Overnights
New heights for CBS's 'Old Christine'
By Toni Fitzgerald
Apr 1, 2008 - 11:48:10 AM

A mini-“Seinfeld” reunion boosted “The New Adventures of Old Christine” to a season-high rating last night in its season finale, and more importantly boosted the chances that the third-year show will air another season on CBS.

“Christine” averaged a 4.4 among adults 18-49, according to Nielsen overnights, topping its previous season best from two weeks ago by 0.1. The 9:30 p.m. show retained a solid 83 percent of its “Two and a Half Men” lead-in, easily winning its timeslot against ABC’s “The Bachelor” and NBC’s “Deal or No Deal.”

“Christine” stars “Seinfeld’s” Julia Louis-Dreyfus as a middle-aged divorcee, and in last night’s episode she was worried about starting menopause. Fellow “Seinfeld” star Jason Alexander, who himself had a Monday night sitcom on CBS some years back, appeared as Christine’s gynecologist.

The strong rating may push “Christine” into the renewal column for CBS, and at the very least should ensure that it returns on some network next year. Others are reportedly interested in the show if CBS drops it.

“Christine” also helped CBS to another Monday night win. It was first for the night among viewers 18-49 with a 4.4 average overnight rating and an 11 share. ABC was second at 4.0/10, NBC and Fox tied for third at 2.4/6, Univision took fifth at 1.9/5 and CW was sixth at 0.5/1.
 
ABC started the night in the lead with a 4.8 rating at 8 p.m. for the first hour of “Dancing with the Stars,” followed by CBS with a 3.6 for “The Big Bang Theory” (season-low 3.1) and “How I Met Your Mother” (4.0, bettering its season average for the third straight week). Fox was third with a 2.6 for a “House” rerun, Univision fourth with a 2.1 for “Al Diablo con los Guapos,” NBC fifth with a 1.3 for “My Dad is Better than Your Dad” and CW sixth with a 0.5 for a repeat of “Gossip Girl.”
 
At 9 p.m. CBS took the lead with a 4.8 average for “Men” (5.3) and “Christine” (4.4), while ABC slid to second with a 4.4 for the last portion of “Stars” (5.4) and the start of “The Bachelor” (3.4). NBC was third with a 2.7 for “Deal or No Deal,” Fox fourth with a 2.1 for “New Amsterdam,” Univision fifth with a 1.8 for “Pasion” and CW sixth with a 0.6 for “The Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious.”
 
CBS retained its lead at 10 p.m. with a 4.8 for “CSI: Miami” with NBC second with a 3.0 for “Medium.” ABC was third with a 2.7 for the last hour of “The Bachelor” and Univision fourth with a 1.8 for “Cristina.”
 
ABC did finish first for the night among households with a 9.5 average overnight rating and a 15 share, followed by CBS at 8.0/12, NBC at 5.1/8, Fox at 4.6/7, Univision at 2.2/3 and CW at 0.9/1.