When ABC scheduled ”America`s Funniest Home Videos” against CBS`
”Murder, She Wrote,” most critics gave the midseason replacement as much chance of survival as boxing experts gave James ”Buster” Douglas against Mike Tyson.
But the only night and the one series that CBS didn`t have to worry about just received a Buster Douglas-size shock wave.
On Sunday, sixth-season veteran ”Murder, She Wrote,” which finished in the top 10 each of its first five years, was beaten by ”America`s Funniest Home Videos” for the second consecutive week.
”Home Videos” also shrugged off a special Sunday airing of NBC`s 17th-ranked ”Unsolved Mysteries” in the ”Home Videos” time slot.
If the trend continues, ”Murder, She Wrote” will drop out of the top 15 and last-place CBS will see alarming audience erosion on the only night it is a winner.
Make no mistake, ”America`s Funniest Home Videos” is on a fast track at 7-7:30 p.m. Sundays on WLS-Ch. 7. In four weeks, it has gone from 17th to 11th to 7th to 5th in the weekly rankings, and climbed to 21.4 percent of TV homes. ”Videos” ranks 7th for the season. ”Murder, She Wrote” is 11th.
The news is particularly sweet for new ABC Entertainment President Robert A. Iger. ”Home Videos” was the first series ordered during his regime.
Laughing off the bad reviews, Iger told TV critics, ” `America`s Funniest Home Videos` started under my watch. That`s No. 1. Why did I mention that first? Quality programming, huh? Actually, I feel real good about that show.”
He should. The series has touched a nerve. Comedian Bob Saget, who also stars on ABC`s ”Full House,” is the host for the weekly compilation of humorous home videos submitted by viewers.
The Electronics Industries Association estimates that home-video cameras are in 9.1 million households. Every day, 1,000 to 2,000 amateur tapes flood into the series` production office.
”We went out and tested `Home Video,` ” said Alan Wurtzel, ABC`s senior vice president in charge of marketing and research, ”and we just asked viewers what they thought of it. It got one of the highest positive responses I`ve seen in years. It`s a natural. It`s just a very funny show.”
The news wasn`t all good for ABC. ”Elvis,” the midseason replacement that dramatizes events from Elvis Presley`s early career, lost almost half of the ”Home Videos” audience in its first airing in its regular 7:30-8 p.m. Sunday time slot, where it even finished behind Fox Broadcasting`s cartoon family, ”The Simpsons.”
”Elvis” finished 45th for the week with 12.6 percent of the nation`s TV homes. That`s a loss of 8 million households.
Unless ”Elvis” can rock `n` roll up the ratings in a hurry, look for ABC to make a switch it hopes will take advantage of the blaze set by ”Home Videos.”
