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By Gary Levin, USA TODAY
•Oscar trophy. The 78th annual Academy Awards averaged 38.9 million viewers, a predictably low figure given the specialized nature of top nominees. Dating back to 1974, viewership ranked above only 2003's 33 million, when Chicago won best picture, 1987 and 1986. ABC's one-hour pre-show averaged 13.4 million; Barbara Walters' annual pre-Oscar special — four days pre this year — averaged a low 9.7 million Wednesday.
•Fair Deal Game show Deal or No Deal made a splash amid the repeat-filled Christmas week, so NBC gave it another go-round. This time, the show performed respectably on Monday and Friday, but it was creamed on three other nights when it faced American Idol. Five-day average: 11 million, down from 12.7 million in December. •Apprentice training. Donald Trump's feud with Martha Stewart, well-timed to boost the fifth-season opener of his show, didn't help. NBC's Apprentice, bumped from Thursday to Monday, drew 9.7 million viewers, the worst yet for a regular episode, and was fourth in its time slot among young adults. •Courage of Conviction. Dick Wolf's latest series, Conviction, opened with an OK 10.3 million viewers Friday but lagged behind CBS' Numb3rs. Last spring, Wolf's Law & Order: Trial by Jury had 14.5 million for its Friday premiere. Las Vegas was down a bit in its new slot but improved on NBC's Friday. •Florida's no key. The 17th cycle of MTV's The Real World - the granddaddy of modern-day reality series — opened with 3.2 million viewers Tuesday. That gave the latest edition, set in Key West, the show's weakest start since a trip to Paris in June 2003. |
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