‘60 Minutes,’ ‘Cheers’ Again Top the Reruns

In a repeat performance of the summer “repeat wars,” NBC’s “Cheers” and CBS’s “60 Minutes” once again commanded the top two spots in the ratings, it was reported today.

NBC had a slight edge with the most shows in the top 10 of the weekly Nielsen ratings--four--followed by CBS with three and ABC with two. Fox had one with “The Simpsons” in 10th place.

NBC’s “Unsolved Mysteries” was alone at No. 3 this week, compared with its five-way tie for third place in the previous ratings period. The show posted a 14 rating and a 28 share, its best showing since the week of June 6, when it posted a 29 share.

Three-way ties surfaced for fourth and seventh places--with shows from three different networks in those slots. In fourth were NBC’s “Empty Nest,” CBS’s “Murphy Brown” and ABC’s “Roseanne.”

In seventh place were NBC’s “A Different World,” CBS’s “Designing Women” and ABC’s “America’s Funniest Home Videos.”

In the weekly network competition, it was NBC in first place with a 9.6 rating and an 18 share, ABC in second with a 9.3 rating and an 18 share, and CBS in third with a 9.2 rating and a 17 share.

ABC’s “World News Tonight” rolled over the competition in the weekly news standings with a 10.6 rating and a 22 share, outpacing “The CBS Evening News” with Dan Rather with a 9.8 rating.

TOP 10 SHOWS

The top programs for the week ending Sunday, Aug. 12, according to the A.C. Nielsen Co., were:

1. Cheers (NBC)

2. 60 Minutes (CBS)

3. Unsolved Mysteries (NBC)

4. Empty Nest (NBC)

(tie) Murphy Brown (CBS)

(tie) Roseanne (ABC)

7. Different World (NBC)

(tie) Designing Women (CBS)

(tie) Funniest Home Videos (ABC)

10. The Simpsons (Fox)