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College basketball action on CBS was overshadowed by the Rosie O'Donnell interview on ABC's "Primetime" last night, though repeats of NBC's regular lineup easily took both adults 18-49 and households. NBC posted a 7.0 adult 18-49 rating, ABC had a 4.4, CBS a 4.3 and Fox a 2.0, based on preliminary Nielsen ratings. At 8 p.m. a repeat of NBC's "Friends" outdrew all its competition combined, though a new "Leap of Faith" dropped 27 percent of its adult 18-49 audience to finish with a 7.0 in the demo. Though it started with a small 3.6 among adults 18-49 in its first hour, NCAA coverage on CBS shot up to a 4.9 the next hour, tying the first half of ABC's "Primetime." At 10 p.m. a rerun of NBC's "ER" edged the second hour of "Primetime" by a full rating point, while CBS's basketball came in a distant third. The average household rating and share for Thursday night were: NBC 10.1/16, ABC 8.8/14, CBS 7.0/11, and Fox 2.9/5. On Wednesday, despite its somewhat misleading name, "Celebrity Boxing" proved to be one of Fox's most-watched broadcasts of the season, drawing 15.5 million viewers. Only the World Series, the Super Bowl and the TV premiere of "Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" drew more viewers to Fox this season, even though the "celebrities" in question were on the order of Tonya Harding and Vanilla Ice. CBS still took younger viewers with a 5.7 adult 18-49 rating. Fox had a 5.3, NBC a 4.8 and ABC a 3.3, based on preliminary Nielsen ratings. At 9 p.m. "Celebrity Boxing" garnered a 7.2 adult 18-49 rating for the hour. But "The Amazing Race 2," helped by its "Survivor: Marquesas" lead-in, was not far behind with a 5.9 in adults 18-49, though it did slip 5 percent in its second half-hour. That was a big improvement over the 3.9 it pulled in on Monday's season premiere. A repeat of "The West Wing" on NBC came in third place with a 5.0 adult 18-49 rating, but "Law & Order" retook first at 10 p.m. with a 6.7 in the demo. The average household rating and share for Wednesday night were: NBC 10.0/16, CBS 8.0/13, Fox 7.0/11 and ABC 5.5/9.
Andrea Thompson departs Headline News
After joining CNN Headline News amidst quite a bit of controversy, anchor and former actress Andrea Thompson quietly resigned yesterday. Thompson did not feel she was developing into her anchor role as she would have liked, according to reports. She joined last June after just 11 months of journalism experience at KRQE-TV in Albuquerque. Previously she spent four years as Detective Jill Kirkendall on ABC's "NYPD Blue," in addition to roles on "JAG," "Baywatch," and HBO's "Arli$$," where her nude appearance quickly became fodder for newsgroups and online gossip hounds. Her hire by newly appointed CEO of Turner Broadcasting Jamie Kellner, an executive with an entertainment background given permission to jazz up CNN's low-rated Headline News, provoked outcries by journalists incensed by the apparent dilution of their profession. Sophia Choi will take over Thompson's role for the time being.
Report: Jealous CBS rethinking its liquor ban
With liquor dollars now flowing to NBC, CBS is starting to get thirsty. The Viacom-owned network is now in talks with Diageo, NBC's charter spirits advertiser, according to USA Today. Meanwhile, two other spirits companies, Brown-Forman and Allied Domecq, may start running late-night spots on NBC soon. The network, which dropped its decades-old policy banning liquor ads in December, has placed a bevy of restrictions on would-be booze advertisers, requiring them to air messages promoting responsible drinking and prohibiting them from using athletes as spokespeople. Even so, NBC's new policy has met with considerable opposition. The American Medical Association criticized the network in a print campaign, and a group of House members wrote a letter to the network threatening to create legislation banning spirits advertising from network TV.
Hallmark Channel aims to crack cable top 10
The Hallmark Channel has set its sights on becoming a top-10 cable network within two years, network executives declared this week. To reach that goal, the network plans to quadruple its spending on original programming this year. Much of that spending will go towards producing 24 original movies. Unlike the period pieces and costume dramas for which the Hallmark Channel is chiefly known, most of the new movies will take place in the present and explore modern themes. The network will also produce more specials, making its first foray into sports programming with the "Hallmark Skating Championship" this December. Hallmark will be in more than 50 million homes by the end of 2002, said Lana Corbi, president of Hallmark Channel parent Crown Media United States.
Things we like: Truman's give-em-hell letter
On March 27, a piece of presidential history goes up for auction. Harry Truman’s vituperative letter to Washington Post music critic Paul Hume is expected to sell for between $70,000 and $100,000, according to the Post. Truman wrote the letter on Dec. 6, 1950, after Hume unfavorably reviewed a vocal recital given by Margaret Truman, the President's daughter. Hume's review was mild; Truman's response, penned while America was at war in Korea, was not. "I've just read your lousy review of Margaret's concert and I've come to the conclusion that you are an 'eight ulcer man on four ulcer pay,'" it begins, somewhat inexplicably. "It seems to me you are a frustrated old man who wishes he could have been successful," Truman jabs. It is unlikely this remark struck home: Hume was only 34 at the time. "Someday I hope to meet you," the letter continues. "When that happens you'll need a new nose, a lot of beef steak for black eyes, and perhaps a supporter below!" Hume sold the letter in 1951 for $3,500 to raise money for a Washington D.C. concert series.
March 15, 2002 © 2002 Media Life
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