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Wentworth Miller in Star Magazine : October 9, 2005
If you don't recognize Wentworth Miller from The Human Stain or the two videos he did with Mariah Carey, take a long look. The sexy lead in the hot new Fox thriller Prison Break has a notable past.
One the show, Miller, 33, plays Michael Scofield, an engineer who robs a bank so he can land in jail and break out his innocent brother (Dominic Purcell) from death row. While it may not seem like the smartest plan, it's clear his character has though of everything – he even has the prison's blueprints secretly tattooed on his chest.
The role is a bit of a stretch for the Brooklyn native who graduated from Princeton and was a member of it's a capella group the Tiger tones. Today he lives in L.A., and is single and breaking hearts. After he had a part on Jennifer Love Hewitts's show Ghost Whisperer, she cooed, "He's an old-fashioned movie-star gentlemen." Here, he talks Star.
How hard is it to put on the tattoo?
It takes about four to five hours if you've got two people working on it. It's a series of decals that fit together like a puzzles. They're kind of more sophisticated versions of what you might find in a Cracker Jack box. It will stay on for two to three weeks if you don't scrub it off with some solvents.
How do people react to the tattoos off set?
It's pretty interesting, I'll be at Starbucks in my flip-flops and shorts and I've got the full tattoos on my arms, and people make space for me in line.
Did you work out for the role?
I made a decision not to work out because I'm lazy and also, the character is not a superhero. I didn't want him to be a buff guy with Jackie Chan moves because the point is he's smarter than your average Joe.
How was it filming the video for Mariah Care's "We Belong Together?"
Mariah wears her wedding dress, the one she actually got married in. That thing must have weighed 50 pounds. She runs into my arms and this huge bodyguard says, ‘You do realize that Mariah cannot fall,' [Laughs.] I didn't drop her, but I've got friends who are sick of seeing me run away with Mariah Carey.
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USA unleashes 'Raw' power in Monday ratings : October 5, 2005
World Wrestling Entertainment primetime franchise "Monday Night Raw" returned to USA Network on Monday with renewed energy.
"Raw" locked down 5.6 million total viewers for a three-hour special marking its transition from Spike TV. It was the biggest audience to see "Raw" in more than three years.
"Raw" drew 6 million between 9-11 p.m., the two-hour block it has occupied for the past decade -- first on USA before WWE jumped ship to Viacom. By way of comparison, Spike TV drew about 2 million fewer viewers to "Raw" in its last week on the channel, a sign that NBC Universal's marketing blitz to reintroduce "Raw" might have paid off.
Spike TV tried to spoil the "Raw" party by scheduling the special "Ultimate Fight Night Live" between 9-11 p.m., where it drew nearly 2 million.
Meanwhile, in broadcast television, Fox's jailhouse drama "Prison Break" delivered its highest ratings yet in the adults 18-34 demographic Monday with its seventh episode and last airing until October 24, while Fox makes room in its primetime schedule for coverage of postseason baseball games.
"Break" impressed again with an average of 9.5 million viewers and a 4.5 rating/11 share in adults 18-49, a major spike from its 8:30 p.m. lead-in, the new comedy "Kitchen Confidential" (4.1 million, 1.9/5) that is on life support after three airings. Among the 18-34 set, "Break" hit a series high (4.9/13) and ranked second in its 9 p.m. slot to only ABC's "Monday Night Football" (15.6 million, 6.0/16), according to Nielsen Media Research.
NBC's 9 p.m. drama "Las Vegas" also had a strong night, reeling in 13.6 million viewers and a 4.8/11 in adults 18-49. CBS was competitive from 9-9:30 p.m. with "Two and a Half Men" (14.2 million, 4.8/11) but ebbed in the second half of the hour with new comedy "Out of Practice" (11.7 million, 3.7/9).
CBS' Monday 8-9 p.m. comedies "The King of Queens" (10.3 million, 3.5/10) and "How I Met Your Mother" (10.4 million, 3.9/10) were on par with their averages so far this season. NBC's "Surface" (9.5 million, 3.0/8) was in respectable territory and upticked slightly at the half-hour mark.
At 10 p.m., "CSI: Miami" took a 7 million-viewer flying leap from its lead-in ahead of "MNF" to finish out with an average of 18.7 million viewers and a 6.4/15 in adults 18-49. NBC's "Medium" (12.9 million, 4.6/11) was competitive but lost a little ground from its "Las Vegas" lead-in.
WB Network had another rough outing, with its new 9 p.m. drama "Just Legal" drawing just 2.9 million viewers and fractional (0.9) ratings in the key demo.
For the night, ABC prevailed in the adults 18-49 demo (5.0/13), while CBS was No. 1 in viewers (14 million).
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CBS Squeaks Past ABC to Win Monday : October 4, 2005
Fast National ratings for Monday, Oct. 3, 2005
"Monday Night Football" rebounded from its lackluster performance last week, but not quite enough to push ABC past CBS in the ratings race.
For the night, CBS averaged a 9.2 rating/14 share to finish just ahead of ABC, 9.1/14. NBC was a solid third at 7.8/12, and FOX took fourth with a 4.2/6. The WB, 2.8/4, came in fifth, ahead of UPN, 2.3/3.
ABC did score a victory among adults 18-49, averaging a 5.2 rating in the demographic advertisers chase most fervently. CBS finished second at 4.6, followed by NBC, 4.1, and FOX, 3.2. UPN's 1.4 was good for fifth, edging The WB's 1.3.
ABC took the 8 p.m. hour with "Wife Swap," 7.2/11 (those numbers reflect time period only and include football in the western part of the country). "The King of Queens," 7.0/11, and "How I Met Your Mother," 6.7/10, put CBS in second for the hour, while "Surface" scored a 6.2/10 for NBC. The WB got a 3.6/6 from "7th Heaven," beating FOX's "Arrested Development" and "Kitchen Confidential." UPN trailed with "One on One" and "All of Us."
The "Monday Night Football" game between Green Bay and Carolina posted a 10.4/15 for ABC at 9 p.m. NBC's "Las Vegas" rolled an 8.7/13 to tie for second with CBS' "Two and a Half Men," 9.3/14, and "Out of Practice," 8.1/12. "Prison Break" more than doubled its lead-in, scoring a 5.6/9 for FOX. UPN moved up to fifth, averaging 2.4/4 with "Girlfriends" and "Half & Half." The WB's "Just Legal" trailed.
CBS took the lead at 10 p.m. with "CSI: Miami," 12.0/19, which was the night's top-rated show. "Monday Night Football" averaged a 9.7/15 for the hour, and NBC's "Medium" came in at 8.5/13.
Ratings information is taken from fast national data. All numbers are preliminary and subject to change, especially in the case of live telecasts.
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'Prison,' 'Vegas' shine Monday : October 4, 2005
Morning Ratings Flash - Rick Kissell
ABC has captured another Monday primetime in key demos thanks to "Monday Night Football," but 9 o'clock dramas "Prison Break" on Fox and "Las Vegas" on NBC both looked good, rising week-to-week.
Preliminary Nielsen estimates for "Monday Night Football" are sketchy since it's a live event airing at different times in various time zones, but the Carolina-Green Bay matchup averaged a 5.8 rating/14 share and 15.3 million viewers overall in affiliate-based projections.
