Reruns Push Nbc To Weekly Ratings Top

Fri., May 31, 1996

Associated Press

“Must-See TV” reruns gave NBC a winning Nielsen week, while CBS, with no top 10 shows finished second. ABC had the season finale of “Home Improvement” at No. 1 and four of the top five shows, but finished third in the Nielsen ratings.

NBC, with a 9.0 rating and a 17 percent share of the TV audience, won the week of May 20-26, which included the last three days of the prime-time season that began Sept. 18, 1995, and ended May 22.

NBC’s performance was 2.6 rating points below its season-to-date average, but its competitors also sank below their seasonal ratings, according to Nielsen Media Research’s Tuesday ratings release.

Third-ranked CBS, off 1 point, took second place for the week with an 8.6 rating, 16 share, following its second-place finish in the May ratings sweep. ABC, ranked second for the season, was 2.2 points off its average, falling into third with an 8.3 rating, 16 share.

The Fox Broadcasting Co., programming just 15 of the 22 prime-time hours, was off 1.7 points with a 5.6 rating, 11 share.

Prime-time ratings as compiled by Nielsen Media Research for May 20-26. Top 20 listings include the week’s ranking, with rating for the week, season-to-date rankings in parentheses, and total homes.

An “X” in parentheses denotes one-time-only presentation. A rating measures the percentage of the nation’s 95.9 million TV homes. Each ratings point represents 959,000 households.

1. (7) “Home Improvement,” ABC, 14.7, 14.1 million homes

2. (2) “Seinfeld,” NBC, 14.3, 13.7 million homes

3. (14) “Coach,” ABC, 13.3, 12.8 million homes

3. (9) “NYPD Blue,” ABC, 13.3, 12.8 million homes

5. (16) “Roseanne,” ABC, 13.2, 12.7 million homes

6. “Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” NBC, 13.1, 12.6 million homes

7. (1) “ER,” NBC, 13.0, 12.5 million homes

8. (4) “Caroline in the City,” NBC, 12.6, 12.1 million homes

9. (11) “Frazier” NBC, 12.2, 11.7 million homes

10. (3) “Friends,” NBC, 12.1, 11.6 million homes

11. (18) “Murphy Brown,” CBS, 11.9, 11.4 million homes

12. (24) “Chicago Hope,” CBS, 11.8, 11.3 million homes

13. (18) “PrimeTime Live,” ABC, 11.6, 11.1 million homes

14. (X) “Daytime Emmy Awards,” CBS, 11.4, 10.9 million homes

14. (X) “Home Improvement,” ABC, 11.4, 10.9 million homes

16. (17) “Nanny,” CBS, 11.1, 10.6 million homes

17. “Cybill,” CBS, 11.0, 10.5 million homes

17. (6) “Single Guy,” NBC, 11.0, 10.5 million homes

19. (25) “Law & Order,” 10.9, 10.4 million homes

19. “Wings,” NBC, 10.9, 10.4 million homes

21. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 10.7

21. “20/20,” ABC, 10.7

23. “NBC Monday Night Movies: Thrill,” NBC, 10.4

24. (X) “Ellen,” (Tuesday) ABC, 10.3

24. “John Larroquette Show,” NBC, 10.3

26. “Dateline NBC,” (Tuesday) NBC, 10.2

26. “Dave’s World,” CBS, 10.2

28. “Grace Under Fire,” ABC, 10.0

29. “Dateline NBC,” (Wednesday) NBC, 9.8

30. “ABC Monday Night Movie: Scent of a Woman,” ABC, 9.7

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