• by Wayne Friedman , January 14, 2008

It's pure TV math: B-level celebrities on Thursday night can't compete with A-level network-rated TV shows.

NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice" crumbled some on its second outing, dropping to a Nielsen Preliminary 3.5 rating for adults 18-49--down 22% from its season debut 4.5 of a week ago.

Much of this was expected. The NBC show faced bigger competition because of fresh episodes from TV's top two-rated shows: ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and CBS' "CSI." Both also aired their first original episodes in more than a month. A week before, NBC faced virtually all reruns against "Celebrity Apprentice."

But although NBC didn't measure up to its previous week for "Celebrity Apprentice," ABC's "Grey's" also fared badly. Year-to-year episode comparison showed a 25% drop in 18-49 viewers. During the 9 p.m. hour, ABC earned a 7.0 for "Grey's."

CBS also should take note, because "CSI" numbers were also much lower compared to previous January ratings. CBS took a 5.0 for "CSI."

Overall, ABC took the 18-49 crown for the night with a 4.2 rating/11 share. CBS was second at 3.5/9, NBC third at 3.3/9, Fox fourth at 2.6/7, Univision fourth at 1.7/4 and CW sixth at 0.8/2.

ABC and NBC shared the lead at the start of the night, the 8 p.m. hour: ABC with a 3.1 rating for "Ugly Betty" and NBC for a 3.4 with "My Name is Earl" and a 2.8 for "30 Rock," which averaged a 3.1 rating for the hour.

Fox's two reality-game shows fared close to their season averages--a 2.9 for "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?" at 8 p.m. and a 2.3 for "Don't Forget the Lyrics."

NBC did make a comeback of sorts at 10 p.m., winning the time period with "ER" and a 3.5 rating. CBS was right behind with a 3.4 for "Without a Trace." ABC was next at a 2.6 with "Big Shots." Univision was a rating point below at 1.6 for "Amas de Casa Desesperadas."