In the 9 o'clock hour, NBC's "Las Vegas" (4.7/11 in 18-49, 13.3 million viewers) was the non-sports 18-49 leader with the conclusion of a crossover storyline with Sunday drama "Crossing Jordan," and Fox's "Prison Break" (4.4/10 in 18-49, 9.1 million viewers) remained potent with its final episode before a baseball-dictated hiatus, delivering some of its best scores to date.
CBS was second, led by "CSI: Miami""CSI: Miami" (6/15 in 18-49, 17.9 million viewers overall), which was the night's top program. Net's comedies perked up, with "How I Met Your Mother" (3.8/10 in 18-49, 10.2 million viewers) again building in rating over its "King of Queens""King Of Queens" lead-in (3.5/10 in 18-49, 10.3 million viewers), and "Out of Practice" at 9:30 (3.8/9 in 18-49, 12.1 million viewers) holding onto nearly 80% of its "Two and a Half Men""Two And A Half Men" lead-in (4.8/11 in 18-49, 14.3 million viewers).
NBC's "Surface" (3/8 in 18-49, 9.5 million viewers) picked up slightly at 8, but 10 o'clock drama "Medium" (4.6/11 in 18-49, 12.6 million viewers) fell off after closing the gap with "CSI: Miami" a week ago.
Fox's 8 o'clock laffers "Arrested Development""Arrested Development" (2.2/6 in 18-49, 4.5 million viewers) and "Kitchen Confidential" (1.9/5 in 18-49, 4 million viewers) both gained week-to-week, with "AD" hitting season highs.
Preliminary 18-49 averages for the night: ABC, 5.2/13; CBS, 4.6/12; NBC, 4.1/10; Fox, 3.2/8; UPNUPN, 1.4/3; WB, 1.3/3.
In total viewers: ABC, 13.8 million; CBS, 13.8 million; NBC, 11.8 million; Fox, 6.7 million; WB, 4 million; UPN, 3.3 million.
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CBS Monday might:'Queen' & 'Mother' : October 4, 2005
Boosting 8 p.m. hour as its other shows sag
On a night where shows such as ABC's "Monday Night Football," NBC's "Las Vegas" and even Fox's "Prison Break" average above a 4.0 rating in adults 18-49, the 3.6 average for CBS comedies "The King of Queens" and "How I Met Your Mother" doesn't look all that impressive.
Yet the shows may actually be CBS's bright spots in an otherwise fading Monday lineup.
The two combined for a 3.6 average among viewers 18-49 last night, according to Nielsen overnights, a 16 percent increase over the 3.1 "Still Standing" and "Listen Up" averaged in the hour last year.
That's important for the network, considering the 9 p.m. hour, now absent "Everybody Loves Raymond," was down 23 percent last night versus a year ago. And 10 p.m.'s "CSI: Miami" was down 10 percent.
With the 8 p.m. boost, CBS finished No. 2 last night to ABC and "Monday Night Football," CBS with a 4.6 and ABC with a 5.2. NBC was close behind in third with a 4.1.
Last night's 3.6 at 8 p.m. was a season-high for CBS, which posted 3.5 overnight ratings in the hour during the past two weeks. "King of Queens" tied its season high with a 3.5, while rookie "How I Met Your Mother's" 3.8 beat its previous high, a 3.6 for the premiere.
CBS thinks that show will continue to build. It received very positive reviews and it plays to a younger audience than most of CBS's Monday night. Among 18-34s last night, "Mother" tied "Men" with a 3.0 average, the highest-rated comedy of the night in that demo.
For the night, ABC averaged a 5.2 average rating among 18-49s and a 13 share, though final ratings may change due to the live nature of "MNF." CBS was second at 4.6/12, NBC third at 4.1/10, Fox fourth at 3.2/8, UPN fifth at 1.4/3 and the WB sixth at 1.3/3.
ABC started the night in the lead with a 4.0 average during the 8 p.m. hour for "Wife Swap." CBS was second that hour with its 3.6 average for "King of Queens" (3.5) and "How I Met Your Mother" (3.8) and NBC third with a 3.0 for "Surface," up slightly over last week.
ABC led again at 9 p.m., jumping to a 5.9 average rating for the first hour of the "MNF" game between the Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers. NBC was second that hour with a 4.7 average for "Las Vegas" and Fox third with a 4.4 for "Prison Break." CBS could only muster a fourth-place finish that hour, averaging a 4.3 rating for "Two and a Half Men" (4.8) and "Out of Practice" (3.8).
CBS led at 10 p.m. with a 6.0 average for "CSI: Miami." ABC was second with a 5.8 average for its second hour of football, while NBC came in third with a 4.6 average for "Medium."
CBS edged ABC for the night among households, averaging a 9.2 rating and 14 share to ABC's 9.1/14. NBC came in third at 7.8/12, Fox fourth at 4.2/6, the WB fifth at 2.8/4 and UPN sixth at 2.3/3.
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Stars and bars : October 2, 2005
Former Joliet jailhouse rocks as setting for new Fox drama
A young man walks across the green grass, blue pants hanging low on his slim hips, thick brown hair spilling across his forehead. He bumps into a few other men, exchanging scowls and defiant looks with them before settling alone on the hard bleachers, arms resting on his knees.
He's there only moments before a rangy man who moves with a coyote-like prowl sidles up to him.
"That's not a good position to find yourself in," he drawls, sitting uninvited next to the young man.
As the seconds tick on, quiet words are exchanged. The dialogue becomes more heated, until the young man jumps down from the bleachers in disgust.
"You come near me again, I'm going to kill you - homo!"
Silence.
"OK! Much better!" yells director Matt Earl Beesley. "Let's start shooting this!"
Actor Lane Garrison relaxes and grins, jumping and shaking the scene off while actor Robert Knepper climbs down from the bleachers. They shake hands and laugh, pulling each other into a half-hug as the extras re-set themselves and various others scurry back into position.
On set
It's a late September morning on the set of the Fox TV show "Prison Break," where they are filming episode 8, titled "Tweener," written by Paul T. Scheuring.
"Prison Break" is about structural engineer Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller), who commits a crime to get sent to prison to help his brother, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) escape. Lincoln has been sentenced to death for a crime Michael is sure Lincoln didn't commit.
Michael is determined to break them both out of prison by using his intimate knowledge of the facilities' blueprints. The show is shot at the former Joliet Correctional Facility on Collins Street.
The show premiered Aug. 29, and since then, each episode has built on myriad mysteries, chief among them being who framed Lincoln Burrows for the assassination of the vice president's son.
In a TV season flush with marginal dramas, "Prison Break" has stood out as one of the better-executed shows. In fact, Fox announced Wednesday that the show has received a full-season order of episodes.
Bad guy
Back on the set, the prison's resident bad
guy, Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell (Knepper), is trying to proposition the new kid, called Tweener (Garrison). (He's called "Tweener" because he's in between races - not liked by the blacks and not trusted by the whites. The other context of the word, a pre-teen girl, also could apply.)
Meanwhile, bees buzz all around the cast and crew in the bright sunshine. Crew members continually hose down the sides of the tall limestone buildings, so they "pop" better on film.
After the scene is re-set, production assistants send lines of extras - men of varying heights, weights and ethnicities - across the yard on cue. From the game of casual football being played in the yard to the glances and shoulder brushed exchanged with Tweener, everything in "Prison Break" is choreographed to the last nuance.
