Primetime Ratings: CBS Wins Tuesday, But 'Vegas' Opener Falls Short of 'Unforgettable'

'Ben and Kate' premieres softly; 'Mindy Project' has decent debut

By Andrea Morabito -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/26/2012 11:32:05 AM

CBS won the second night of the 2012-13 TV season, posting a 3.3 rating/9 share with adults 18-49 and 17.2 million viewers on Tuesday, according to Nielsen overnight numbers. The premiere of new drama Vegas scored a 2.5 rating, lower than the 2.9 that the debut of Unforgettable (which was canceled after one season, then later revived for a summer run) posted in the time slot a year ago.

It was still enough for CBS to easily win the 10 p.m. hour, however and the drama, which stars Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis, skewed older, averaging a hefty 14.7 million total viewers. Earlier in the night, the season premiere of NCIS returned down 5% to a 4.1 and NCIS: LA declined 6% year-over-year to a 3.4.

Fox debuted its new Tuesday comedy block with Ben and Kate posting a soft 2.0 rating at 8:30 p.m., retaining 74% of its New Girl lead-in, which turned in a 2.7 for a special episode at 8 p.m.

The Mindy Project scored a respectable 2.4, retaining 89% of the audience out of the season premiere of New Girl at 9 p.m., which again drew a 2.7. That was a hefty drop from its year-ago series premiere, and down a tenth from where it ended its freshman run in May. Overall, Fox put up a 2.5/7 for the night, good for third place.

On ABC, the first Dancing With the Stars results show of the season drew a 2.0, down 31% from a year ago. The season premiere of Private Practice posted a 1.9, down 14% from what Body of Proof opened to in the timeslot last year though up 12% from its debut in the period last April. The network was fourth overall with a 2.0/6.

NBC took second place with a 2.7/8 while The Voice declined 15% from last week to a 4.0. Go On drew a 2.7, down 21%from a week ago, and The New Normal dipped 9% to a 2.0. Parenthood was even at a 1.8.

The CW aired repeats.