'Vanished' holds most of 'Prison Break' lead-in

Fast National ratings for Monday, Aug. 21, 2006

FOX started the 2006-07 TV season with a pair of premieres Monday, scoring decent ratings for both and taking the night by most measures.

CBS actually led in households for the night with a 6.1 rating/10 share to FOX's 5.7/9. However, FOX had the edge in total viewers with just a shade under 9 million; CBS had 8.74 million. ABC, 4.1/7, came in third, and NBC was fourth at 3.2/5. The WB's 1.2/2 edged UPN's 1.1/2 for fifth.

FOX also grabbed the top spot among adults 18-49 with a 3.3 rating. CBS, 2.7, came in second in the advertisers' favorite demographic. ABC was third at 2.3, followed by NBC at 1.8. UPN and The WB tied for fifth at 0.7.

The season premiere of "Prison Break" scored a 5.8/10 -- right in line with its average from last year -- to put FOX on top at 8 p.m. CBS was second for the hour with reruns of "Two and a Half Men," 5.2/9, and "How I Met Your Mother," 4.8/8. "Wife Swap" was third for ABC at 4.2/7. A "Treasure Hunters" repeat on NBC finished fourth. The WB got a 1.3/2 from "7th Heaven," topping UPN's "One on One" and "All of Us."

At 9 p.m., a second "Two and a Half Men" and "Old Christine" averaged 5.8/9 for CBS. The debut of "Vanished," 5.7/9, on FOX won the hour in total viewers and held onto most of its lead-in audience. A second "Wife Swap," 4.6/7, kept ABC in third, while the finale of "Treasure Hunters" posted a 3.6/6 for NBC. "Girlfriends" and "Half & Half" moved UPN into a tie with The WB, which went with another episode of "7th Heaven."

"CSI: Miami," 7.5/13, handily won the 10 p.m. hour for CBS. "Supernanny" scored a 3.5/6 for ABC, and NBC's "Medium" repeat came in at 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.