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TNT's 'Gladiator' Unleashes Cable Ratings Hell

Thursday, March 17, 2005

12:01 PM PT

"Are you not entertained?" TNT asked cable viewers during the week ending Sunday, March 13. The network's offering included a slew of airings of the Russell Crowe Oscar winner "Gladiator" and audiences were, indeed, entertained.

Overall, TNT averaged 3.1 million viewers per night in primetime, far ahead of second place Nick at Nite, which pulled in only 2.17 million. USA Network was a close third with 2.14 million, followed by TBS' 1.85 million and Lifetime's 1.82 million.

The week's most watched cable program was actually a TNT repeat of "Law & Order," which drew 5.04 million viewers, while a second "L&O" repeat was No. 8 with 3.88 million viewers. A Saturday primetime airing of "Gladiator" was cable's third most viewed program with 4.28 million viewers and the film's Friday screening was No. 7 with just under 4 million fans.

As usual, Nickelodeon had the most entries in the Top 15. Three episodes of "SpongeBob Squarepants" did as well as No. 5 with 4.08 million viewers and went as low as No. 13 with 3.54 million. An addition trio of "Fairly OddParents" half-hours peaked at No. 6 with 4.03 million and reached a nadir at No. 14 with 3.47 million.

Also making the basic cable ratings list were Spike TV's WWE Entertainment double-bill (2nd, 4.57 million), a USA episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4th, 4.09 million) and Lifetime's film "Lies My Mother Told Me" (11th, 3.69 million).

On the HBO-dominated premium cable side, two original dramas led the way. The season's second profanity-laced episode of "Deadwood" stormed to first with 3.41 million viewers and the revisionist Western helped boost the audience for "Carnivale," which was second with 2.5 million. An airing of the feature "Europtrip" was close behind in third. Fourth went to a reairing of "Sex and the City," which hooked 1.65 million viewers and 1.34 million found themselves intrigued by the pleasures of "Atlantic City Hookers."