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Thursday Final Nationals: ‘Will & Grace’ Season Premiere is NBC’s Most-Watched Thursday Comedy Telecast in a Decade

CBS was the No. 1 network overall on Thursday night with its joint broadcast of Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers on “Thursday Night Football” with NFL Network.

Although they ranked behind CBS and ABC in Thursday prime time, NBC enjoyed its most-watched Thursday of a premiere week of an official TV season (6.45 million) in nine years (7.93 million in 2008). The ninth season debut of “Will & Grace” (3.0/11 in 18-49, 10.2 million viewers overall in from 9-9:30 p.m. ET) was NBC’s top debut for a new or returning comedy, excluding post-Olympic previews, in six years (since Sept. 22, 2011); NBC’s best telecast of a primetime comedy series, excluding post-Olympic previews, since the “Office” finale (3.0 on May 16, 2013); NBC’s most-watched telecast of a Thursday comedy series among total viewers in 10 years (since “My Name Is Earl,” 10.685 million at 8 p.m. on Feb. 1, 2007); and, soared +173 percent above NBC’s timeslot average last season in 18-49 (3.0 vs. 1.1, Live+Same Day excluding sports) and +4.2 million persons or +69 percent in total viewers 10.193 million vs. 6.023 million viewers overall).

Prime time fifteen-minute breakdowns for “Will & Grace” in ratings of adults 18-34, adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 were, as follows:

9:00 — 1.5, 3.1, 4.1
9:15 — 1.4, 2.9, 3.8

The top five markets for “Will & Grace”, according to overnight data:
Providence 12.1 rating/18 share
Dayton + Pittsburgh 10.3/15 each
Sacramento 10.1/15
Cincinnati 9.6/14

Other markets for “Will & Grace”:
New York 7.9/13
Los Angeles 9.3/14
Chicago 7.8/13
Philadelphia 8.0/13
San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose 8.1/12
Cleveland 9.3/15
Columbus 8.9/13

The second season premiere of “Great News” rose to a series-high in total viewers and adults 18-49 as a result of leading out of “Will & Grace”.



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* AFF = Number of affiliates (stations) airing the program
* CVG = percent of coverage in U.S.
Programming Insider Thursday, September 28, 2017
ABC PROGRAM AFF* CVG*
(PCT)		 HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 4.4/8 6702 1.6/8 1.9/7 2.3/7
8:00 Grey’s Anatomy (p) 260 92 5.2/9 8071 1.9/10 2.3/9 2.8/9
10:00 How to Get Away with Murder (p) 254 92 2.7/5 3964 0.8/4 1.0/4 1.3/4
CBS PROGRAM AFF* CVG*
(PCT)		 HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 8.5/15 14018 3.6/18 4.4/17 5.2/17
7:30 CBS+NFLN Thursday Night Kickoff 3.3/7 4922 0.8/6 1.1/6 1.4/6
7:57 CBS+NFLN Thursday Night Kickoff 253 93 5.0/10 7832 1.5/10 2.0/10 2.4/10
8:15 CBS+NFLN Thursday Night Pre-Kick 253 93 7.1/14 11344 2.4/14 3.0/14 3.7/14
8:29 CBS+NFLN Thursday Night Football Chicago @ Green Bay (thru 9:16; 10:00 p.m.-12:13 a.m.) 253 93 8.9/17 14610 4.0/21 4.8/20 5.6/19
9:16 CBS+NFLN Thursday Night Weather Delay (s) (thru 10:00) 8.1/14 13390 3.6/17 4.4/16 5.1/16
NBC PROGRAM AFF* CVG*
(PCT)		 HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 4.1/7 6498 0.9/4 1.6/6 2.1/7
8:00 Superstore (p) 245 92 2.9/5 4596 0.7/4 1.3/5 1.6/6
8:30 The Good Place 245 92 2.9/5 4669 0.9/4 1.4/5 1.7/5
9:00 Will & Grace (p) 245 92 6.4/11 10193 1.5/7 3.0/11 3.9/12
9:30 Great News (p) 245 92 3.3/6 5153 0.6/3 1.3/5 1.7/5
10:00 Chicago Fire (p) 245 92 4.6/9 7189 0.8/4 1.5/6 1.9/6
Fox PROGRAM AFF* CVG*
(PCT)		 HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-10 Network Average 2.0/4 3268 0.6/3 1.0/4 1.2/4
8:00 Gotham 257 92 1.8/3 2866 0.6/3 0.9/4 1.1/4
9:02 The Orville 257 92 2.3/4 3698 0.7/3 1.1/4 1.3/4
CW PROGRAM AFF* CVG*
(PCT)		 HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-10 Network Average 0.8/1 1337 0.2/1 0.3/1 0.4/1
8:00 Penn & Teller: Fool Us 251 88 1.0/2 1659 0.3/1 0.4/2 0.5/2
9:00 Whose Line Is It Anyway? 251 88 0.6/1 993 0.2/1 0.2/1 0.4/1
9:30 Whose Line Is It Anyway? (r) 251 88 0.6/1 1038 0.2/1 0.3/1 0.4/1
Univision PROGRAM HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 0.8/1 1471 0.5/2
7:00 La Rosa de Guadalupe 0.8/2 1572 0.6/3
8:00 Enamorándome de Ramón 0.8/1 1473 0.5/2
9:00 Mi Marido Tiene Familia 1.0/2 1741 0.6/2
10:02 Hoy Voy a Cambiar 0.7/1 1182 0.4/1
PROGRAM HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 0.3/1 614 0.2/1
7:00 La Tierra Prometida (r) 0.2/0 444 0.1/1
8:00 La Tierra Prometida 0.4/1 835 0.2/1
9:00 Totalmente Diva 0.4/1 615 0.2/1
10:00 Lady, Vendedora Rosas 0.2/0 391 0.1/0
PROGRAM HH/Share Viewers
(000)		 Adults
18-34		 Adults
18-49		 Adults
25-54
8-11 Network Average 1.0/2 1806 0.6/3 0.7/3
7:00 Caso Cerrado: Edición Estelar 0.9/2 1467 0.3/2 0.4/2
8:00 Jenni Rivera: Mariposa de Barrio 0.8/1 1516 0.5/3 0.5/2
9:00 Sin Senos Sí Hay Paraíso 1.0/2 1815 0.6/3 0.7/3
10:00 El Señor de Los Cielos V 1.1/2 2086 0.8/4 0.9/4

