'M*A*S*H' Says Goodbye, Farewell to Ratings Record
At long last, the Super Bowl has slain that ratings behemoth known as the 'M*A*S*H' finale. More people tuned in to watch the New Orleans Saints take down the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday than any one TV program in American history, meaning the 27-year-old record held by the comedy classic has been broken.
According to Nielsen (via the AP), 106.5 million viewers watched the game on CBS. 'Goodbye, Farewell and Amen,' 'M.A.S.H.'s' series finale, also aired on CBS, with 105.97 million viewers tuning in to bid Klinger and Hot Lips adieu.
Alan Alda, who played Benjamin "Hawkeye" Pierce on the show, was gracious in defeat after hearing the news.
"I'm happy for New Orleans," he told the
NY Times. "I want to see that city come out first in every way that it can, even if it means giving up a record that 'M*A*S*H' held for a long time."
According to reports, there are 114.9 million TV households in the United States, which is about 32 million more than when 'M*A*S*H' signed off in 1983. Also, it's worth noting that there weren't 5 million channels to choose from back then.
The previous record for a Super Bowl was set last year, when a whopping 98.7 million football fans watched Pittsburgh beat Arizona.
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I am wondering who the idiot was that wrote this piece.
Recheck who was on the final show; you messed up.
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All 3 characters mentioned in the article were in the final episode. The picture is from an earlier season, but the text is correct.
John read the artical again. Change yorr mind?
The difference between MASH and the Superbowl is the Superbowl will be forgotten. The MASH episode will not
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are you serious?
Oh No..... NOT this Superbowl. We will always remember the Saints win. It was monumental for us who live on the Gulf Coast. Thank you Saints!
If this were calculated to show percentages as opposed to actual viewers, how would M.A.S.H. have faired?
For that matter, how would that figure into top grossing box office movies from different eras?
Thoroughly enjoyed this years Super Bowl. Queen Latifa, and Carrie Underwood had strong performances. Considering that they performed live, they were very good. Roger Daltry kicked out some strong vocals.
The game was as I hoped it would be. Saints doing the job for the "Who Dat" crowd.
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whats with the who dat crap cant they find a better chant than stal one from 30 + yrs ago who dey Who dey Who dey those were fans - 0 WEATHER THERE THE FREASER BOWL member dat
MASH the tv show sucked!!! Movie was good thought.should have never made it a tv show
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To Tom W.:::MASH the tv show sucked???? Hmmmm lets see, on the air for 11 yrs. 38 awards and held the title of most watched show for many, many years and YOU claim the show sucked???? You don't last 11 yrs on TV, get those awards for sucking...Just because YOU didn't like it, doesn't mean it sucked...If i had to bet, id say YOUR favorite tv show would be HEE HAW...Now WE ALL believe its time for YOU to get back in YOUR cabin and close the door..WE are ALL sure the stench inside is just overwhelming....NEXT!!!!!!
I am just wondering how Nielson's can get an accurate count of how many people are watching the super bowl - you can figure that there are x number of televisions turned on to see it - but if a bar has 1 big tv with 60 people watching - how can they count that? My guess is that way more than 106 million people were watching - that's only 1 in 3 Americans.
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This was a stupid article! Because the population growth since 1983 is going to create more consumers to watch! I have never watched a superbowl!! But I LOVE MASH!!!
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you have never watched a superbowl? what planet are you living on, you must lead a boring life girl
The Super Bowl always gets good viewership.
But the main reason for the superior viewership this year was the Focus on the Family Tebow ad. With all the pregame hype, everyone wanted to see it.
Take that ad out and MASH would still be on top.
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That was the worst Super Bowl I've seen and I have seen them all. Football and all the hype, terrible officiating has gone down the toilet. Why can't they just play the game as it was intended. After all it is only a game with no real relevance to anything.
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To bd Must suck to be a colts fan!!
I think everyone in Maryland was rooting for the Saints. I was just a kid when the Colts left out of Maryland in the middle of the night with the Mayflower tractor trailors, but everyone here remembers or hears stories from people old enough to remember. This whole generation here in Maryland usually roots for anyone but the Colts.
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To Melissa, I was an avid Colts fan untill they showed their true colors! Can not be loyal to a disloyal team!!! Glad the Saints whipped them! Heres a team I can show true loyality to.Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions.Ever hear of them?
MASH was a well-written, brilliantly directed show. It's sad to see this record broken by morons giving each other concussions.
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You are so right Steve...And I feel the only reason it broke the record is because hardly any channel is playing it (MASH) now. Only seen in the wee hours of the A.M. Thank the Lord for TIVO...
But my question? How do I get a job writing this moronic nonsence? I mean, stay home and write this garbage in my p.j's and get paid??