Albert Rocco Zilinger, 29, of Berwyn, has been an extra for four months. He's hoping the exposure will push him into something bigger, but for now, he's content with being seen in the backgrounds. He's one of the guys walking across the yard who pass Tweener.
He moves to the side a little to avoid a bee while waiting in the line of "prisoners."
"Once a bunch of bees swarmed out of the hoop while we were playing basketball," he says, grinning. "There are bees everywhere."
That's true - bee traps are set up discreetly in corners of the yard.
The director, script supervisor and various others are set up under a tent with two monitors showing the scene unfolding between Tweener and T-Bag. One camera is focused only on Knepper's face, the other on the pair of them.
Dominic Purcell
Outside the prison yard, Dominic Purcell sits on a loading dock in a wife beater and loose brown pants, his feet shoved into a pair of black and red sneakers. He's not wearing socks. His legs are drawn up to his chest, and his arms are settled loosely around his knees.
Purcell was born in England, grew up in Australia and moved to the United States in 2000 to pursue acting. He's had a handful of minor roles, including starring as the title character in the short-lived Fox series "John Doe."
When studio execs were planning "Prison Break," he was asked to come in and read for the part of Lincoln. He got the role and shot the pilot in December 2004.
"That was the role I kind of related to," he says, an almost imperceptible accent still tinting his words. "I could see myself playing that role. I did research; I read stuff on capital punishment; I went to Stateville (Correctional Facility in Crest Hill) and spent some time there. I spoke to a lot of prisoners. They're very interesting people."
They didn't so much offer him advice as they helped get him in the state of mind of playing a death row inmate, Purcell says.
"When you're serving a sentence, especially a longer sentence, you become used to (prison)," he says. "It becomes a way of life. You get three meals a day; you don't pay rent ... I'd never want to do it myself, though."
No more so was that point driven home for him as when he had to film a dream sequence that required him to be strapped into the electric chair, he admits.
"That was a pretty draining experience."
He hops off the loading dock in a fluid motion, crouching down to examine an alarmingly large brown spider scaling the limestone wall.
"Prisoners would love this," he murmurs, studying the insect. "It enters their cell, and it becomes a friend."
Viewers who pay attention probably have noticed that the Dominic Purcell in the pilot was quite a bit bigger than the man they see on screen now. That's because he had bulked up for a role in the horror movie "The Gravedancers," currently in post-production.
Now, his 6-foot, 2-inch frame is much slimmer - although that can easily be blamed on bad prison food, he said, smiling.
His family - a wife and four kids (ages 6, 5 and twin 2-year-olds) - are still in Los Angeles. He flies home to see them when he can.
Although he doesn't get the chance to watch the show very much - in fact, everyone interviewed said they are usually working on Monday nights - he's grateful for the positive response it's received so far.
"People tell me they really enjoy the show, and they hope it keeps going the way it's going," he says.
Back in the yard, Garrison and Knepper are setting up for another take. Beesley is nearby, giving the cameramen instructions.
Script supervisor Mary Carlson sees that Tweener's blue pants are riding a little too low, exposing a healthy chunk of white boxer shorts in back. She scoots off her seat under the tent, trots over to Garrison and hikes them back into the same position they had been in in previous takes.
"It's really cool, a lot of these background guys are total characters," she says of the extras when she returns, settling into her seat. "They're musicians, poets, rap artists - it's good because they can help (the actors) say stuff that's more real."
Stunt coordinator Rick LeFevour sits behind her, watching the scene. Other than some small scuffles, there isn't much use for him this morning. That's not the norm, however.
"There's a lot of fights," he says.
"Someone dies every episode," Carlson agrees, grinning.
"We hung a guy Tuesday," he says. "No one sticks around very long."
There's been a couple big fights, a riot and Miller's character getting thrown off a balcony.
"There's not much today," LeFevour says. "Later tonight we'll do a scene where a guy gets blown up in a hallway."
He also teased upcoming scenes involving chases and shoot-outs.
It's a show he says if he weren't working on, he would still watch.
"It's got such a different look to it," he muses. "It's different than other prison shows. It's a little McGuyver-ish; there's a couple twists to it ... this place has a great look to it, too - it doesn't look like a set.
"It's a really physical show. ... All the actors are very physical, very athletic; they're very good at fights," he says.
Meanwhile, Beesley is giggling with barely-concealed glee at the scene unfolding on the monitors before him. He gives the thumbs-up and yells, "Oh, I love this scene! Print that!"
The surprising thing about TV is it takes an extraordinary amount of time to do each scene. What looks like a minute or so on screen is actually about one to two hours of work. Every so often, production screeches to a halt while a train rumbles past or a plane soars overhead.
At 12:30 p.m., after two hours of shooting, the scene is wrapped and the equipment will be relocated to another corner of the yard.
"Great scene. Thank you very much," Beesley tells everyone.
Filmed locally
Obviously, all of the exterior shots are filmed in Joliet. The visitation room scenes where Lincoln sees his son are filmed at the prison, as are scenes in the chapel, many of the cells and the work area. Lincoln's cell is in the actual corridor for death row inmates and once housed serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
The scenes shot in Michael's cell are filmed on a soundstage in Chicago, as his cell needed to be big enough to hold a film crew.
Most everyone involved in the production has heard stories of how the prison is haunted, and while they haven't yet seen or heard anything other-worldly, they all agree the place definitely has an eerie quality. How could it not, they say, with all that has happened there?
Outside, in one of the delivery roadways, actor Peter Stormare (who plays mob boss and inmate John Abruzzi) pushes a cart full of equipment. Dressed in his prison blues, sunglasses and floppy hat, he looks like an extra helping out the production crew - save for the Doberman trotting happily beside him.
The Doberman is 8 years old, and Stormare calls her Greta Garbo. He sits on a small hill that at one time was a limestone quarry and feeds her Hormel Vienna sausages off a plastic fork. Clearly, this is one pampered pooch.
"She's been around," he says, looking at his dog affectionately. "All over Europe, the U.S. ... She loves Italy."
Greta can be seen briefly as a guard dog in episode 6 or 7, he says.
Stormare still isn't quite sure how he got the part; he just knows the series creators wanted him for a role.
"I've never done TV before," he says. "It's very different than the movies."
The Swedish-born Stormare is probably best known for his roles in "Fargo," "8MM" and "Minority Report."
"In TV, you don't know anything about what's going to happen next," he says. "Movies are like a book. Here, you only get one chapter a week."
In his free time - what little he has - he plays guitar and sings in a band called Blonde From Fargo. You also might find him at a little watering hole near his Chicago apartment called the Wabash Tap.
One thing he likes about "Prison Break" is the writing of Paul T. Scheuring, also an executive producer on the show.
"His writing and his ideas ... are very Shakespearean," he says thoughtfully. "It's classic drama, and that's what I like. Cutting off the toes, gauging out an eye ... it's about revenge, about good and evil."
New scene
At 1:15 p.m., the scene is set up and ready to roll. Wentworth Miller is in this scene.
He stands in a shaded corner of the prison yard, slowly running a handful of gray rocks through his hand. He casts his trademark steely-eyed gaze at a point off camera as actress Sarah Wayne Callies, who plays Dr. Sara Tancredi, comes over to speak with him.
