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The 1999-2000 season: How they ranked

The three regularly-scheduled nights of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" finished as the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 shows of the 1999-2000 season, according to the final tally just out from Nielsen Media Research.

For the season, ABC had five of the 10 most-watched shows. Besides three hours of Regis, they included perennial favorite "Monday Night Football" and "The Practice," which got a lift from "Millionaire" on Sundays.

And despite NBC's decision to list its 9:30 p.m. Thursday "Frasier" repeat as a separate program — making it perhaps the first rerun in history to finish in Nielsen's top 10 — CBS still managed to carve out a top-10 finish for "60 Minutes," the 23rd straight year the newsmagazine has done so.

Had "Millionaire" and "Frasier 9:30" not been included, your top 10 would've also included "Touched by an Angel," "Law & Order," "Raymond" and (skipping over the "Monday Night Football" pre-game show) "Jesse," which has been cancelled, as was NBC's original 9:30 p.m. Thursday show, "Stark Raving Mad" (18th).

View the full 1999-2000 season ratings and rankings

Blow-by-blow: 'X-Files,' season seven


Tea Leoni and Garry Shandling play Scully and Mulder in an episode of "The X-Files" from this season: "A 'Saturday Night Live' skit writ too large." (Fox Photo: Larry Watson)

by John Zipperer

What a difference a year makes. Last year, this column featured an episode review of the fifth season of "Star Trek: Voyager" in celebration of its best season and in anticipation of more from that series. Alas, season five remained its best season, with season six of "Voyager" being generally pedestrian. Meanwhile, Fox's "The X-Files" was showing its age with its sixth season; however, it returned with a knockout seventh season that was marred only by ongoing uncertainty over whether the show would end this year.

"The X-Files" will return, rest assured, with Mulder appearing in half of the episodes (and raking in $20 million for his part-time work). Entertainment Weekly's EW site reports that Scully will get another character to pal around with, and her boss, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner will have a bulked-up role, as will pretty-boy villain Alex Krycek. (The Lone Gunmen trio, by the way, will have their own series to keep them busy.) EW's report also tantalizingly suggests future seasons beyond next year, even if Duchovny and Anderson are both gone; hence the importance in casting a strong new buddy for Scully. 

So "Voyager" doesn't make a return trip to this episode roundup; that place instead goes to a much-improved "X-Files." If season seven simply proves to be the lucky season, maybe our Starfleet friends will be back this time next year. For now, here's a look at the episodes, the highlights and a few lowlights from this most recent "X" season. Ratings are on a scale of 1-10.

"The Sixth Extinction" ( Chris Carter, writer; Kim Manners, director): Mulder, once again, is in the hospital, and Scully is in Africa at the site of the partially submerged spacecraft, trying to decipher the symbols that cover the surface of the ship. With the help of biologist Amina Ngebe, she learns that they refer to human genetics and include scriptures from ancient Earth religions. Michael Kritschgau, last seen in the episodes "Redux and Redux II," is brought into the hospital see Mulder, and he runs tests on the patient's over-active brain. Skinner thinks Mulder is dying; Scully says her partner is more alive than ever, thanks to the aliens. Though attempts are made in this mythology episode to link it to what's gone before, one shouldn't stare at the calculations too closely; there's no guarantee that they add up. Rating: 8

John Zipperer's Sci-Fi Loft continues ...

So long, Andy!

Friday's telecast of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" was given over completely to sidekick Andy Richter, who's leaving after nearly seven years as O'Brien's right hand. The broadcast turned emotional, which is not surprising since Richter is perhaps the only person who understands the pillorying O'Brien took during that first season on NBC. The second banana took a lot of pipe himself, much of it laced with (as Richter has often noted) euphemisms for the word "fat."

Not surprising, then, that the telecast was a sendoff worthy of a late-night host, rather than a sidekick. As reader John Holl, who was in the studio audience for Friday's taping, writes: "There was no opening monologue and only a chair sat next to the desk. It was an emotional show for Mr. O'Brien as he choked back tears at the end thanking Mr. Richter, of whom he said, 'I would not have been able to do the show without you here.' ... There were three highlight reels, and a videotape of Andy trying out for the sidekick slot on 'Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee.' As the band played the closing music, Richter hugged each band member and most of the people on the stage. Then he exited the door leading out to the 6th-floor hallway."

Eric Larsen writes, "It was nice to see the night given to honor Andy. He has such heart and always was willing to try anything. In the early days, while Conan was trying to figure out what the hell to do with his hair, Andy was a big reason many of us kept coming back (if only to hear about the continuing stories of his evenings with his wife). His chemistry with Conan seemed to help Conan get to that spot where he is the comfortable and at-home host he is today. May Andy continue in happiness and entertaining work wherever he goes."

And Michael Precker adds, "I wonder what the hell NBC was thinking delaying the Andy farewell an entire hour because of basketball. What a way to say 'thanks' to a swell guy."

Richter's last show will be re-run as part of NBC's overnight programming this Friday at 3:35 a.m.

  • EARLIER: Andy Richter leaves "Late Night"

    On this date...

    in 1996, John Tesh delivers the press releases, oops, "news" one last time on "Entertainment Tonight." After ten years, he's leaving to concentrate on growing a beard. -- Tom Heald

    Previously at TV Barn:

    On the wires:

     

    Copyright © 1999-2001 Aaron Barnhart | Back to TV Barn home