‘Cosby’ Takes No. 1 From ‘Roseanne’; NBC Keeps Crown

“The Cosby Show” captured the top ratings spot for the week that ended Sunday, helping to boost NBC to easy victory in the first week of the new TV season, figures from the A.C. Nielsen Co. showed Tuesday. ABC’s “Roseanne” placed second, followed by the NBC comedies “Cheers,” “The Golden Girls” and “Sister Kate,” which had a preview broadcast behind “Cosby.”

NBC, which has won the prime-time ratings crown for four years in a row and has finished first for 66 consecutive weeks, won four nights of premiere week--Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. ABC placed second for the week, winning only Tuesday night but showing a strong second on other nights. CBS ranked third while winning Monday night by a scant one-tenth of a ratings point and Sunday, its traditionally strongest night.

The three major networks combined to attract 72% of the prime-time audience for the week, up from 66% for the same week last year. However, the start of the 1988 TV season contained few new programs because of the strike by the Writers Guild of America.

Each of the networks had its share of joys and disappointments during a premiere week in which many new series were given multiple airings to increase viewer sampling.

For NBC, there were proud moments in seeing “Cosby” take back the No. 1 spot from ABC’s “Roseanne,” and in gaining a victory on Friday night, which has been the network’s most troublesome. NBC also saw the premiere of “The Nutt House” win its time period Wednesday and enjoyed strong showings by “Saturday Night Live” and Bob Hope specials, which ranked eighth and 11th, respectively.

But there were sore spots as well. Although “Sister Kate,” about an acerbic nun and the orphans she supervises, placed fifth for the week in its special Thursday preview behind “Cosby,” it dropped to a lowly 67th when it debuted in its regular Sunday-night slot.

“I’m not going to say there wasn’t some disappointment,” said Preston Beckman, NBC’s vice president of audience research. “But we have to give it a few weeks.”

NBC’s “Quantum Leap” placed last in its 10 p.m. Wednesday slot, while “Midnight Caller,” which tied for second on Tuesday night, appeared to have problems holding its viewers, dropping a full rating point--921,000 homes--from its first half hour to its second half hour.

At ABC, the season premiere of “China Beach” had the series’ highest ratings since its debut last season, trouncing the Wednesday competition. The series, a marginal performer last season, may have benefited from the best actress Emmy that Dana Delany won Sept. 17. Newcomer “Doogie Howser, M.D.” ranked sixth for the week in a special Tuesday preview that saw the Steven Bochco comedy sandwiched comfortably between ABC blockbusters “Who’s the Boss?” and “Roseanne.” The show dropped to 32nd place in its regular Wednesday slot.

ABC’s “Chicken Soup,” which was forecast as the most likely hit of the new season because of its slot behind “Roseanne,” placed 14th for the week. While network executives tend not to balk at having a Top 15 show, the sitcom’s ratings indicate a significant problem of audience loss. While “Roseanne” snagged 38% of the viewing audience, the Jackie Mason sitcom attracted only 29%--a significant reduction.

High points for CBS included the time-period wins for its new Monday-night comedies “Major Dad” and “The People Next Door” and a time-slot victory for its new drama “Island Son,” which stars Richard Chamberlain as a doctor. But another newcomer, “Peaceable Kingdom,” ranked 63rd among the week’s 81 prime-time programs for the week, and the debut of “Saturday Night With Connie Chung” was 71st.

Overall, CBS executives were pleased about the first week’s performance, which saw ratings gains in a number of time periods, said Arnold Becker, the network’ vice president of TV research. “Since nobody’s kidding themselves about catching NBC,” he said, “what we’re really looking for is to see signs of improvement.”