"The guy you're talking about died the minute I stepped inside these walls," he says, stone-faced, not looking at her.
The scene over, he stoops and picks up the rocks he's dropped.
"You are continuing to focus on Went, right?" Beesley asks one of the cameramen.
Makeup people dab at the actors' faces. They set themselves again and do a few more takes. Finally, Beesley is satisfied.
"Cut! That is so money," he gushes enthusiastically.
The scene over, Callies goes for water, bringing back bottles for Miller and Mary Carlson, too.
Like Purcell, Wentworth Miller was born in England, but was raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. A Princeton graduate, he had minor roles in shows like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "ER" and "Joan of Arcadia." He also had a role in the pilot episode of the new CBS show "Ghost Whisperer," starring Jennifer Love Hewitt. One of his biggest roles was in "The Human Stain" with Anthony Hopkins. He played Hopkin's character's younger self.
"This is my first TV series, the first time I've been a part of an ensemble cast," he says. "I've done a lot of guest work before, so this is pretty big for me. I think they saw a lot of people for this part. A lot of names, a lot of pretty boys."
He says he got the script on a Friday, auditioned on a Monday and learned he got the part on a Tuesday. Since June, he's been living in Chicago.
"I've got a great view - I can see everything Chicago has to offer," he says, chuckling. "Maybe one day I'll get to take advantage of it."
Miller says he's allowed to do the majority of his own stunts.
"That's why I got into the business - so I could have the opportunity to film my toes getting cut off," he jokes. Turning serious, he says, "Peter Stormare is a very talented actor. It's a real honor to have him on the set."
For the curious, the tattoo Michael Scofield sports in the pilot episode – the one that covers his torso and arms and are actually blueprints of the prison - takes four hours to apply.
Miller is needed in front of the camera again. Behind the director's tent, Lane Garrison (Tweener) waits for his call. Soon, he'll have to film a confrontation scene in the yard.
He says "Prison Break" is this year's "Lost" - meaning, the best dramatic offering this fall. He was thrilled when he got the call that he got a part.
He was shooting a movie in L.A. and ran out of the studio to hop a plane to Chicago. He says he read the script on the plane and got about an hour and a half of sleep before showing up to shoot his first day.
"When I heard the part might be for 'Prison Break,' I freaked," he said. "I have never been happier to get a part. This show is excellent. There's no ego or attitude; there's excellent writing, excellent acting - it's excellent across the board."
Illinois connection
Callies, who plays the prison doctor and daughter of the governor, has an Illinois connection. She was born in LaGrange, but she grew up in Hawaii.
"So I'm getting to know Chicago as my birthplace," she says.
Oddly enough, she even has a Joliet connection - her mother's grandparents ran the Arthur Murray dance studio in downtown Joliet.
"If it's fun, it's in downtown Joliet," she says brightly.
Callies is one of the few women in the show; Robin Tunney's character, Veronica Donovan, has most of her scenes in a Chicago law office.
"It's realistic of what it would be like working here," she says of the male-to-female ratio. "The women we have are great. I wish there were more of them. But it's not oppressive."
She gets on well with Miller, with whom her character has compassion for. In fact, one of her favorite scenes to shoot so far was with him.
"It was a scene between Michael and Sara when they're stuck somewhere together and he's trying to cheer me up," she says. "It's one of those moments when life's clunky and awkward and charming all at once. Wentworth's a dream to work with."
If there's a hint of romance between their characters, it's because Dr. Tancredi "understands that if (they) had met under different circumstances" something might have happened between them. (That's not stopping scores of Internet chatterers still hoping it will, though.)
Nearby, Knepper is awaiting his scene with Garrison in the yard. Sitting on the bleachers, he's sweating in his long-sleeved thermal shirt in the hot afternoon sunshine.
Long resume
Knepper has a long resume, dating all the way back to gigs on "L.A. Law" and including recent roles on Showtime's "Carnivale" and CBS's "Presidio Med," as well as the 2005 movie "Hostage" with Bruce Willis (which also starred Marshall Allman, who plays Lincoln Burrow's son.)
"The first week I was here, I lay on the grass and saw a plane and a bird overhead, and I thought, 'I can get up at the end of the day and walk out of here,'" he says, leaning back with his elbows resting on the bleachers and his legs stretched in front of him. "When you think of the guys that didn't get out ..."
"Like T-Bag, he has ... a way of figuring out young boys when they come in here," he says matter-of-factly. "He goes up to Michael and says, 'take my pocket' - " he pulls out the left pocket of his blue pants - "and he says, 'It looks like you've got someone holding onto that pocket,' and I say, (he pulls out his other pocket) 'I've got another one over here.'
"He's a smooth talker; he's charming. And when Michael turns him down, that's it. You don't say no to T-Bag," Knepper says. "He's an equal-opportunity user. He's horrible. He's pure evil. Someone asked Robert De Niro once why he always played such bad guys, and he said, 'I don't play bad guys, I play guys who just make choices that are different from others.'"
His key to playing T-Bag, easily one of the show's most repugnant characters, is to not let him be one-dimensional.
"You have to find compassion on why he acts the way he does," he says, twirling a cigarette idly between his fingers. "It starts with having empathy for (him) - what happened in his past to make him turn out this way?"
That said, as an actor, he relishes the opportunity to play someone so awful.
"(The writers) give me great words, just funny lines and the Southern accent," he says. "The great thing about T-Bag, he's such a ruthless (expletive). He taps into something primal. You hate this guy, but you love to hate him. He's your worst nightmare, the boogeyman who visits you in the middle of the night."
Miller agrees.
"We've got so many great character actors - Wade (Williams), Robert - a show like this is nothing without the bad guys that you love to hate."
Confrontation in the yard
It's now 2:30 p.m., time for Knepper to shoot the confrontation scene in the yard with Garrison's Tweener.
Tweener's playing football with a few guys when T-Bag strolls over. After a heated conversation that ends with Tweener walking away, T-Bag grabs the waistband of Tweener's low-slung pants and pulls them down, revealing the white boxer shorts. The scene ends with the inmates laughing at Tweener's predicament.
Miller is standing off to the side, watching the action. He's careful not to give too much away about the upcoming plots.
"You shouldn't get too attached to anyone," he says carefully, grinning. "It is prison, and we do have a substantial body count."
So what happens when Season 2 rolls around and they've broken out of prison?
"We've been talking about that," he says amiably. "There's been a lot of suggestions (among the cast) about calling it 'Prison Break ... colon ... something.'"
Whether he likes it or not, Miller is this season's "It Boy," the hot new face on TV. Most recently, those steely eyes were seen gazing out of the cover of TV Guide. How does he feel about being a pin-up boy?
"That has been a little unexpected, to say the least," he says with a chuckle, looking down at the ground. "We've got an attractive cast. Dominic's the brooding hunk, Amaury (Nolasco, "Sucre") is the funny hunk and I'm basically here to drive the story and anything else is a surprise. I'm just glad they're watching the show."
Director's take
It's 3 p.m. and time for the cast and crew to eat lunch. Director Matt Earl Beesley sits alone on the bleachers, inert for the first time all day. He's dressed in red pants, a black shirt with a big "1" on it and a white shirt over that. It's finally his chance to catch up on e-mails, phone calls and other minutia.
"Tweener" is the second episode he's directed (in addition to episode 4, "Cute Poison.")
