CBS Hits a Homer With All-Star Game Ratings

The great American pastime knocked the weekly television ratings out of the park last week, as the CBS telecast of the Major League Baseball All-Star game outscored all other shows and landed in the top-rated slot, it was reported today.

Even the pregame show of the CBS baseball telecast July 10 was a winner, tying for seventh place with NBC’s “A Different World” in the Nielsen ratings for the week ending July 15.

NBC’s “Cheers,” one of the most popular shows of the regular season, slipped to second place, followed by Fox’s “The Simpsons.”

CBS did not do as well on the entertainment side with two new shows. “Northern Exposure,” which premiered July 12, was left hanging in 46th place. The July 9 premiere of “Primetime Pets” finished 19th, but in its regularly scheduled time period, Friday night at 8:30, it dropped to 60th place.

NBC outdistanced the pack in the Sunday night movie race. A Canadian-produced film, “Love and Hate: A Marriage Made in Hell,” starring Kate Nelligan, finished sixth, one of the network’s best rankings for the season.

NBC’s Sunday movies have finished on top of those of the other networks for four consecutive weeks.

Of the other Sunday movies, CBS’ “The Gambler: Part III” folded in 37th place, and ABC’s “The Man With the Golden Gun” didn’t glimmer, finishing in a tie for 50th place with NBC’s sitcom “Poochinski.”

CBS’ “Designing Women” dropped to ninth place from its fifth-place spot the week before, and “60 Minutes” finished at No. 10. The only ABC show to place in the top 10 was “Roseanne” in fifth place.

For the week ending July 15, NBC squeaked into first place with a 9.8 rating and a 19 share, CBS came in a close second with a 9.7 rating and a 19 share, and ABC finished third with a 9.1 rating and an 18 share. Fox finished the week with a 6.2 rating and a 12 share.

TOP TV SHOWS

The top programs for the week ending Sunday, July 15, according to the A.C. Nielsen Co., were: 1. Baseball All-Star Game (CBS) 2. Cheers (NBC) 3. The Simpsons (Fox) 4. The Cosby Show (NBC) 5. Roseanne (ABC) 6. NBC Sunday Movie (NBC) 7. All-Star Game Preview (CBS) (tie) A Different World (NBC) 9. Designing Women (CBS) 10. 60 Minutes