TV Ratings : ‘Home Improvement’ Helps ABC Hammer Out a Win

Sparked by a double-dose of “Home Improvement,” ABC sailed to its second win in as many weeks in the prime-time ratings, according to figures released Tuesday by the A.C. Nielsen Co. A new episode of the sitcom, starring Tim Allen and Patricia Richardson, was No. 1 and a repeat was No. 9 among last week’s 94 network programs.

ABC had three other shows in the Top 10, including its 2-week-old news series “Turning Point.” And its new sitcom “Thunder Alley,” despite losing 13% of its opening-week audience, still finished No. 11 with the “Home Improvement” episodes bracketing it.

The debut of “Someone Like Me,” NBC’s new comedy about a teen-age girl, ran second in its Monday time slot and finished No. 32 overall. But NBC said the show posted the highest ratings of any entertainment program this season among girls 12 to 17.

Fox, meanwhile, was crowing about the ratings for “Melrose Place,” which finished second in its Wednesday time period. But Tuesday night continues to be an abyss for Fox: A special hosted by Magic Johnson attracted only 7% of the viewers and ranked 94th for the week.

Southland Ratings

Here are A. C. Nielsen’s Top 10 prime-time programs in the Los Angeles area during the same week. Each rating point equals 50,064 households.

Program Station Rating 1. Home Improvement KABC 22.3 2. Seinfeld KNBC 21.1 3. 60 Minutes KCBS 20.9 4. The Simpsons KTTV 20.8 5. Frasier KNBC 18.9 Grace Under Fire KABC 18.9 7. Roseanne KABC 18.5 8. Beverly Hills, 90210 KTTV 16.4 9. The Sinbad Show KTTV 16.3 10. Turning Point KABC 15.9

Weekly Averages

ABC 12.9

CBS 11.2

NBC 10.7

FOX 7.3

Season to Date

CBS 14.3

ABC 12.4

NBC 11.2

FOX 7.2