"I think it's the hippest show on TV," he says enthusiastically. "The cast is very, very hard working. I appreciate that they care so much about getting it right and making it real. The Chicago crew is so dedicated. They're really hard-working and into the show, and it shows."
He credits the show's creators with planning out it out so well and the actors for making it believable. You do have to suspend a healthy amount of belief to watch the show.
"There's all these pieces to the puzzle, and the actors make it so real," he says. "You believe it because they bring so much to the plate.
"I just like to tell good stories," he continues. "It's all about the stories. It's just like they did sitting around a campfire 1,000 years ago, only with fancier tools."
A new episode of "Prison Break" airs at 8 p.m. Monday on Fox and then goes on hiatus for two weeks because of baseball's World Series. "Tweener" is scheduled to air Oct. 24.
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Hunks Behind Bars : September 30, 2005
I was disappointed when Oz came to an end. The series was addictive and not the least because of all those hot guys holed up in the slammer.
Luckily someone over at Fox shared my sentiments, and its paid off. The network's new series Prison Break has become so successful Fox has greenlighted a whole 22 episodes.
If you haven't seen it yet, here's the storyline. Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) is in the joint for a crime he didn't commit. Being the good brother that he is Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) decides to spring him.
Michael hatches a desperate scheme to get inside the pen and help orchestrate an escape. He robs a bank, gets arrested and convicted and gets sent off to prison.
But, you see Michael is really a structural engineer and has the plans to the slammer. Now, did we mention that Wentworth Miller who plays Michael is hot. Really hot.
Two bucks says Hillary Clinton is keeping an eye on ABC's Commander In Chief, or at least watching the ratings. And so far the signs look good for a woman prez. The Geena Davis drama series won the Tuesday night ratings race. Like Hillary the fictional woman running the White House opposes gay marriage.
While, we're on the subject of women in the White House, Laura Bush has made her prime time reality TV debut. The first lady has taped a special edition of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition to help victims of Hurricane Katrina rebuild in Biloxi, Mississippi.
Miss Prim And Proper actually sought out the series to suggest the idea. Hmmm. Do I hear damage control here for the shoddy way the administration has treated the victims of Katrina?
ABC isn't saying much about what Ms Bush did on the show. We have learned though, that while she was on the set Ty Pennington and most other members of the cast and crew were not. We also discovered that the Bush-in-skirts helped Makeover regular, Preston Sharp, distribute items like mattresses and clothing. Yup, sounds like a photo op to me. Maybe that's why ABC isn't saying when the episode will run.
John O'Hurley, a recent winner in the rematch for the "Dancing with the Stars" title on ABC, will be dancing on Broadway next year. He will take over the role of lawyer Billy Flynn in the long-running revival of "Chicago" beginning Jan. 16.
O'Hurley will co-star with Robin Givens, who joins the cast the same day, playing chorus girl-turned-murderess Roxie Hart. Both will appear in the Kander and Ebb musical through March 26.
Before "Dancing with the Stars," O'Hurley was best known for playing catalog king J. Peterman on television's "Seinfeld," and he also has appeared on "The Mullets."
"Chicago" will begin its 10th year on Broadway in November.
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The Breakout of Wentworth Miller : September 30, 2005
You can't escape Wentworth Miller's face. Suddenly the strikingly handsome actor seems to be everywhere - canoodling with Mariah Carey in her new videos, haunting Jennifer Love Hewitt in the pilot for CBS' drama Ghost Whisperer, and getting himself thrown into jail to try to spring his condemned brother on Fox's new serial thriller Prison Break (Mondays at 9 pm/ET).
Even if you haven't seen Prison Break yet, surely you've seen the ads on buses, billboards and movie screens. They feature Miller's face - really big. "Yes, I saw those pictures," the 33-year-old actor deadpans. "I've got a Tom Cruise-size head. It's phenomenal."
Fox certainly seems to think so. "It's a very smart move to brand the show with his face," says creator Paul Scheuring. "There's no one who looks like him, and there's no one who acts like him. He's an attractive mystery." TV Guide decided to get to the bottom of the mystery by grilling Miller. (This much we know: He was born in London, raised in Brooklyn and earned a degree in English literature from Princeton. Pretty impressive for a TV convict.)
How did you get your big break as Michael Scofield on Prison Break?
I auditioned for [executive producer] Brett Ratner when he was attached to Superman a few years ago. I think he remembered me. They called me in last. They'd been through all the pretty boys and names, which left guys like me. I guess it worked because here we are, behind bars.
The show received mixed reviews. Did you read any bad ones?
A few, and those came from people who approached the show as if it were a real-life drama. We do play it real, but it's very much a comic book. On a real-life drama, my character losing his toes would be my theme for the rest of the season. But in the world of Prison Break, you limp for a little while, then it's back to business.
Have you been following the show's ratings?
Someone explained the numbers to me, and it was a little like when you're house-sitting for someone and they're explaining the alarm code. You're nodding your head like, "Uh-huh, uh-huh," but it's going in one ear and out the other. I got the gist that we did well and we still had our jobs.
From The Shawshank Redemption to Oz, why do people find prison stories so fascinating?
It speaks to one of our deepest fears. I liken my character's journey to a man waking up in the lion's den at the zoo and having to a) figure a way out, and b) keep his eye on the lions so he's not mauled in the meantime. He's a stand-in for your average audience member who would never want to go on this journey themselves. But tagging along for the ride will be a hell of a good time....
There have been nude scenes on the show, but you haven't done any yet. Did you have to sign a nudity clause?
I didn't sign anything saying I would do nudity, and I certainly don't intend to. I think the more left to the imagination as far as that goes, the better.
Are any of your tattoos on the show real?
No. It's not really my thing, but it is a treat to become someone who's 50 percent tattooed. The whole pleasure of being an actor is trying out things you don't have to take home with you at night.
How do you like the Prison haircut?
I've had this for a long time. It's low maintenance-towel and go. It just happens to be in keeping with prison settings.
You're also in the pilot for Ghost Whisperer. What's up with that?
That was shot before Prison Break was picked up. My lawyer told me it was kosher since it was a one-shot deal. It was a great opportunity. It's a very old-school show. It has a feel that's sincere, earnest and straightforward without all the hipster tongue-in-cheek vibe that you get in most TV shows these days.
You've done a few movies, too. Did you identify with your biracial role as a young Anthony Hopkins in the 2003 film "The Human Stain: because you're part African American?
I certainly think I brought a unique perspective. In certain regards I could relate, but I've never had to pass as anything in my life. I've always been very proud of my heritage. But I was attracted by the caliber of talent assembled both behind and in front of the camera. Even if I hadn't been able to relate to the character, I certainly would've faked it.
You make out with Mariah Carey in her new videos. Did you have to audition for that?
Brett Ratner directed the videos, and I was simply asked to participate, which was an honor. Mariah was as professional and kind as the day is long. The woman is an icon, and I'll tell you, I've gotten more attention off the two days I spent shooting those videos then anything else I've ever done.
Will the chemistry between your character and Sarah Wayne Callies' Prison Break doctor lead to any love scenes?
It's a possibility and God knows, Sarah is beautiful and brilliant. Will it take a turn for something more serious? It is network TV. Certain things go with the territory. I'll leave it at that.
Do you have a love interest in real life?
