TV Ratings: 'House,' 'Dancing' pace ABC, FOX Monday split

'Chuck' and 'One Tree Hill' return with steady ratings

By Daniel Fienberg Tuesday, Apr 27, 2010 10:53 AM

Hugh Laurie of 'House'

Credit: FOX

Fast National ratings for Tuesday, April 26, 2010.

"Dancing with the Stars" helped ABC control Monday night in total viewers, while "House" pushed FOX to a demo win for the night.

While, "Chuck" and "One Tree Hill" both returned from absences to series-standard numbers.

Among adults 18-49, FOX won the night with a 3.5 rating, topping the 3.3 rating for ABC. CBS was third with a 2.4 rating in the key demographic, better than the 1.7 rating for NBC. The CW's 1.1 rating trailed.

Overall, though, ABC averaged an estimated 14.46 million viewers and a 9.5 rating/15 share. FOX was a distant second with a 6.1/9, with CBS' 5.1/8 right behind. NBC finished fourth on the night with a 3.4/5, beating the 1.3/2 for The CW.

"Dancing with the Stars" won the 8 p.m. hour overall for ABC with a 12.5/20. FOX's "House" was second overall with a 6.6/10 and won the hour in the 18-49 demo with a 4.1 rating. NBC's "Chuck" had a 3.7/6 and a 2.1 rating in the demo, edging out CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" repeat and a new "Rules of Engagement." The CW's "One Tree Hill" returned with a 1.3/2 and a 1.0 rating in the demo, in line with both the show's averages this season and what "Life Unexpected" had been doing in the time period.

In the 9 p.m. hour, ABC stayed in first with "Dancing with the Stars" (14.2/22 and a 5.0 demo) and "Romantically Challenged" (6.7/10 and a 2.7 demo). "Romantically Challenged" lost over 1.5 million viewers from its premiere airing and lost in viewers and the demo to a repeat of "Big Bang Theory" on CBS. For the house, CBS' repeats of "Two and a Half Men" and "Big Bang Theory" averaged a 6.4/10 for second. FOX's "24" had a 5.5/8, while NBC's "Trauma" did a 3.3/5. The CW's "Gossip Girl" held onto its lead-in.

A repeat of "Castle" did a 5.6/10 to win the 10 p.m. hour for ABC, edging the 5.3/9 for CBS' "CSI: Miami" repeat. NBC's repeat of "Law & Order" was third.

All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.

Daniel Fienberg
Executive Editor

A long-time member of the TCA Board and a longer-time blogger of "American Idol," Dan Fienberg writes about TV, except for when he writes about movies or sometimes writes about the Red Sox. But never music. He would sound stupid talking about music.