1) In the 10 p.m. hour, Dateline averaged 7.74 million viewers (#2) and a dominant 1.9/ 6 among adults 18-49, which was a marked improvement over recent time period occupant The Jay Leno Show. One week into its new weeknight 10 p.m. strategy, and Law & Order, Parenthood, Law & Order: SVU, The Marriage Ref and Dateline all scored double-digit percent gains over Leno (who seems to be settling in right back into late night). CBS aired its regularly scheduled combination of Ghost Whisperer (Viewers: #1, 7.39 million; A18-49: #1, 1.7/ 6), Medium (Viewers: #1, 7.88 million; A18-49: #1, 1.9/ 6) and Numb3rs (Viewers: #1, 8.10 million; A18-49: #2, 1.7/ 6), which airs what could be its final episode next Friday. Coming up on April 2 at 10 p.m.: new Jerry Bruckheimer drama Miami Medical. ABC had little of note with its line-up of Supernanny (Viewers: #3, 4.36 million; A18-49: #3, 1.2/ 4), which loses the time period effective on March 26 to returning Wife Swap, and a two-hour edition of 20/20, which took a backseat to competing Dateline. 20/20 averaged 6.51 million viewers and a 1.5/ 5 among adults 18-49 from 9-11 p.m., with the half-hour breakdown as follows: 20/20 (ABC)9:00 p.m. – Viewers: 6.03 million (#3), A18-49: 1.4/ 5 (#2t)9:30 p.m. – Viewers: 6.53 million (#3), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#2t)10:00 p.m. – Viewers: 6.98 million (#3), A18-49: 1.6/ 5 (#3)10:30 p.m. – Viewers: 6.48 million (#3), A18-49: 1.6/ 5 (#3) Elsewhere, Fox aired repeats of House (Viewers: #4, 3.67 million; A18-49: #4, 1.0/ 4) and Kitchen Nightmares (Viewers: #4, 3.49 million; A18-49: #2t, 1.4/ 4). And The CW capped off the evening with back-to-back episodes of just renewed Smallville (Viewers: #5, avg. 1.39 million; A18-49: #5, avg. 0.6/ 2 from 8-10 p.m.). And there you have it…that’s Friday. Source: Nielsen Media Research data -------------------- Saturday 3/06/10Note: The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data). HH Rtg/Shr CBS 4.1/ 8Fox 3.5/ 6NBC 2.9/ 5ABC 2.6/ 5 -Total Viewers:CBS: 6.33 million, Fox: 5.93, NBC: 4.44, ABC: 3.81 -Adults 18-49:Fox: 1.9 rating/7 share, CBS: 1.2/ 4, NBC: 1.1/ 4, ABC: 0.7/ 2 --------------- -Saturday’s Winners: America’s Most Wanted (Fox) – 1000th episode -Saturday’s Losers (excluding repeats):The night overall, as usual. ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:It was mundane Saturday business as usual, with CBS the most-watched network (at just over six million viewers) and Fox No. 1 among adults 18-49 (at under a 2-rating in the demo). CBS aired repeats of NCIS (Viewers: #1, 6.17 million; A18-49: #2, 1.0 rating/4 share) and CSI: Miami (Viewers: #2, 5.72 million; A18-49: #2, 1.1/ 4) from 8-10 p.m., followed by 48 Hours Mystery at 7.09 million viewers (#1) and a 1.4/ 5 among adults 18-49 (#1t) at 10 p.m. Fox, of course, ran its perennial combination of Cops (original and repeat – Viewers: #2, avg. 6.07 million; A18-49: #1, avg. 2.0/ 7 from 8-9 p.m.) and the 1000th episode of America’s Most Wanted (Viewers: #1, 5.80 million; A18-49: #1, 1.8/ 6). That accomplishment alone makes America’s Most Wanted a “winner.” Congratulations, John Walsh and company. Elsewhere, and there was very little, NBC populated this first Saturday in March with repeats of the pilot episode of Parenthood (Viewers: #4, 3.27 million; A18-49: #4, 0.8/ 3), Law & Order (Viewers: #3, 4.77 million; A18-49: #3, 1.0/ 3) and Law & Order: SVU (Viewers: #2, 5.28 million; A18-49: #1t, 1.4/ 5). And ABC closed the night with encore telecasts of 20/20: Before They Were Stars (Viewers: #3, 4.17 million; A18-49: #3, 0.7/ 3), An Oprah Winfrey Oscar Special (Viewers: #4, 3.41 million; A18-49: #4, 0.7/ 2) and Castle (Viewers: #3, 3.85 million; A18-49: #3, 0.7/ 2). Apparently, not everything Oprah touches turns into ratings gold! Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) ------------------------- Sunday 3/07/10Note: New York is excluded from the following averages. HH Rtg/Shr ABC 22.7/35CBS 4.2/ 6Fox 2.8/ 4NBC 2.7/ 4 ---------- -Note: Comparisons to the year-ago evening are not available. ---------- Note: The fast affiliate results for Sunday will be posted at PIFeedback.com by 12 p.m. ET. Go to the website, click on Ratings Box (the first category), then Last Night’s Results, and Sunday, March 7, 2010. ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:Barbara Walters Special (ABC), Oscar Red Carpet Special (ABC), The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (ABC) -Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats): Outside of ABC, it was slim pickings. -----------Ratings Breakdown:It was all about ABC, of course, last night, with The 82nd Annual Academy Awards averaging an approximate 27.4 rating/41 share in the overnights from 8:30 p.m. -11:30 p.m. Results in the 11:30 p.m. half hour were not available, nor were overall results on WABC in New York, which did not begin airing the telecast until 8:43 p.m. ET. Comparably, the 27.4/41 built from the year-ago telecast (22.9/36 on Feb. 22, 2009) by a very noticeable 20 percent. And it beat the four competing networks combined (for the prime-time portion) by an estimated 182 percent. How is that for dominance? Here is the half-hour breakdown: The 82nd Annual Academy Awards (ABC) 8:30 p.m.: 25.5/38 9:00 p.m.: 28.2/41 9:30 p.m.: 28.0/4010:00 p.m.: 28.2/4210:30 p.m.: 27.2/4111:00 p.m.: 27.1/44 Earlier in the evening on ABC was the final Oscar themed Barbara Walters Special (#1: 13.4/22 from 7-8 p.m.), followed by the half-hour Oscar Red Carpet Special at a very dominant 18.3/28 in the overnights at 8 p.m. Comparably, the Barbara Walters sit-down with Sandra Bullock and Mo’Nique built by a hefty 58 percent from one year earlier (8.5/14 on Feb. 22, 2009), while The Red Carpet Special increased by 10 percent. Mirroring awards season, the imperative observation at present is growth. Distant No. 2 CBS opened with granddaddy 60 Minutes at a season-low 3.8/ 6 in the overnights in the 7 p.m. hour, which tied a repeat of NBC’s Dateline for second. Lead-out The Amazing Race (#2: 5.3/ 8 at 8 p.m.) also took its toll opposite ABC, but growth out of 60 Minutes was 39 percent. Thankfully, last night was a non-elimination round (which means that Big Brother lovebirds Jeff and Jordan get another chance). Also airing on the Eye net were repeats of Undercover Boss (#2: 4.4/ 7) and Cold Case (#2: 3.5/ 6) from 9-11 p.m. Fox burned-off two more original episodes of sitcom ‘Til Death from 7-8 p.m. (#4: avg. 1.9/ 3), followed by two repeat episodes each of The Simpsons (#3: avg. 3.1/ 4) and Family Guy (#3: avg. 3.5/ 5) from 8-10 p.m. Why Fox bothered to even renew ‘Til Death is a mystery. Over at NBC, the aforementioned Dateline encore ran for 90-minutes and scored a non-competitive 3.9/ 6 in the overnights from 7-8:30 p.m. That led into a repeat of theatrical Bad Boys II at a mere 1.9/ 3 from 8:30-11 p.m. Source: Nielsen Media Research data____________________________________________________________________________ Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Strong Results for Bravo on Thursday:The season-finale of Bravo staple The Real Housewives of Orange Country concluded on Thursday, March 4 with a record 2.45 million viewers, and an also series-high 1.81 million adults 18-49 at 9 p.m. On the same night, the third season-premiere of The Real Housewives of New York City at 10 p.m. was also on the plus side, building by 400,000 total viewers (2.04 million vs. 1.64 million) and 230,000 viewers in the demo (1.45 million vs. 1.22 million) compared to the second season opener (on Feb. 17, 2009). The occupants of Orange County will appear in a two-part reunion show on Bravo on Wednesday and Thursday at 9 p.m. ET this week. Source: Nielsen Media Research data____________________________________________________________________________ On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Monday 3/0810 ABC: 8:00 p.m. The Bachelor: Jason and Molly’s Wedding10:00 p.m. Castle CBS: 8:00 p.m. How I Met Your Mother 8:30 p.m. Rules of Engagement 9:00 p.m. Two and a Half Men 9:30 p.m. The Big Bang Theory 10:00 p.m. CSI: Miami NBC: 8:00 p.m. Chuck 9:00 p.m. Trauma (return)10:00 p.m. Law & Order Fox: 8:00 p.m. House 9:00 p.m. 24 CW: 8:00 p.m. Life Unexpected (new time period) 9:00 p.m. Gossip Girl (return) _____________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -More Series Renewals:Three networks -- ABC, NBC and Fox -- have been busy renewing more series for 2010-11, including ABC’s Brothers & Sisters; Fox’s Fringe; and Community, The Office and 30 Rock on NBC. Community is now the 9th freshman series to be picked-up. The others, to-date, are ABC’s Modern Family, The Middle and Cougar Town; CBS’ NCIS: Los Angeles and The Good Wife; Fox’s Glee and The Cleveland Show; and The Vampire Diaries on The CW. -Brooke Burke Named New Co-Host of DWTS:Season seven champion Brooke Burke will fill the co-hosting shoes of departed Samantha Harris on the upcoming spring edition of ABC’s Dancing With the Stars, which begins on Monday, March 22. -82nd Annual Academy Award Winners:The Hurt Locker, as