FOX’s supernatural drama “Point Pleasant” and NBC’s sitcom “Committed” will both get some extra exposure when they premiere in January.
FOX will likely test the ability of “American Idol” to boost the ratings of shows around it when “Point Pleasant” debuts after “Idol” on Wednesday, Jan. 19. The show, about a mysterious young woman (Elisabeth Harnois) whose father, unknown to her, is Satan, could hardly be more different in tone than the musical talent search that precedes it.
The network has, however, enjoyed ratings bumps in the past with shows airing after “American Idol,” including “24,” which also serves a very different audience than the kid- and teen-friendly “Idol.”
“Point Pleasant” will move into its regular home — 9 p.m. Thursday, following “The O.C.” the next night.
NBC’s “Committed,” meanwhile, will air twice a week for the first two weeks of its life. The comedy, about two off-kilter New Yorkers (Jennifer Finnigan and Josh Cooke) who meet by accident and fall in love, will debut in its regular time period at 9:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, Jan. 4.
The show will also join NBC’s Thursday lineup for two weeks, following “Joey” on Jan. 6 and 13. “Will & Grace” will move to 9 p.m. ET Thursday for those two weeks before returning to its regular spot when the third edition of “The Apprentice” debuts Jan. 20.
The finale for the second season of NBC’s “The Apprentice” drew an average of nearly 17 million viewers across its three-hour running time on Thursday (Dec. 16) night. While NBC is trying to put a happy face on those figures, the network will try to ignore the dramatic drop from the show’s first season.
NBC chooses to accentuate that the “Apprentice” finale, which saw Donald Trump hire 37-year-old software exec Kelly Perdew, swept every half-hour among adults 18-49, earning a 7.8 rating in the key demographic. It was the highest rated reality finale among adults 18-49 since the last season of FOX’s “American Idol” concluded back in May and produced NBC’s strongest non-Olympics Thursday since the finale of “Frasier” on May 13.
The finale was down 43 percent among adults 18-49 from the 13.6 rating done by the first season finale last May. The first season finale, crowning Bill Rancic, attracted 28 million viewers for a hefty 39 percent fall.
The finale saw only a slight improvement over the show’s seasonal average of 15.3 million viewers and failed to left NBC over rerun fueled CBS for the overall ratings and viewership crown for the night. Last season, “The Apprentice” averaged 20.7 million viewers per week in its spring run.
NBC’s “Apprentice” performance came one night after UPN drew 6.5 million viewers for the finale of “America’s Next Top Model.” The end of the third installment of the model search outdrew the end of the first two seasons and gave UPN some of its best Wednesday night 8 p.m. ET demographic ratings in three years.
For many years, Christmas has had another regular visitor besides Santa … and this one has a license to kill.
TBS began the tradition of holiday James Bond movie marathons when it held the TV rights to many of the screen adventures of Agent 007. Spike TV (while still known as TNN) bought the package several years ago, and the end-of-year Bond bounty continues there.
The weeklong event known as “The 007 Days of Christmas” begins anew Friday, Dec. 24, encompassing all of Sean Connery’s, Roger Moore’s and Timothy Dalton’s capers as the star spy of Her Majesty’s Secret Service, created by novelist Ian Fleming. Also included are one adventure each by George Lazenby — who only made one — and film’s most recent Bond, Pierce Brosnan.
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