The NY Post reports that "The Anna Nicole Show," which looked to be the summer's breakout hit, has quietly been sliding down the ratings charts since its blockbuster debut. In little more than a month, the show has lost more than half its audience.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Sunday-night reality show, detailing the often bizarre backstage life of zaftig model Anna Nicole Smith, premiered with a hefty 4.1 million viewers - the biggest series premiere in E! history. But since then, it's lost viewers each week - reaching a low of 1.8 million viewers on Sept. 8 before bouncing back slightly last Sunday night.
"If you want to hold it against us that we had a phenomenal premiere, go ahead," says Mark Sonnenberg, E!'s executive vice president of entertainment. "The show is averaging close to a 2 rating. Yeah, compared to a 4 rating it's down . . . but it's still the highest-rated show on the network and has improved its timeslot average by almost 25 percent in households.