A veteran game show like “Jeopardy” rarely has moments that produce notable ratings spikes, but the debut of IBM’s supercomputer “Watson” evidently qualifies.
Day one of the tournament, which pits the computer against successful “Jeopardy” alumni Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, delivered an 8.7 overnight household rating. The best number since an 8.8 on February 13, 2007, the rating was significantly higher than the show’s current February 2011 average.
In terms of that household rating, “Jeopardy” was the second-highest-rated show on all of television this Valentine’s Day, losing only to CBS’ 9PM staple “Two and a Half Men.”
And according to THR, the episode was particularly successful in the major New York and Los Angeles markets, delivering viewership increases of 49% and 34% above the February averages in those markets, respectively.
— THR reported this week that “The OC” alum Rachel Bilson will return to television and rejoin that show’s creator Josh Schwartz in the process. Bilson has booked a lead role in his “Hart of Dixie” pilot at The CW, which features Bilson as a New York doctor who takes over a medical practice in a small town and encounters quirky characters.