Sub-Demo Breakdowns – Thursday 9/28/17


“Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC)
Women 18-34: 2.9/14
Men 18-34: 1.0/5
Women 18-49: 3.5/13
Men 18-49: 1.2/5

“How to Get Away with Murder” (ABC)
Women 18-34: 1.1/5
Men 18-34: 0.5/3
Women 18-49: 1.4/5
Men 18-49: 0.7/3

“NFL Thursday Night Kickoff” (CBS+NFL Network, 7:30)
Women 18-34: 0.7/5
Men 18-34: 0.9/7
Women 18-49: 0.9/5
Men 18-49: 1.3/7

“NFL Thursday Night Kickoff” (CBS+NFL Network, 7:57)
Women 18-34: 1.3/7
Men 18-34: 1.8/13
Women 18-49: 1.5/7
Men 18-49: 2.4/13

“NFL Thursday Night Pre-Kick” (CBS+NFL Network, 8:15)
Women 18-34: 1.8/10
Men 18-34: 3.0/20
Women 18-49: 2.2/10
Men 18-49: 3.8/19

“Thursday Night Football: Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers” (CBS+NFL Network, 8:29-9:16 and 10:00 p.m.-12:13 a.m.)
Women 18-34: 2.9/15
Men 18-34: 5.1/28
Women 18-49: 3.4/14
Men 18-49: 6.2/26

“NFL Thursday Night – Weather Delay” (CBS+NFL Network, 9:16-10:00)
Women 18-34: 2.7/12
Men 18-34: 4.5/23
Women 18-49: 3.1/11
Men 18-49: 5.7/22

“NFL Thursday Night Kickoff” (NFL Network, 7:57)
0.92 household rating
1.444 million viewers
0.53 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.26
Men 18-34: 0.63
Women 18-49: 0.32
Men 18-49: 0.75

“NFL Thursday Night Pre-Kick” (NFL Network, 8:15)
1.57 household rating
2.541 million viewers
0.92 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.45
Men 18-34: 1.13
Women 18-49: 0.53
Men 18-49: 1.32

“Thursday Night Football: Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers” (NFL Network, 8:29-9:16)
2.37 household rating
3.912 million viewers
1.45 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.70
Men 18-34: 1.66
Women 18-49: 0.87
Men 18-49: 2.04

“NFL Thursday Night – Weather Delay” (NFL Network, 9:16-10:00)
1.97 household rating
3.288 million viewers
1.36 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.70
Men 18-34: 1.60
Women 18-49: 0.81
Men 18-49: 1.92