Nope, I'm single right now. The only people I see on the set are inmates. Its a testosterone-heavy set, so for the few ladies who are there, I guess it's a picnic. For the rest of us, it's a bit of a fast.
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"Prison Break" Sentenced to Full Season : September 29, 2005
Prison Break is ready to serve a longer sentence.
Fox has ordered nine more installments of the serial drama, giving it a full-season order of 22 episodes. The thriller series, starring Wentworth Miller as an engineer who gets himself locked up in hopes of helping his brother (Dominic Purcell) escape death row, was sprung on the air Aug. 29, before the other networks rolled out their new seasons. It attracted an average of 10.5 million viewers, ranking as the week's top program in the all-important adult 18-49 demographic, at a time when Hurricane Katrina news was swamping the networks. But more importantly it has continued to hold up well in the ratings now the competing Monday, 9 p.m. lineups are in place.
The network, which last week axed the legal dramedy Head Cases after just two episodes, also gave a full-season order to Seth MacFarlane's American Dad. The 'toon, featuring rah-rah CIA agent Stan Smith and his wacky family, premiered in May in tandem with the return of MacFarlane's Family Guy.
Although American Dad has not been as hot as Family Guy, the pairing of the two half-hours makes for a successful Sunday, 9-10 p.m. slot, popular with the younger audiences advertisers favor.
Like Prison Break, American Dad is produced by the network's in-house 20th Century Fox Television.
Meanwhile, NBC got in on the reupping. The Peacock, still struggling to regain its stature in the Nielsens, ordered seven more episodes of The Office, the workplace sitcom it transposed from England, bringing the season order to 13.
Now in its second year, the show is still struggling for audience share, but NBC is sticking with the comedy, perhaps becuase of the big-screen success of star Steve Carell in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. The show, airing behind the rookie hit My Name Is Earl at 9:30 on Tuesday, is produced in association with NBC Universal Television Studios.
Finally, USA Networks' critically praised sci-fi mystery The 4400, which earned an Emmy nomination as Best Miniseries, will return for another 13 episodes. The show concluded its first 13-episode season in August after premiering as a limited series in July 2004, attracting 7.4 million--at that time a record for a basic cable series--and becoming an instant hit for the cable offshoot of NBC Universal.
The series, coproduced by Paramount Television, will begin shooting new episodes this winter in Vancouver, for probable airing next summer.
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Fox fine with more jail time : September 29, 2005
Skein rewarded for good behavior
Fox's "Prison Break" has had its sentence upped to 22 episodes.
Decision to order the back nine segs of "Prison Break" makes Fox the first net to give a full season order to a frosh skeinskein. "Break," from 20th Century Fox TV and Adelstein/Parouse Prods., got a head start on the competition, bowing Aug. 29.
Fall season is still in its infancy, but nets are already assessing the fates and fortunes of other series as well.
Fox has greenlit production on nine more episodes of animated laffer "American Dad" -- a move that will keep the 20th Century Fox TV-produced show on the air through the 2006-07 season.
And over at NBC, critically hailed comedy "The Office" has seen its initial six-episode fall order expanded to 13 segs. Net had previously bought seven backup scripts from the Steve Carrell starrer, produced by NBC U Television Studio and ReveilleReveille.
Created by film scribe Paul ScheuringPaul Scheuring, "Prison Break" has been a solid performer for Fox in its 9 p.m. Monday slot. Skein has been particularly potent in younger viewers, boosting Fox's timeslot average in adults 18-34 by 22% over last season.
Scheuring is exec producer along with Matt Olmstead, Marty AdelsteinMarty Adelstein, Dawn ParouseDawn Parouse, Brett Rattner and Original Film's Neil Moritz.
Fox Entertainment prexyprexy Peter LiguoriPeter Liguori said the ratings success for "Prison Break" is particularly encouraging given the high-concept, serialized nature of the show.
"Going in, this was something everyone knew wasn't going to be an easy thing to pull off," he said. "But Paul and his team, working with Matt and Marty and Dawn, have done a great job."
"Prison" takes a two-week break for baseball after Monday's episode. Liguori said the net will use baseball to drive viewers back to the show when it returns.
As for "American Dad," Liguori said the skein has done a good job holding on to its "Family Guy""Family Guy" lead-in, especially facing off against "Desperate Housewives."
"At first, I think the 'Family Guy' audience was so in love with that show, they sort of thought, How dare anyone put out another Seth MacFarlane show? But I think very quickly they've embraced it," Liguori said. "We're very happy to have the Batman and Robin of animation."
"Family Guy" is exec produced by MacFarlane, Mike BarkerMike Barker and Matt Weitzman. Skein bowed in May; not long after, Fox ordered another batch of episodes extending the show through the early part of the 2006-07 season.
On the "Office" front, NBC EntertainmentNBC Entertainment prexy Kevin ReillyKevin Reilly said he's glad to see numbers for the show picking up behind frosh hit "My Name Is Earl." While "The Office" still loses a good chunk of its lead-in, show does particularly well among adults 18-34 Tuesdays at 9:30 p.m. -- and Reilly plans to be patient.
"The show's funny, it's inventive, and the young base is really there in droves," he said. "Some of NBC's biggest hits had humble origins. We all know the story of 'Seinfeld' starting out with just four episodes."
Greg Daniels, Ben SilvermanBen Silverman, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Howard KleinHoward Klein are the exec producers of "The Office."
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Prison Break,' 'Office' get renewals : September 29, 2005
Wednesday was a happy day for producers of Fox's "Prison Break" and "American Dad," NBC's "The Office" and USA Network's "The 4400."
All four shows have earned pickup orders from their respective networks.
Fox ordered nine episodes each of taut drama "Prison Break," which led the charge for network this season, and animated comedy "Dad," bringing their complement to a full season's worth of 22 episodes.
"Prison Break" got off to a strong start in its preseason August 29 launch and in recent weeks has held its own in the 9 p.m. Monday slot as Fox's rivals have rolled out their new Monday programs.
"American Dad" bowed in May behind Fox's relaunch of "Family Guy" in the Sunday 9-10 p.m. hour. "Dad," from "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane, has not been as big a Nielsen hit as "Family Guy" or "The Simpsons," but it has helped put Fox back in the game with the younger set on a competitive night.
NBC confirmed it has given the green light to produce seven additional episodes of "The Office," bringing the total for the offbeat comedy's sophomore year to 13 episodes.
USA signed up for a second 13-episode season of the Emmy-nominated "4400," a sci-fi saga about the reappearance of 4,400 people who were previously reported missing or dead but suddenly returned to Earth with mysterious powers.
Production on the next batch of episodes will begin in Vancouver, possibly in late winter, with a target premiere date for summer, according to Jeff Wachtel, executive vp original programing at USA.
"4400" became a surprise hit for USA in July 2004, premiering to 7.4 million total viewers, which at the time was the record for the highest-rated series debut in basic cable history. Initially, "4400" aired as a six-hour limited-run series, but USA in October ordered a full 13-episode season, which concluded August 28. This year, "4400" was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, including outstanding miniseries.
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Purcell Tells 'Prison' Tales : September 28, 2005
NBC and CBS are doing shows about people who talk to ghosts, but Dominic Purcell of FOX's serialized drama "Prison Break" thinks he may have been touched by one.
