‘Grey’s’ helps ABC to No. 1 in key area

ABC executives can breathe a (momentary) sigh of relief.

The network took a huge gamble by moving the medical soap “Grey’s Anatomy” from Sundays to Thursdays this fall. But with “Grey’s” the week’s most-watched show (25.4 million average viewers in the live-plus-seven-day ratings), the network wound up No. 1 in the crucial 18- to 49-year-old demographic for the first week of the 2006-07 season.

ABC averaged a 4.4 rating/12 share in the demographic during prime time for the week, according to figures released Tuesday by Nielsen Media Research. NBC finished second (4.0/11), trailed by CBS (3.9/11) and Fox (3.1/8). CBS dominated among total viewers (13 million), as it has for five consecutive premiere weeks.

It would be a mistake, of course, to read too much into results for just seven days. Plenty of series premieres are still to come, including ABC’s “The Nine” and “Ugly Betty,” and NBC’s “Friday Night Lights” and “30 Rock.”

But before TV’s rush week is forgotten entirely, like Tucker Carlson on “Dancing With the Stars,” let’s reminisce about the winners and losers:

Most improved: Hit-hungry NBC, which soared 18% among young-adult viewers -- the biggest gain for all networks -- compared with the same week last year.

Most competitive night: You might think Thursday, but no. It was Tuesday, when a crowded network pack jockeyed for supremacy with such shows as ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars,” Fox’s “House” and NBC’s “Law & Order: SVU.”

Biggest disappointment: NBC’s costly thriller “Kidnapped,” which bombed in its Wednesday opening. Runner-up: CBS’ Ray Liotta crime drama “Smith.”

Resurrection award: CBS’ crime drama “Cold Case” looked pretty cold indeed last season, but on Sunday it leaped to life again between “Amazing Race 10” and “Without a Trace.” Runner-up: NBC’s aging “ER,” which handily defeated two new contenders, CBS’ “Shark” and ABC’s “Six Degrees.”

Match-up most likely to induce divorce: Married couples battled for control of the remote Sunday, trapped between the third-season premiere of “Desperate Housewives” and NBC’s Broncos-Patriots game. Sociologists, take note: “Housewives” won the ratings.

Most thankless job: NBC took Friday with the 18-to-49 set with the 17th season premiere of “Law & Order.” But, you know, it was still a Friday.

Just wait till “American Idol” comes back: A pitiful 3.4 million viewers watched Fox’s “Celebrity Duets” on Thursday. But, you know, it was a Thursday.

Sorkin indulges his musical passion

Fans of NBC’s “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” got a crash course in 19th century musical theater Monday night.

The second airing of “Studio 60,” writer-producer Aaron Sorkin’s satire about a comedy show a la “Saturday Night Live,” closed with a parody of “The Major-General’s Song” from Gilbert and Sullivan’s 1879 operetta “The Pirates of Penzance.”

Sorkin is a self-professed G&S; fan and made characters in his White House drama “The West Wing” surreally conversant with their work. But the lavish production number at the end of this week’s “Studio 60” seems to have flown over the heads even of some fans. That would include one poster on the Internet fan site Television Without Pity, who was perplexed by Sorkin’s tribute to “Rodgers & Hammerstein.”

Sorkin’s colleagues are trying to indulge his passion. When asked at a Monday night panel at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in North Hollywood about the biggest challenge in staging the number, director and longtime Sorkin partner Thomas Schlamme paused slightly.

“I would have to say listening to Gilbert and Sullivan for two months,” he replied.

Channel Island is a blog about the television industry. For the latest posting, go to latimes.com/channelisland. Contact reporter Scott Collins at channelisland@latimes.com.