Tomorrow’s looking bright for Vieira

Katie Couric‘s ratings, attempts to inject an opinion segment into the “CBS Evening News” and search for a signoff have all been meticulously detailed in print.

The state of Rosie O’Donnell‘s relationship with the other women of “The View” is monitored daily.

What was that other big television change this fall? Sometime in the morning?

Oh, yeah. Meredith Vieira.

NBC News, which prides itself on smooth talent transitions, seems to have achieved it on the “Today” show, where Vieira slipped into the anchor chair beside Matt Lauer in September.

“As great a story as it has been for us, it’s just been seamless and that may be why it hasn’t drawn as much attention,” says executive producer Jim Bell. “That’s fine, I guess. We’re more than thrilled, obviously, with the results.”

The average “Today” audience of 5.8 million viewers during the first two months of Vieira’s tenure was about the same as it was during Couric’s tenure in 2005, according to Nielsen Media Research. At the same time, chief rival “Good Morning America” on ABC has slipped.

“I didn’t know what to expect, to be honest with you,” Vieira says. “I think the thing I feared the most was the time change, getting up early, and that has turned out to be not nearly as big a deal as I thought it would be.”

She’s come to enjoy the quiet few minutes in her kitchen before leaving for work, even if it’s at an ungodly hour.

Her children certainly don’t mind mom going to bed early. Her husband, writer Richard Cohen, usually turns in early, too.

“They’re teenagers,” she says. “They would have me down at 6 in the evening, so I can’t know what they’re doing. They love this job. It fits into their life of deceiving their parents very well.”

Despite the occasional glitch like interrupting a recent Andrea Mitchell report on Iraq, Vieira has shown that the news chops that got her to “60 Minutes” haven’t disappeared while dormant for a decade. Bell didn’t hesitate to throw her into the mix, assigning her early interviews with former President Clinton and first lady Laura Bush.

Interviewing Madonna was another highlight.

“I just had a great time with her from the minute I met her,” she says. “I connected with her as a mom.”

Vieira, 52, tries to connect with “Today” viewers through her Web log. The other day she wrote poignantly about whether her children could appreciate the idea of Santa Claus now that they’re old enough to know he doesn’t exist.

For a program that actively promotes the concept of family, it seems the audience so far has welcomed Vieira into theirs.

“I don’t know that they have,” she says. “I don’t think they’d send me all the e-mails from people who would prefer that I would drop dead.”

The birthday bunch

Actor Tommy Kirk is 65. Singer Chad Stuart (Chad and Jeremy) is 65. Actress-singer Gloria Loring is 60. Country singer Johnny Rodriguez is 55. Actress Susan Dey is 54. Actor-director Kenneth Branagh is 46. Actress Nia Peeples is 45. Country singer Kevin Sharp is 36. Actress Raven (“That’s So Raven,” “The Cosby Show”) is 21.