Wednesday, July 23, 2008

HSM Fans Don't Get in the Picture *Nick Lachey*

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Nick Lachey, High School Musical: Get in the Picture

Guess not too many people are planning to stay for the end credits of High School Musical 3.

High School Musical: Get in the Picture, the new ABC reality show that promises to cast its winner in a music video to play during HSM3's aforementioned crawl, failed its first—and second—ratings tests.

Sunday's inaugural episode placed 69th in Nielsen Media Research's latest weekly rankings. It finished fourth, or last, in its time slot behind nonstellar broadcast competition led by CBS' Big Brother (33rd place, 5.7 million). Its 4 million viewers were more fitting for an umpteenth HSM rerun on Disney Channel than a broadcast premiere.

In an otherwise solid summer for ABC, HSM: Get in the Picture's premiere was the network's second worst, after the gone and forgotten Dance Machine.

Monday's follow-up fared even worse, averaging an estimated 3.2 million viewers, and making NBC's typically scrawny American Gladiators (5.1 million) look pumped by comparison. (Monday's numbers will be reflected in next week's rankings.)

As corporate synergy would have it, the Nick Lachey-hosted series debuted just as ABC parent company Disney was unveiling its teaser trailer for HSM 3: Senior Year, due out in theaters Oct. 24.

Yes, the Wildcats are all in this together. At least for the next several weeks.

Here are the week's other rating highlights:

  • HSM: Get in the Picture aside, this summer has been about good ratings more than bad. Even baseball got in the swing of things. The 2008 All-Star Game (first place, 14.5 million) scored Fox its biggest midsummer audience since 2002. In cable, ESPN ruled with coverage of the Josh Hamilton show, otherwise known as the Home Run Derby (9.1 million).

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