expected, was the big winner at The 82nd Annual Academy Awards last night, with six wins, including Kathryn Bigelow as the first woman to win the best director Oscar (over her ex- husband James Cameron -- who was also competing for his direction of Avatar). Avatar walked away with three Academy Awards (visual effects, cinematography and art direction), while urban drama Precious snagged Oscars for Best Supporting Actress (Mo’Nique) and Adapted Screenplay. Crazy Heart also won two trophies (Jeff Bridges for Lead Actor and Ryan Bingham for Best Song), while the sole victory for Inglorious Basterds was for Christoph Waltz as Best Supporting Actor. Unlike prior years when there is a surprise or two among the four acting categories, the predicted winners all proved victorious. The bigger drama in the No. 1 market, New York, was whether or not WABC would settle its fee dispute with Cablevision and air the telecast. Thirteen minutes into The Oscars (at 8:43 p.m., to be exact), the signal was back and countless New Yorkers (included myself) traded their PCs for a fuller view of the festivities. WABC has pulled the signal at 12:01 a.m. yesterday As always, The Academy Awards were overly long, with the bloated presentation of The Best Actor and Actress particularly frustrating. At that point, we just wanted to see Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock give their acceptance speeches instead of including five actors in each category gloating about the nominees. Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin were adequate as hosts, and there was not a fashion disaster to be found among the masses gathered at the famed Kodak Theatre in Hollywood (although that Funny Lady, Barbra Streisand, was pretty close). But a glaring omission, at least from my perspective, was not including Farrah Fawcett and Bea Arthur during the memoriam montage. If Michael Jackson was part of it, so should have been Fawcett and Arthur. Here is a complete listing of the winners: Best…-Picture: The Hurt Locker -Lead Actor: Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)-Lead Actress: Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)-Director: Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)-Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Inglorious Basterds)-Supporting Actress: Mo’Nique (Precious)-Foreign Language Film: The Secret in Their Eyes (Argentina)-Animated Feature: Up-Animated Short Film: Logorama-Live Action Short Film: The New Tenants -Adapted Screenplay: Precious-Original Screenplay: The Hurt Locker-Art Direction: Avatar-Costume Design: The Young Victoria -Cinematography: Avatar-Documentary Feature: The Cove-Documentary Short: Music By Prudence-Film Editing: The Hurt Locker-Make-Up: Star Trek-Original Score: Up-Original Song: The Weary Kind (Crazy Heart)-Sound Editing: The Hurt Locker-Sound Mixing: The Hurt Locker-Visual Effects: Avatar ______________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Solo Shows Which one of the following five dramas never spun-off a series of its own? a) Dallasb) Dynastyc) Miami Viced) Murder, She Wrotee) Hill Street Blues The answer to Friday’s question… Which one of the following actors replaced James Caan on the final season of Las Vegas? Ed AsnerAnthony Edwards Ed O’NeillTom SelleckRobert Wagner Is: d) Tom Selleck, who was not successful infusing any new interest in this tired drama. -Current kudos goes to:Mark Amato, Janice Barney, Matthew Berriman, Gerry Bixenspan, Kimay Bloch (2x), Barbara Bloomfield, Jocelyn Brandeis, Larry Collins, Mark Cosenza, Audrey Davis, James Davison, Ric Dittman, Maureen Doherty, Mike Dugger, John Ferlazzo, Arleen Fong, Adam Giagni, Bob Goldman, Maureen Goldman, Robert Gori, Barb Hemberger, Shannon Herlihy, Jerry Hermes, Michael Holland, Amy Honig, Bob Ingersoll, Greg Janover, Michael Johnson, Deb Kainer, Marie LeFevre Karp, Kristopher Koller, Andi Kupersmith, Steven Kurtzer, Stephen LaRue, Tom Lawrenson, Charmaine Leary, Rick Locke, Patty Lynch, Kathy Martin, Charlene Maville, Lisa Menin, Gene Miller, Jim Moore, Michael Natale, Alan Perris, Alex Petrilli, Jr., Greg Phelan, Mary Politano, Francine Purcell, Con Rigg, Joe Rubi, David Rickman, Ron Salmon, Judy Schrader, Christina Schrenk, Maxine Shulman, Kristen Signore, Michelle Stanton, Julie Stowell, Julie Syers, Ronnie Tallant, Carol Teichman, Jodi Titkin, Nina Tomlinson, Tammy Wiard, Ged Young

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The Hurt Locker Dominates The Oscars

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