“Thursday Night Football: Chicago Bears @ Green Bay Packers” (NFL Network, 10:00 p.m.-12:13 a.m.)
2.18 household rating
3.606 million viewers
1.48 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.76
Men 18-34: 1.88
Women 18-49: 0.85
Men 18-49: 2.12

“Superstore” (NBC)
Women 18-34: 0.8/4
Men 18-34: 0.6/4
Women 18-49: 1.4/6
Men 18-49: 1.1/5

“The Good Place” (NBC)
Women 18-34: 1.1/5
Men 18-34: 0.7/4
Women 18-49: 1.6/6
Men 18-49: 1.1/4

“Will & Grace” (NBC)
Women 18-34: 1.7/7
Men 18-34: 1.3/6
Women 18-49: 3.7/13
Men 18-49: 2.3/8

“Great News” (NBC)
Women 18-34: 0.8/3
Men 18-34: 0.5/2
Women 18-49: 1.7/6
Men 18-49: 1.0/4

“Chicago Fire” (NBC)
Women 18-34: 1.1/5
Men 18-34: 0.6/3
Women 18-49: 1.8/7
Men 18-49: 1.1/4

“Gotham” (Fox)
Women 18-34: 0.5/3
Men 18-34: 0.6/3
Women 18-49: 0.7/3
Men 18-49: 1.0/4

“The Orville” (Fox)
Women 18-34: 0.5/2
Men 18-34: 0.8/4
Women 18-49: 0.8/3
Men 18-49: 1.3/5

“Penn and Teller: Fool Us” (CW)
Women 18-34: 0.3/1
Men 18-34: 0.2/1
Women 18-49: 0.4/1
Men 18-49: 0.4/2

“Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (CW, 9pm)
Women 18-34: 0.2/1
Men 18-34: 0.1/1
Women 18-49: 0.3/1
Men 18-49: 0.2/1

“The Guest Book” (TBS, 10:30)
0.78 household rating
1.162 million viewers
0.41 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.27
Men 18-34: 0.21
Women 18-49: 0.46
Men 18-49: 0.35

“Better Things” (FX)
0.33 household rating
0.498 million viewers
0.17 adults 18-49 rating
Women 18-34: 0.11
Men 18-34: 0.10
Women 18-49: 0.18
Men 18-49: 0.15


Live+3 Day Ratings – Thursday 9/28/17

VWRS = Viewers, in thousands; LBL = Telecast label designations, such as O (original), P (premiere), R (repeat), S (special), B (breakout, e.g. different start time or interrupted coverage), G (gapped)
Net Program LBL A1849
L+SD		 A1849
L+3		 L+3
Gain		 VWRS
L+SD		 VWRS
L+3		 L+3
Gain
ABC GREY’S ANATOMY P 2.34 3.54 51% 8079 11152 38%
ABC HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER P 1.05 2.00 91% 3968 6442 62%
CBS CBS+NFLN THU NT KICK-OFF2 P 1.96 1.96 0% 7836 7838 0%
CBS CBS+NFLN THU NT PRE-KICK P 3.03 3.03 0% 11350 11376 0%
CBS CBS+NFLN THU NT FOOTBALL GP 4.80 4.82 0% 14621 14726 1%
CBS CBS+NFLN THU WEATHER DELAY S 4.38 4.39 0% 13400 13429 0%
NBC SUPERSTORE P 1.26 1.73 38% 4596 5606 22%
NBC GOOD PLACE P 1.35 1.95 44% 4669 6154 32%
NBC WILL & GRACE P 3.00 4.60 54% 10195 14790 45%
NBC GREAT NEWS P 1.33 1.52 14% 5153 5821 13%
NBC CHICAGO FIRE P 1.47 2.36 60% 7188 10673 48%
FOX GOTHAM O 0.87 1.38 60% 2867 4241 48%
FOX THE ORVILLE O 1.05 1.82 73% 3699 6091 65%
CW PENN & TELLER: FOOL US O 0.40 0.45 12% 1659 1808 9%
CW WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY O 0.25 0.32 28% 993 1234 24%
CW WHOSE LINE IS IT-ENC R 0.28 0.29 5% 1038 1097 6%


Cable Rankings – Thursday 9/28/17
What follows are the top 100 most-watched shows in prime time on cable (by order of network) for Thursday, September 28:

