Home
After failing with such shows as Joe's Life, Moon Over Miami, and Birdland, ABC may have finally succeeded in building a strong lineup around its one-two punch of Home Improvement and Grace Under Fire on Wednesdays. The Ed Asner sitcom Thunder Alley got off to a fast start in fourth place, and Diane Sawyer's chat with Charles Manson and two ex-members of his ''family'' gave Turning Point (9th) the best numbers ever for the premiere of a newsmag. It was a big week for murderers-an interview with Jeffrey Dahmer also brought Dateline NBC (21st) its highest ratings to date. But the peacock network may have to perform a mercy killing on its new Saturday-night serial, Winnetka Road; the first episode of Aaron Spelling's soap finished a lowly 79th. Last Viewers* Top 20 Week 1 44.0 Home Improvement ABC, Wednesday, 9 p.m. - 2 35.5 Grace Under Fire ABC, Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. - 3 35.0 Roseanne ABC, Tuesday, 9 p.m. 1 4 29.2 Thunder Alley ABC, Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. - 5 29.1 Seinfeld (R) NBC, Thursday, 9 p.m. 3 6 28.7 Coach ABC, Tuesday, 9:30 p.m. 7 7 28.5 Home Improvement (R) ABC, Wednesday, 8 p.m. 2 8 27.8 60 Minutes CBS, Sunday, 7 p.m. 4 9 26.1 Turning Point ABC, Wednesday, 10 p.m. - 10 25.7 Murder, Dhe Erote CBS, Sunday, 8 p.m. 5 11 25.4 Frasier (R) NBC, Thursday, 9:30 p.m. 6 12 25.2 Murphy Brown CBS, Monday, 9 p.m. 8 13 23.9 Movie: This Can't Be Love CBS, Sunday, 9 p.m. - 14 22.8 Dave's World CBS, Monday, 8:30 p.m. 17 15 21.8 Northern Exposure CBS, Monday, 10 p.m. 21 16 21.7 Full House (R) ABC, Tuesday, 8 p.m. 11 21.7 Love & War CBS, Monday, 9:30 p.m. 20 18 21.4 Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman CBS, Saturday, 8 p.m. 16 19 20.9 Phenom (R) ABC, Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. - 20 20.8 Evening Shade CBS, Monday, 8 p.m. 22
Bottom 10 85 8.7 The X-Files (R) Fox, Friday, 9 p.m. 79 86 8.4 Viper NBC, Friday, 8 p.m. 77 . 87 8.3 Melrose Place (R) Fox, Wednesday, 9 p.m. 41 8.3 Movie: Whereabouts Of Jenny (R) ABC, Saturday, 8 p.m.- 89 7.7 Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. Fox, Friday, 8 p.m.86 90 7.5 Code 3 Fox, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. 89 91 7.2 Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (R) Fox, Tuesday, 8 p.m. - 92 6.6 I Witness Video (R) NBC, Sunday, 7 p.m. 82 93 6.1 Code 3 (R) Fox, Sunday, 7 p.m. 90 94 4.7 Front Page Fox, Tuesday, 9 p.m. -
