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‘Fat Actress,’ ‘Deadwood’ Deliver Ratings

Mar 8, 2005  •  Post A Comment

Two highly anticipated premium network debuts received solid ratings this week.

Showtime’s heavily promoted Monday airing of “Fat Actress,” starring Kirstie Alley, received a 4.1 household rating. That’s the highest Showtime premiere rating since the 2000 series premiere of “Queer as Folk” and readily beat Showtime’s “The L Word” (2.4) and “Huff” (1.8). To help increase “Fat Actress'” viewership, the premium network offered a free preview March 5-7.

The return of HBO’s neo-Western “Deadwood” on Sunday received a 5.9 household rating. That’s down from last season’s 9.4 average, when “Deadwood” typically enjoyed a strong lead-in from “The Sopranos.” HBO numbers are difficult to compare to those of past years, however, as Nielsen Media Research has changed the way HBO and its multiplex channels are measured.