Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesRich people doing good deeds or rich people singing each other's praises—guess who proved more popular?
Secret Millionaire, the new Fox reality series, got off to a solid start Wednesday, averaging 7.4 million viewers for its two-hour premiere, Nielsen estimates said.
Going head-to-head against CBS' first-ever Grammy nominations concert from 9-10 p.m., Secret Millionaire handily beat the special in total viewers (8 million vs. 7.1 million) and adults 18-49.
The Grammy special was so weak, especially compared to Criminal Minds, which usually occupies the time slot for CBS, that ABC's Private Practice (7.8 million) and NBC's Life (8.1 million) both easily overpowered it.
Life had a big night, winning the time slot in total viewers, and soaring more than 25 percent over its season average. Private Practice was also up. It ran second in the hour in adults 18-49, behind Secret Millionaire. The Grammy special placed third in the demo, just ahead of Life.
Variety in the form of NBC's Rockefeller Center Christmas special (10.4 million) proved twice as big than variety in the form of Rosie O'Donnell (5 milllion last week).
At 10 p.m., CBS won the hour in adults 18-49 with its annual probe of the Victoria's Secret lingerie line. Overall, the special scored fewer total viewers (8.7 million) than the typical CSI: NY.
CBS' biggest success from its night of specials was its holiday standby: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, which pulled in the most total viewers (11.7 million) and the most demographically coveted young adults.