He says it happened while filming on location in the 147-year-old Joliet Correctional Center outside of Chicago.
"I had something touch me on the neck other day. I looked around and thought, 'It's weird,' blew it off and didn't think about it too much. Then in the afternoon, one of the actors came to me and said, 'Did you just touch me on the shoulder?' 'No.'
"Then I went back to my little thing and said, 'Hmmm,' and the crew was starting to talk about weird stuff that's going on. But the prison's known to have been haunted for a long time."
In "Prison Break," airing Monday, Purcell plays Lincoln Burrows, a wrongly convicted (so we're led to believe) death-row inmate whose intentionally incarcerated brother (Wentworth Miller) is plotting an escape for the both of them (and an ever-increasing number of co-conspirators).
Rather than shoot on a Hollywood backlot, the show's producers chose to make use of Joliet -- which they call Fox River Penitentiary -- an imposing 1858 Victorian structure designed by Chicago Water Tower architect William Boyington.
Featured in such films as "Natural Born Killers" and "The Blues Brothers," the prison was home to serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
"I'm [filming] in Gacy's cell," Purcell says. "It's not a nice place. It's creepy."
That feeling extends beyond just one place, says Purcell. "The prison's very intense. It reeks of sadness. A lot of hurt has been done there. It's an old place, with a lot of history. The place is guarded still, even though it's a closed-down prison.
"We never leave the place in a state of ecstasy or enter the place in a state of ecstasy. There's always a sense of foreboding. It's a huge place, an incredibly old, Gothic castle-y kind of place.
"I'm always relieved to leave, always. You never want to hang out there by yourself. The corridors are so long, so far, and you get creeped out exploring. There's a section in the yard where they used to do the hangings, and you can see the old foundations of what they used to use."
Born in England and raised in Australia, Purcell feels at home in the Windy City (outside the prison walls, that is).
"I love Chicago. I'm staying downtown. It's really old, beautiful architecture, very clean. I love the buildings, the way it's designed, the Water Tower. It has a really nice vibe to it -- and great steaks."
Purcell has also formed a strong bond with Miller. "We get on really well. He's a sweet guy, serious actor, intense, beautiful soul, old soul, old school. There's a real elegance to him, very mystical in a way, mysterious. How do you see me, grumpy and brooding?"
To top off this general lovefest, Purcell has decided to make it official with his adopted home.
"I'm taking out American citizenship next year," he says. "I've had a green card now for five, going on six, years, so it's time. I love America. I've always been fascinated by America since I was a kid. Being here and doing what I'm doing is still very humbling."
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Prison Break Upped to 22 Episodes : September 28, 2005
Fox's Prison Break has had its sentence upped to 22 episodes, reports Variety.
The decision to order the back nine episodes makes Fox the first network to give a full season order to a new series. Prison Break, from 20th Century Fox TV and Adelstein/Parouse Productions, got a head start on the competition, premiering August 29.
Created by film writer Paul Scheuring, the show has been a solid performer for Fox in its 9 p.m. Fox Entertainment president Peter Liguori said the ratings success is particularly encouraging given the high-concept, serialized nature of the show.
Prison Break takes a two-week break for baseball after Monday's episode. Liguori said the net will use baseball to drive viewers back to the show when it returns.
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FOX's 'Prison Break' Is First to Full Season : September 28, 2005
FOX's "Prison Break" isn't ending anytime soon as the network has ordered a full season of 22 episodes of the freshman drama, a network source confirmed today.
The news comes as the series heads for a brief two-week hiatus following its October 3 airing.
It's not clear how FOX plans to roll out the back-nine order as it previously indicated "House" and season five of "24" would take over Monday nights beginning in January.
In any case, the current batch of 13 episodes is set to wrap at the end of the November sweeps period. It remains to be seen if the nine remaining installments will continue to run on Monday nights or turn up at some point next year as a fill-in for any potential schedule holes.
FOX is expected to provide additional details when it formally announces the news tomorrow.
Overall for its first four weeks, "Prison Break" has averaged a solid 9.028 million viewers according to final numbers released by Nielsen Media Research. More importantly, "Break" has nearly doubled the audience of its lead-in "Kitchen Confidential" for the past two weeks in both households and adults 18-49.
Paul Scheuring, Marty Adelstein, Dawn Parouse, Matt Olmstead and Brett Ratner are the executive producers of the series, which comes from Adelstein-Parouse Productions in association with 20th Century Fox Television.
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TV winners and losers : September 28, 2005
ABC has new season's young edge, while CBS keeps top ranking overall
Paced by sophomore phenoms Desperate Housewives and Lost, ABC shot out of the starting gate and sprinted to a clear win among advertiser-craved 18- to 49-year-olds in Week 1 of the new fall season.
CBS claimed victory among total viewers, edging ABC after thumping all rivals a year ago. NBC and the WB continued to slump while UPN and Fox enjoyed year-to-year increases. Most impressively, the six major broadcast networks collectively held the fort against cable and other competitors, showing modest gains among all viewers (from last September's 46.93 million to 48.95 million) and 18- to 49-year-olds (from 23.27 million to 23.53 million).
ABC won Week 1 among younger viewers for the first time since the opening bell for the 1995-96 season, when it still banked heavily on sitcoms such as Home Improvement, Roseanne, Coach and Grace Under Fire.
This time ABC dominated the Top 10 among 18- to 49-year-olds with a quintet of one-hour series (DH, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, the new Invasion), plus Monday Night Football, which goes to ESPN next fall.
The 24-hour sports network's ongoing Sunday Night Football topped the week's cable programs with 9.8 million viewers, good enough to rank an impressive 39th overall.
Once-dominant NBC, which keeps touting 18- to 49-year-olds as the only viewers worth having, had just one show in the top 10: the new My Name Is Earl.
The Peacock network's second season of Joey opened with a thud. Its special one-hour episode finished out of the top 25 with 18- to 49-year-olds and 52nd among all viewers in a time slot previously ruled by Friends.
CBS held the other three Top 10 spots among younger viewers with CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami and a special Thursday preview of its new Criminal Minds series, which beat NBC's competing ER. UPN made a major breakthrough with the premiere of its Chris Rock-narrated Everybody Hates Chris, whose 7.8 million total viewers were the most for a comedy series in the network's 10-and-a-half year history. Chris beat both Joey's first half-hour and Fox's increasingly buzz-less The O.C. in their first match-up on Thursday nights at 7.
Fox, which opened last fall with a reality-infested lineup, fared better this time with a far heavier dose of new scripted series. The network's Prison Break and Bones are both off to decent starts, but Fox also has the season's first cancellation in Head Cases. October again will bring baseball's playoffs and World Series, requiring another November relaunch of regular programming.
The WB fell sharply from last season's Week 1 performance, with the momentum-starved network's new Twins comedy and Don Johnson's Just Legal drama among several shows playing before virtually empty houses.
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CBS wins Monday with 'CSI: Miami' : September 27, 2005
CBS won Monday's primetime race on the night's top program, "CSI: Miami," despite a challenge from ABC's "Monday Night Football."
The crime investigation drama averaged 16.7 million viewers and a 5.5 rating/13 share in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary ratings estimates from Nielsen Media Research. That was enough to give it the win not only in the hour but also the night by far.
