Mixed fortunes for NBC Tuesday rookies

'Lateline' shaping up, 'For Your Love' in slide

By TOM BIERBAUM

NBC rookie sitcom "Lateline" has sharpened its performance relative to its lead-in and is turning into a solid addition to the Peacock's Tuesday lineup. Rookie schedule mate "For Your Love," meanwhile, slipped in the other direction, turning in its weakest performance to date.

The April 1 episode of "Lateline" won its half-hour despite a rerun "Frasier" lead-in that fell 5 shares behind slot leader "Home Improvement" in adults 18-49. "Lateline" earned an 8.6 rating, 14 share in homes and a 5.8/15 in adults 18-49, retaining a best-yet 92% of its 18-49 lead-in. Slot predecessor "Just Shoot Me" had averaged a 91% retention.

ABC's slot rival, "That's Life" (7.8/12 in homes and 5.5/14 in adults 18-49), didn't help its shaky renewal chances by losing the slot lead and retaining just 68% of its 18-49 lead-in.

Surprisingly, "Lateline's" household rating was its lowest yet, and lowest for a firstrun NBC series in that half-hour since Dec. 7, 1995, but the performance was still competitive relative to "Lateline's" lead-in.

At 8:30, NBC's "For Your Love" (7.9/13 in homes, 5.1/14 in adults 18-49) plunged to a worst-yet 84% retention of its 18-49 lead-in. "Love" had averaged a 97% retention with its two previous episodes. ABC slot rival "Something So Right" (7.9/13 and 5.0/14) retained 96% of its 18-49 lead-in Tuesday.

CBS' "JAG" took the 8-9 p.m. hour in homes for a second straight week, the first time a CBS series has won that slot twice in a row since "Rescue 911" did it in April 1994.

ABC's lineup won the night in homes and adults 18-49 with averages of 9.7/16 and 6.2/17.

Each household rating point represents an estimated 980,000 homes, or 1% of the country's TV homes. Each adults 18-49 rating point reps 1.23 million viewers, 1% of the U.S. total. A share is the same sort of percentage, except it measures only the homes or viewers watching TV during the timeslot involved.