Syndie Insider

Wheel of Fortune will depart from its usual format to broadcast a special highlight show July 12. The show celebrates a TV milestone: Wheel's 4,000th syndicated episode. The show was taped at New York's Radio City Music Hall and features some moments from nearly 21 years of people, prizes and puzzles, as well as a rerun of its first show.

Syndicated weeklies warmed the first week of summer. Eight of the top 10 showed gains, and the other two held steady for the week ended June 27. Entertainment Tonight Weekend led the way, as usual, with a 3.0, up 3% for the week and on par with the same week last year. ABC's The Practice, in second place, earned a 2.2, up 10% for the week and 16% from last year. The West Wing, the top rookie weekly, was up 11% to a 2.1.

Stargate SG-1 at a 1.9, was unchanged and down 5% from the same period last year. In fifth place, ER was up 20% to a 1.8 but was down 25% year-to-year. She Spies, also at a 1.8, was up 6% week-to-week and year-to-year.

Weeklies Unexplained Mysteries and Walker, Texas Ranger were tied at a 1.7, up 6% and 13% week-to-week, respectively. Mutant X tied Andromeda for ninth place with a 1.6. Mutant was unchanged on the week but was down 20% from last year. Andromeda was up 7% for the week and 14% from last year.

Elsewhere, most of the action was in access, where the top four games and magazines recorded solid gains over last year at this time. Off-net sitcoms were all down double digits from 2003. In daytime, talk and court shows were little changed, led by The Oprah Winfrey Show, up 5% to a 6.5, and Judge Judy, holding steady at a 4.5. For Oprah, the big number was a 9.7 on June 22, thanks to an appearance by former President Bill Clinton.