Yet in the closely watched demo, "CSI: Miami" was down 18% from its premiere last week when it averaged a 6.7/16; it was the second-lowest original telecast of "CSI: Miami."
The third week of "Monday Night Football" averaged 12.9 million viewers and a 5.2/12 in the demo between 9 and 11 p.m., according to preliminary data that is likely to change due to the nature of live events in the Nielsen ratings system. The Kansas City Chiefs-Denver Broncos game was well below last week's doubleheader and telethon, which averaged a 6.5/16 between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. and raised about $5 million for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. ABC's "Wife Swap" averaged 10.6 million viewers and a 4.0/11 in the demo, up 31% from a week ago.
With the retirement of CBS's powerhouse "Everybody Loves Raymond," much attention has been paid to "Two and a Half Men," which takes up its old time slot at 9 p.m. Last night, "Two and a Half Men" averaged 14.4 million and a 4.7/11 in the demo. That was down 8% from last week's premiere, which averaged a 5.1/12. Its two-week average is also down 18% from the 6.0/15 in the demo "Everybody Loves Raymond" got last year in the time period.
While "King of Queens" (10.6 million, 3.5/10) stayed about even with last week's premiere, the same can't be said of the two new sitcoms. "How I Met Your Mother" averaged 10.2 million viewers and a 3.5/9 in the demo, down 10% from its premiere last week. "Out of Practice" (11.7 million, 3.7/9), which follows "Two and a Half Men," dropped 14% from its premiere in the demo.
Things weren't better for NBC, which wound up third for the night behind both CBS and ABC. Both "Surface" (8.9 million, 2.8/8) and "Las Vegas" (11.9 million, 4.0/9) declined in the demo over their premieres; "Medium" was up slightly with 12.8 million viewers and a 4.5/11 in the demo.
Over on Fox, both "Arrested Development" (3.9 million, 1.9/5) and "Kitchen Confidential" (3.7 million, 1.7/4) fell from last week. Despite the weak lead-ins, "Prison Break" was able to build on that to average 8.4 million viewers and a 4.0/9 in the demo.
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Slow Monday Goes to CBS : September 27, 2005
Fast National ratings for Monday, Sept. 26, 2005
Ratings for the second Monday of the 2005-06 season were down pretty much across the board from last week, particularly for a dog of a "Monday Night Football" game.
CBS came out on top for the night with a 9.0 rating/13 share in primetime. ABC (whose numbers will change some due to its live football telecast) took second at 8.0/12, beating out NBC's 7.6/11. FOX, 4.0/6, finished fourth, followed by The WB, 2.7/4, and UPN, 2.4/3.
ABC grabbed the top spot among adults 18-49 with a 4.8 rating. CBS, 4.4, was second, with NBC third at 3.9. FOX averaged 2.9 in the demographic, and The WB and UPN tied for fifth at 1.4.
"The King of Queens," 7.1/11, and "How I Met Your Mother," 6.8/10, put CBS in a first-place tie with ABC's "Wife Swap" at 8 p.m. (ABC's numbers for the hour include football in some parts of the country). "Surface" posted a 6.1/9 for NBC to finish third. The WB got a 3.4/5 from "7th Heaven," beating FOX's "Arrested Development," 2.7/4, and "Kitchen Confidential," 2.6/4. UPN trailed with "One on One" and "All of Us."
CBS took the lead at 9 p.m. with "Two and a Half Men," 9.7/14, and "Out of Practice," 8.1/12. "Monday Night Football" delivered a way-below-average 8.8/13 for the hour. NBC's "Las Vegas," 7.9/12, improved on its lead-in but remained in third. "Prison Break" also lifted FOX, coming in at 5.4/8. UPN moved into fifth with "Girlfriends" and "Half & Half," beating "Just Legal" on The WB.
"CSI: Miami," 11.2/17, won the 10 p.m. hour for CBS but was down a good amount from last week. NBC's "Medium," one of the few shows to improve over last week, took second at 8.9/14, while "Monday Night Football" mustered only an 8.0/12 for ABC.
Ratings information is taken from fast national data. All numbers are preliminary and subject to change, especially in the case of live telecasts.
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Spooked: NBC's 'Surface' takes a dive : September 27, 2005
Off 24 percent in 18-49s from its premiere
A disappointing start to the season got a little bit worse for NBC last night when one of last week's promising debuts, the new supernatural drama "Surface," saw major ratings declines.
Actually, every network besides Fox experienced week-to-week declines as well.
"Surface" averaged a 2.8 rating among viewers 18-49 last night, according to Nielsen fast national data, a 24.3 percent dip versus the 3.7 overnight rating it scored last week. That contributed to a week-to-week Monday night dip for NBC, which averaged a 3.9 rating in the demo last night, a 7.1 percent decrease versus last Monday.
NBC has already had a rough start to the fall. Its "The Apprentice: Martha Stewart" tied for third in its timeslot last week among 18-49s, and Thursday's "The Apprentice" had its lowest-ever 18-49 rating.
New shows "E-Ring" and "Three Wishes" failed to catch on, and Sunday's new timeslot for "West Wing" produced its lowest-rated premiere ever.
"Surface" actually faced less competition this week than last, when ABC showed a special "Monday Night Football" and CBS premiered its new shows, so viewers who tuned in for the first episode apparently did not like what they saw.
NBC wasn't alone with its ratings dip last night. ABC led among 18-49s with a 4.8 average and 12 share, but that was down 22.6 percent from last week's 6.2/15 for an entire night of NFL football.
CBS was second last night at 4.4/11, down 10.2 percent from a 4.9/12 last week. NBC was third with its 3.9/11, while Fox followed in fourth place at 2.9/7, even with last week. UPN and the WB tied for fifth last night at 1.4/4, UPN down from last week's 1.7/4 and WB down from a 1.5/4.
ABC started the night in the lead with a 4.0 average rating during the 8 p.m. hour for "Wife Swap." CBS was second with a 3.5 average for the comedies "The King of Queens" (3.5) and "How I Met Your Mother" (3.5), about even to last week, and NBC third with its 2.8 for "Surface."
Fox's "Arrested Development" fell to a 1.9 at 8 p.m. while lead-out "Kitchen Confidential" averaged a 1.7.
ABC led again at 9 p.m. with a 5.3 average for the first hour of a "Monday Night Football" game between the Denver Broncos and the Kansas City Chiefs. CBS was second with a 4.2 average for "Two and a Half Men" (4.7), several tenths off from last week, and "Out of Practice" (3.7), while NBC and Fox tied for third at 4.0, NBC for "Las Vegas" and Fox for "Prison Break."
"Prison Break's" 4.0 is down slightly from its 4.2 season-to-date average, though up from a 3.8 last week. It's yet to match the rating it got for its premiere, a 4.6 on Aug. 29. For CBS, its two-hour comedy block, now anchored by "Men" instead of "Everybody Loves Raymond," averaged a 3.9 rating, down from a 4.2 last week.
CBS took the lead at 10 p.m. last night with a 5.5 average for "CSI: Miami." ABC followed with a 5.1 for another hour of "MNF," with NBC third with a 5.0 average for "Medium."
CBS finished first for the night among households with a 9.0 average rating and a 13 share. ABC was second at 8.0/12, NBC third at 7.6/11, Fox fourth at 4.0/6, the WB fifth at 2.7/4 and UPN sixth at 2.4/3.
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