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‘Greek Life’ premiere a hit for CBS

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Let the puns about big fat ratings fly, as Monday’s debut of “My Big Fat Greek Life” weighed in with the biggest audience for a comedy series premiere on any network in more than four years.

The family sitcom -- adapted from the hit independent film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” -- averaged 22.9 million viewers, based on Nielsen Media Research estimates, making it the first adjacent CBS program to improve on a new episode of “Everybody Loves Raymond” (which, at 22.2 million, posted its highest rating since September).

The last sitcom to open with a larger audience was NBC’s “Jesse,” starring Christina Applegate, which premiered after “Friends” in 1998.

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Featuring nearly all the movie’s original cast, “My Big Fat Greek Life” will move into its regular home on Sunday against “The Simpsons.” If the show retains 60% of its preview audience, that would still represent a significant improvement over CBS’ average in the time slot.

-- Brian Lowry

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