Jimmy Kimmel got more than he bargained for when he moved "Jimmy Kimmel Live" from Midnight to 11:35 p.m. on ABC. Not only did the late night host beat David Letterman in the ratings in his first show in the new time slot, but he also got a surprise haircut from guest Jennifer Anniston.
"I am now 25 minutes closer to my lifelong dream of co-hosting 'The View,'" Kimmel said of his show's earlier time slot, referring to the long-running daytime talk show hosted by Barbara Walters.
Kimmel's first show in the new time slot paid off big. Tuesday's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" attracted 3.1 million viewers, the second-highest number ever for the 10-year-old show and a 59 percent increase over its normal audience draw, according to ratings data on Wednesday.
While most stars make the late night rounds to promote a new project, Anniston stopped by "Kimmel" to do little more than give the host a haircut live. After she revealed to the host that she had earned extra pocket money as a child by cutting friends' hair, Kimmel goaded her into trying out her skills on him.
"It's been 30 years since my last haircut, so let's go for it," Anniston said.
The actress then grabbed a pair of scissors, sprayed Kimmel's hair and got down to business.
"I'm so nervous, I'm kind of shaking, I hope that's OK with you," she said.
While the stunt and new time slot brought Kimmel his second-highest ratings ever for the show, it still wasn't enough to bump off human bobble head Jay Leno, which pulled in 3.3 million viewers. But ABC is in this for the long haul. The earlier time slot is the network's attempt to begin positioning the host to ascend to the top of late-night TV in the future.
ABC is also hoping Kimmel's younger age - he's 45-years-old - will prove an asset as he competes with Leno (62-years-old) and Letterman (65-years-old). An aspiration epitomized in the network's media blitz of ads with the tagline "Younger. Smarter. Funnier. Earlier."
Kimmel's numbers Tuesday among the coveted 18-49 demographic seem to suggest the strategy is worked; he was No. 1 among the group of viewers in more than half of the top 25 TV markets, including New York and Chicago, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Of course, as the Los Angeles Times notes, Kimmel's strong start may not last. The numbers "Kimmel Live" experienced are not unusual for heavily promoted premieres, the Times reported.
"Conan started off strong too," said Brad Adgate, an analyst at Horizon Media, referring to Conan O'Brien's brief time as "Tonight" host. "I think things will settle down and 'JKL' will probably be a strong third behind Leno and Letterman."
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