The reviews were far from stellar, but the intrigue of the veteran late-night host moving to primetime, coupled with high-profile guests in Jerry Seinfeld, Kanye West, Jay-Z and Rihanna, propelled “The Jay Leno Show” to a massive premiere rating.
Preliminary figures estimate that the show pulled 17.7 million viewers with a 5.1 in adults 18-49. In the unfair comparison to the 11:35PM “The Tonight Show,” the 18-49 rating was 50% higher than the final late-night “Leno” broadcast and 34% higher than the widely-viewed “Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien” premiere. It also represents a marked improvement from NBC’s usual 10PM fare.
Expectedly skewing older than many of NBC’s top programs, the 5.1 adults 18-49 number is still quite strong for the network.
Where the show goes from here, however, is intriguing. One would not expect the ratings to absolutely tank in the next few days (though they should cool off a bit), but it is unlikely they will remain at a dominant level as the month progresses. Between the likely artificial boost of interest in the premiere, lukewarm-to-negative reviews and the fact that CBS and ABC, which feature similarly-skewing (but scripted) series in their 10PM hours, return soon with original programming, “Leno” will not retain a 5.1 average in adults 18-49 over the long-term.
Still, the first day of NBC’s experiment proved promising.
I think that the first part of the America’s Got Talent finale being on before him may have helped him too. Plus, with being in a recession with people being worried about being handed pink slips by their bosses makes them want to turn to something happy instead of scripted pedophiles, serial killers, and rapists. If I want to watch that type of stuff, I will watch the real thing on Cops and America’s Most Wanted on Saturday nights.
massive?
who’s paying your tab, nothing about that show was massive ,except, maybe West’s inflated ego and his dysfunctional notion of what is acceptable behavior.
Leno is the latest clown act under the big top of America”s desperate entertainment industry. Which has lost any sense of propriety or decency. Anything goes, at anyone’s and everyone’s expense. What a waste. No,a massive waste.
I am not a fan of crime or medical dramas so I am glad to have a comedy show to watch at this time.