Syndication Ratings: ‘Judge Judy’ Conjures Overall Lead in Halloween Week

Live's Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest dress up as 'Tiger King' characters for Halloween.
'Live''s Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest dress up as 'Tiger King' characters for Halloween. (Image credit: Disney-ABC)

CBS Television Distribution’s Judge Judy jumped 16% to hit a new season high 5.9 live plus same day national household rating, according to Nielsen Media Research, in the Halloween week ended Nov. 1. That topped court and all of syndication for the week and season to date.

Among the rest of the court shows, CTD’s Hot Bench spiked 6% to a 1.7, matching its season high. Warner Bros.’ People’s Court climbed 9% to a 1.2. Warner Bros.’ Judge Mathis moved up 13% to a 0.9, equalling its season best. NBCUniversal’s sophomore Judge Jerry, starring Jerry Springer, bucked the uptrend, sinking 13% to a 0.7 to tie Fox’s steady Divorce Court, while Trifecta’s Protection Court remained at a 0.3.

The big three games hit new season highs. Debmar-Mercury’s Family Feud forged ahead 9% to a 5.8. CTD’s Jeopardy!, which will be hosted by the late Alex Trebek through Christmas Day, jumped 8% to a 5.4. CTD’s Wheel of Fortune rolled to a 5.3, gaining 6%.

RELATED: ‘Jeopardy!’ Host Alex Trebek Dies at 80

Further back, Fox’s 25 Words or Less slipped 11% to a 0.8 while Entertainment Studios’ Funny You Should Ask responded with a stable 0.4.

Disney’s internet video show RightThisMinute maintained a 0.7.

Unlike court and games, talk was mostly flat to slightly lower.

CTD’s Dr. Phil gave back 5% to a 1.9 to tie Disney’s steady Live with Kelly and Ryan, which has been first or tied for first in five of the past eight weeks. Live's popular Halloween episode, which sees hosts Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest dress up in several different costumes, is always one of the year's most watched. Among women 25-54, Live led at a 0.9, followed by Dr. Phil at a 0.7.

Warner Bros.’ Ellen DeGeneres edged up for the first time since its premiere week ended Sept. 27, adding 9% to a 1.2.

NBCU’s sophomore Kelly Clarkson, which was the only talker to advance in the prior two weeks, held steady at a fourth-place 1.0, matching its season high.

Four talk shows were flat at a 0.9 to tie for fifth: Disney’s sophomore Tamron Hall, Debmar-Mercury’s Wendy Williams, NBCU’s Maury and CTD’s Rachael Ray.

NBCU’s Steve Wilkos eroded 11% to a 0.8, matching its series low. Sony Pictures Television’s Dr. Oz revived 17% to a 0.7 from the prior week’s series low.

Warner Bros.’ The Real, CTD’s The Doctors and NBCU’s out-of-production syndicated run of Jerry Springer all were in line with the prior week’s 0.4, 0.3 and 0.2, respectively, with Doctors and Springer both holding at series lows.

CTD’s rookie talker Drew Barrymore held steady at a 0.6 for a fourth straight week. 

CTD’s Inside Edition and Entertainment Tonight led the magazines with Inside Edition improving 4% to a new season-high 2.4 and ET remaining at a 2.2. In third place, NBCU’s Access Hollywood held its ground at a season-best 1.0. 

Warner Bros.’ TMZ rebounded 60% from a series low due to preemptions to a 0.8. Warner Bros.’ Extra hung tough at a 0.7, equaling its season high despite numerous preemptions on Fox-owned TV stations for Game Six of baseball’s World Series and three NFL football games on Oct. 26, 27 and 29. That tied CTD’s DailyMailTV, which added 17% to match its season high after being preempted at least 20 times in the top 44 markets.

Fox’s Dish Nation remained at a 0.3 to tie Trifecta’s Celebrity Page, which added 50% to equal its season high.

Warner Bros.’ The Big Bang Theory recovered 13% to lead the off-network sitcoms at a 2.6 after falling to a new series low in the prior week. Disney’s Last Man Standing sprinted ahead 6% to a 1.8. Disney’s Modern Family rose 9% to a 1.2. Warner Bros.’ Two and a Half Men motored ahead 10% to a 1.1. SPT’s The Goldbergs and Disney’s Family Guy remained at a 1.1 and 0.9, respectively. SPT’s Seinfeld strengthened 13% to a 0.9, tying Guy. Disney’s Black-ish, Warner Bros.’ Mike & Molly and Debmar-Mercury’s Schitt’s Creek all stayed at a 0.7, tying Warner Bros.‘ 2 Broke Girls and Mom, both of which moved up 17%.

Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.