ABC's Tuesday Builds to its Top Numbers Since November

Early info on ABC's Tuesday, ahead of the regular press release.

For the 3rd week running with its new Tuesday night lineup, ABC earned strong increases over the same night last year (an all-original schedule), building by 1.3 million viewers and by 18% Adults 18-49. ABC stood as the 2nd-most-watched network on Tuesday evening, topping all-original programming on both Fox and NBC. In addition, ABC self-starter Last Man Standing at 8pm once again finished as Tuesday's most-watched comedy overall, outdrawing Fox's Glee-led New Girl at 9pm by 1.7 million viewers.

· Rising over the prior week with Total Viewers (+16%) and Adults 18-49 (+11%), ABC marked its top Tuesday results since November - since 11/29/11 and 11/22/11, respectively.

Surging week to week at 8pm, ABC freshman Last Man Standing earned second place in its half-hour among Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, outdrawing the return of Fox's Glee to original by 1.2 million viewers and NBC's The Biggest Loser by 24% in Adults 18-49. Additionally, the broad-appealing ABC comedy ranked #1 in its time slot with Adults 25-54 and key Men (M18-49/M25-54).

· Last Man delivered big year-over-year improvement for ABC in the half-hour, boosting its slot by 51% in viewers and by 44% in young adults over the year-ago night.

· Hitting 6-week highs, the ABC comedy grew sharply week to week in viewers (+13%) and young adults (+24%) - since 12/6/11.

Building on its repeat Last Man Standing lead-in at 9pm with young adults, ABC's Celebrity Wife Swap improved its hour year to year in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

· Growing its overall audience by 13% week to week, Celebrity Wife Swap matched its top Adult 18-49 number on the night and hit series highs with key Men (M18-34/M18-49).

Gaining on its lead-in (+34%), ABC's Body of Proof finished as the most-watched TV show during the 10 o'clock hour, besting NBC's first-run Parenthood by 3.0 million viewers. The ABC sophomore drama also delivered the #1 position in its slot with Adults 25-54.

· The ABC sophomore drama continued to deliver impressive year-to-year increases in Tuesday's 10pm hour, jumping by 30% in Total Viewers, by 23% in Adults 18-49 and by 28% in Adults 25-54 ahead of the year-ago night.

· Building week to week by 14% viewers, Body of Proof tallied its best numbers since November with Total Viewers, Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 - since 11/29/11.

Quick Take for Tuesday, January 17, 2012 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Program Ratings)

ABC Marks Big Year-to-Year Gains on Tuesday with its Top Results Since November

Tuesday's Most-Watched Comedy, ABC Freshman "Last Man Standing" Surges Week to Week to Hit 6-Week Highs in Viewers and Young Adults

"Celebrity Wife Swap" Improves its Hour and Achieves Series Highs in Key Men

The Most-Watched TV Show During the 10pm Hour, ABC's "Body of Proof" Produces its Strongest Performance in 7 Weeks with Viewers and Key Adults

Tuesday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

For the 3rd week running with its Tuesday night lineup, ABC earned strong increases over the same night last year (an all-original schedule), building by 1.3 million viewers (7.1 million vs. 5.8 million) and by 18% Adults 18-49 (2.0/5 vs. 1.7/5). ABC stood as the 2nd-most-watched network on Tuesday evening, topping all-original programming on both Fox (6.7 million) and NBC (6.1 million). In addition, ABC self-starter "Last Man Standing" at 8:00 p.m. once again finished as Tuesday's most-watched comedy overall, outdrawing Fox's "Glee"-led "New Girl" at 9:00 p.m. by 1.7 million viewers (8.6 million vs. 6.9 million).

· Rising over the prior week with Total Viewers (+16%) and Adults 18-49 (+11%), ABC marked its top Tuesday results since November - since 11/29/11 and 11/22/11, respectively.

"Last Man Standing" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)

Surging week to week at 8:00 p.m., ABC freshman "Last Man Standing" earned second place in its half-hour among Total Viewers (8.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.6/7), outdrawing the return of Fox's "Glee" to original by 1.2 million viewers (7.4 million) and NBC's "The Biggest Loser" by 24% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6). Additionally, the broad-appealing ABC comedy ranked No. 1 in its time slot with Adults 25-54 and key Men (M18-49/M25-54).

· "Last Man" delivered big year-over-year improvement for ABC in the half-hour, boosting its slot by 51% in viewers and by 44% in young adults over the year-ago night (5.7 million and 1.8/5 on 1/18/11).

· Hitting 6-week highs, the ABC comedy grew sharply week to week in viewers (+13%) and young adults (+24%) - since 12/6/11.

"Celebrity Wife Swap" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

Building on its repeat "Last Man Standing" lead-in at 9:00 p.m. with young adults, ABC's "Celebrity Wife Swap" improved its hour year to year in both Total Viewers (5.9 million vs. 5.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.1/5 vs. 2.0/5).

· Growing its overall audience by 13% week to week, "Celebrity Wife Swap" matched its top Adult 18-49 number on the night and equaled series highs with key Men (M18-34/M18-49).

"Body of Proof" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Gaining on its lead-in (+34%), ABC's "Body of Proof" finished as the most-watched TV show during the 10 o'clock hour, besting NBC's first-run "Parenthood" by 3.0 million viewers (7.9 million vs. 4.9 million). The ABC sophomore drama also delivered the No. 1 position in its slot with Adults 25-54.

· The ABC drama continued to deliver impressive year-to-year increases in Tuesday's 10:00 p.m. hour, jumping by 30% in Total Viewers (7.9 million vs. 6.1 million), by 23% in Adults 18-49 (1.6/4 vs. 1.3/4) and by 28% in Adults 25-54 (2.3/6 vs. 1.8/5) ahead of the year-ago night.

· Building week to week by 14% viewers, "Body of Proof" tallied its best numbers since November with Total Viewers, Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 - since 11/29/11.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 43% currently, from 38% at the same point in 2011. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: The Nielsen Company (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Program Ratings), 1/17/12.