O'Brien's last night
pulls huge numbers
Friday 'Tonight' show averages a 4.8 in adults 18-49s
By Toni Fitzgerald
Jan 25, 2010
If Conan O'Brien had been pulling these sort of numbers all along, perhaps Friday's show would not have been his last.
"The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" ended its tumultuous seven-month run with series-high ratings and off-the-chart buzz, following two weeks of rancor in which O'Brien essentially went to war with NBC after the network announced plans to move "Tonight" to 12:05 a.m. to make way for the return of Jay Leno.
"Tonight" averaged a jaw-dropping 4.8 adults 18-49 rating in the 11:35 p.m. timeslot, better than any show on the network this season save "Sunday Night Football" and "The Office." That's according to Nielsen's local people meter ratings in the top 25 markets.
O'Brien also averaged a 7.0 household rating, according to overnights, nearly three times his season average and even better than his rating on his first night on the job last summer.
That came after O'Brien scored his best week since June for the week ended Jan. 17, averaging a 1.4 18-49 rating and beating CBS's "The Late Show with David Letterman" by 40 percent.
Though O'Brien had been sniping at NBC in his monologues and skits ever since word came that the network was canceling "The Jay Leno Show" and moving O'Brien's predecessor back to late night, O'Brien's final night was more about thank yous.
He thanked NBC for its support over the years and thanked his fans and staff for their support, choking up at one point.
Still, there were a few NBC barbs. Pondering ways that his costly but now-vacant studio could be used, O'Brien suggested it remain "cold and empty and rename it 'The World's Largest Metaphor For NBC Programming.'"
O'Brien left after a very public showdown with NBC over its plan to move "Tonight." The network canceled "Leno" following pressure from affiliates, whose 11 p.m. newscasts were losing audience with the lower ratings for "Leno" at 10 p.m.
NBC wanted to keep both O'Brien and Leno, proposing that Leno take a half-hour show at 11:35 p.m. Once O'Brien refused the offer to move "Tonight," NBC negotiated an exit deal for him and reinstalled Leno as "Tonight" host. He will return in March, following the Olympics.
|
|
|
