Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Overnight TV Ratings -- People Like To Watch David Blaine Drown

I made the mistake of walking by Lincoln Center last night. I was utterly flummoxed by the massive crowds -- was Luciano Pavarotti back onstage? was Philip Glass debuting a new opera? was Il Divo in town? -- when I realized it was all for David Blaine. I've never bothered to watch him, but all credit to his showmanship and general PT Barnum-like air of hokeyness. His special did pretty well last night, increasing its viewers every half hour until he came out of that bubble. It scored 9.9 million viewers. The other big finale was for "7th Heaven," which like a good Christian show was fruitful and multiplied in its finale with several multiple-baby pregnancies. It hit a season high of 7.1 million viewers. "Prison Break" and "24" continued their cliffhanger ways, with "Prison" scoring 8.9 million viewers and "24" a solid 13.7 million. "How I Met Your Mother" modestly improved on its weakening "King of Queens" lead-in despite all that competition. "Two and a Half Men" hit 14.97 million. The top show of the night was "CSI: Miami" at 19.4 million. "The Apprentice" continues to limp along and "What About Brian" is dead.

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