* Vwrs = Viewers in thousands; V-No. = Prime time rank in viewers; D-No. = Prime time rank in demo (adults 18-49)
V-No.* D-No.* Program Net Start Dur Vwrs* A1849
74 70 MURDER LACI PETERSON AC A&E 8:00 PM 183 492 0.16
67 59 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 8:00 PM 30 584 0.18
59 26 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 8:30 PM 30 651 0.25
46 18 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 9:00 PM 30 788 0.34
32 12 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 9:30 PM 30 940 0.44
26 11 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 10:00 PM 30 1006 0.48
23 8 BOB’S BURGERS ADSM 10:30 PM 30 1084 0.54
98 88 BET MOVIE OF THE WEEK: ATL BET 7:00 PM 180 288 0.13
33 21 FLIPPING OUT BRAVO 9:00 PM 60 932 0.27
81 70 FLIPPING OUT BRAVO 10:00 PM 60 426 0.16
97 88 TOSH.O CMDY 8:00 PM 30 292 0.13
92 59 TOSH.O CMDY 9:30 PM 30 350 0.18
96 70 NATHAN FOR YOU CMDY 10:00 PM 30 293 0.16
100 88 SOUTH PARK CMDY 10:30 PM 30 275 0.13
86 88 SHARK TANK CNBC 9:00 PM 60 377 0.13
35 51 ANDERSON COOPER 360 CNN 8:00 PM 60 921 0.20
31 40 ANDERSON COOPER 360 CNN 9:00 PM 60 970 0.22
34 59 CNN TONIGHT CNN 10:00 PM 60 930 0.18
44 64 ALASKA: THE LAST FRONTIER DISC 9:00 PM 60 806 0.17
57 88 ALASKA: THE LAST FRONTIER DISC 10:00 PM 60 671 0.13
47 59 PJ MASKS DISJR 8:00 PM 25 765 0.18
69 79 PJ MASKS DISJR 8:30 PM 25 558 0.14
36 64 RAVEN’S HOME DSNY 8:00 PM 30 888 0.17
38 70 STUCK IN THE MIDDLE DSNY 8:30 PM 30 864 0.16
40 64 BIZAARDVARK DSNY 9:00 PM 30 833 0.17
49 79 BIZAARDVARK DSNY 9:30 PM 30 758 0.14
50 79 LIV AND MADDIE DSNY 10:00 PM 30 748 0.14
53 88 K.C. UNDERCOVER DSNY 10:30 PM 30 715 0.13
13 8 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PRIME: TEXAS @ IOWA STATE (1.04 HH, 0.40 A18-34) ESPN 7:53 PM 213 1651 0.54
51 36 CHOPPED FOOD 8:00 PM 60 737 0.23
56 51 CHOPPED FOOD 9:00 PM 60 673 0.20
39 30 BEAT BOBBY FLAY FOOD 10:00 PM 30 836 0.24
42 22 BEAT BOBBY FLAY FOOD 10:30 PM 30 816 0.26
5 20 TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT FOXNC 8:00 PM 60 2616 0.28
2 15 HANNITY FOXNC 9:00 PM 60 3715 0.36
8 26 FOX NEWS TONIGHT FOXNC 10:00 PM 60 2159 0.25
43 30 FX MOVIE PRIME: LUCY FX 8:00 PM 120 815 0.24
73 64 BETTER THINGS FX 10:00 PM 34 498 0.17
95 79 THE SIMPSONS FXX 9:00 PM 30 294 0.14
94 70 THE SIMPSONS FXX 9:30 PM 30 320 0.16
83 51 THE SIMPSONS FXX 10:00 PM 30 386 0.20
91 55 THE SIMPSONS FXX 10:30 PM 30 361 0.19
68 79 THE MIDDLE HALL 10:30 PM 30 574 0.14
37 46 FLIP OR FLOP HGTV 8:00 PM 30 871 0.21
28 30 FLIP OR FLOP HGTV 8:30 PM 30 996 0.24
22 40 FLIP OR FLOP ATLANTA HGTV 9:00 PM 30 1103 0.22
24 51 FLIP OR FLOP ATLANTA HGTV 9:30 PM 30 1066 0.20
20 46 HOUSE HUNTERS HGTV 10:00 PM 30 1151 0.21
18 40 HOUSE HUNTERS INTERNATIONAL HGTV 10:30 PM 30 1175 0.22
48 79 ICE ROAD TRUCKERS AC HIST 8:00 PM 243 759 0.14
65 79 KISS OF DEATH ID 8:00 PM 60 621 0.14
