Fast National ratings for Sunday, May 18, 2008

The flash-forwarding season finale of "Desperate Housewives" carried ABC to a sizable ratings win Sunday, even though the show didn't quite match its past performance.

ABC averaged an 8.4 rating/14 share for the night, topping second-place CBS (7.3/12) by 1.6 million viewers. FOX finished a distant third at 3.1/5. NBC, 2.5/4, came in fourth, while The CW managed only a 0.9/2.

In the adults 18-49 demographic, ABC's 4.7 rating was far and away the night's best. CBS, 2.6, came in second, followed by FOX at 2.4. Neither NBC (1.3) nor The CW (0.5) made much of a dent.

CBS' "60 Minutes" drew a 7.0/13 at 7 p.m. to win the hour. The finale of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" registered a 5.0/9, beating out "Dateline," 3.0/6, on NBC. Reruns of "King of the Hill" and " The Simpsons" averaged 2.1/4 for FOX. The CW re-aired the "America's Next Top Model" finale.

CBS held the lead at 8 p.m. with the Academy of Country Music Awards, 7.2/12. "EM: Home Edition" was right behind at 7.0/12 (and led among adults 18-49). Season finales of "The Simpsons," 3.7/6, and "King of the Hill," 3.3/5, lifted FOX into third, ahead of a pair of "Office" reruns on NBC. "Everybody Hates Chris" and "Aliens in America" drew a 0.9/2 for The CW.

"Desperate Housewives" scored a 10.5/16 at 9 p.m. with the first half of its two-hour finale. The ACM awards improved a little to 7.8/12. A "Family Guy" rerun and "American Dad" averaged 3.7/6 on FOX, while NBC got a 2.0/3 from another hour of "The Office." The season finale of "The Game" and a "Girlfriends" rerun finished out The CW's night.

At 10 p.m., "Desperate Housewives" climbed to 11.0/18, the night's best hourly rating (though it was off a little from its season average). CBS' awards show dipped back to 7.2/12, and a "Law & Order: SVU" repeat on NBC earned a 3.1/5.

Ratings information is taken from fast national data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are preliminary and subject to change.