TV Ratings : ‘Cheers’ Finale Puts NBC First

The wedding bells on “Cheers” helped ring in ratings bliss at NBC. The A.C. Nielsen Co. reported Tuesday that the season-ending episode of “Cheers” last Thursday, featuring the wedding of Woody and Kelly, was the most-watched TV program of the week, attracting viewers in about 20.6 million homes. That was the show’s best performance since Feb. 28, 1991, the network said. NBC in turn won the week, averaging a 12.0 rating in prime time, compared to 11.6 for CBS, 11.4 for ABC and 7.3 for Fox. NBC also was victorious in the movie battle Sunday night, as Part 1 of “Cruel Doubt” drew a larger audience than Part 1 of CBS’ “The Intruders” and ABC’s telecast of “Look Who’s Talking.” Fox’s season-ending episode of “Married . . . With Children” ran second at 9 p.m. that night.

“Night Court” bowed out on a positive note. In its final original broadcast on NBC last Wednesday, the courtroom comedy was seen in about 15.2 million homes and ranked No. 8 among the week’s 79 prime-time programs.

Points Share 1. “Cheers” (NBC) 22.4 34 2. “Roseanne” (ABC) 21.6 33 3. “Murphy Brown” (CBS) 20.9 32 4. “Coach” (ABC) 18.8 29 5. “Northern Exposure” (CBS) 17.5 29 “Home Improvement” (ABC) 17.5 29 * “Night Court” (NBC) 16.5 26

(Each rating point represents 921,000 homes. Share is the percentage of viewing audience.)

* Complete list, F9