41 46 KISS OF DEATH ID 9:00 PM 60 826 0.21
29 26 GUILTY RICH ID 10:00 PM 60 988 0.25
45 78 PROJECT REWIND LIF 8:50 PM 10 792 0.15
12 13 PROJECT RUNWAY LIF 9:00 PM 93 1668 0.41
80 88 MOVIE- LFT ACQUIRED RPT: STALKED BY MY DOCTOR LMN 8:00 PM 120 432 0.13
78 70 MOVIE- LFT CO PRO RPT: DEATH CLIQUE LMN 10:00 PM 120 440 0.16
11 40 ALL IN W/ CHRIS HAYES MSNBC 8:00 PM 60 1751 0.22
6 19 RACHEL MADDOW SHOW MSNBC 9:00 PM 60 2549 0.30
9 40 LAST WORD W/ L. O’DONNELL MSNBC 10:00 PM 60 2068 0.22
89 46 NICK CANNON WILDN OUT S8B MTV 8:00 PM 30 370 0.21
86 36 NICK CANNON WILDN OUT S8B MTV 8:30 PM 30 377 0.23
82 30 NICK CANNON WILD N OUT S9 MTV 9:00 PM 30 389 0.24
79 22 NICK CANNON WILD N OUT S9 MTV 9:30 PM 30 435 0.26
85 40 NICK CANNON WILD N OUT S9 MTV 10:00 PM 30 383 0.22
76 22 NICK CANNON WILD N OUT S9 MTV 10:30 PM 30 468 0.26
30 22 SHREK FOREVER AFTER NAN 8:00 PM 120 974 0.26
62 59 FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR NAN 10:00 PM 30 637 0.18
61 36 FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR NAN 10:30 PM 30 639 0.23
15 10 NFLN SAT NIGHT KICK-OFF2 (0.92 HH, 0.45 A18-34) NFLN 7:57 PM 18 1444 0.53
7 4 NFLN SAT NIGHT PRE-KICK (1.57 HH, 0.79 A18-34) NFLN 8:15 PM 14 2541 0.92
1 2 NFLN THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: CHICAGO @ GREEN BAY (2.37 HH, 1.18 A18-34) NFLN 8:29 PM 47 3912 1.45
4 3 NFLN THURSDAY – WEATHER DELAY (1.97 HH, 1.15 A18-34) NFLN 9:16 PM 44 3288 1.36
3 1 NFLN THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: CHICAGO @ GREEN BAY (2.18 HH, 1.32 A18-34) NFLN 10:00 PM 133 3606 1.48
63 79 PEPPA PIG NKJR 8:00 PM 30 633 0.14
55 70 PEPPA PIG NKJR 8:30 PM 30 683 0.16
64 79 PEPPA PIG NKJR 9:00 PM 30 631 0.14
66 88 PAW PATROL NKJR 9:30 PM 30 615 0.13
52 26 SEINFELD TBS 8:00 PM 30 720 0.25
54 30 SEINFELD TBS 8:30 PM 30 712 0.24
25 16 THE BIG BANG THEORY TBS 9:00 PM 30 1013 0.35
14 7 THE BIG BANG THEORY TBS 9:30 PM 30 1525 0.55
10 5 THE BIG BANG THEORY TBS 10:00 PM 30 1811 0.67
19 13 THE GUEST BOOK TBS 10:30 PM 30 1162 0.41
70 88 MY 600-LB LIFE TLC 8:00 PM 60 538 0.13
58 55 TNT BIG PICTURE MOVIES: INTO THE STORM TNT 8:00 PM 121 652 0.19
72 46 TNT BIG PICTURE MOVIES: DIVERGENT TNT 10:01 PM 181 499 0.21
93 88 IMPRACTICAL JOKERS TRU 8:00 PM 30 336 0.13
83 64 IMPRACTICAL JOKERS TRU 8:30 PM 30 386 0.17
77 55 IMPRACTICAL JOKERS TRU 9:00 PM 30 453 0.19
75 30 IMPRACTICAL JOKERS TRU 9:30 PM 30 477 0.24
27 6 IMPRACTICAL JOKERS TRU 10:00 PM 30 1001 0.58
59 16 IJ: AFTER PARTY TRU 10:30 PM 30 651 0.35
16 55 NCIS USA 8:00 PM 60 1368 0.19
17 70 NCIS USA 9:00 PM 60 1213 0.16
21 64 NCIS USA 10:00 PM 60 1120 0.17
71 36 MARY MARY WETV 9:00 PM 61 536 0.23
99 88 MARY MARY WETV 10:06 PM 60 280 0.13
88 88 COPS WGNA 10:00 PM 30 372 0.13
90 88 COPS WGNA 10:30 PM 30 368 0.13

Source: Live+Same Day data, Nielsen Media Research

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