Sunday's live telecast of On Golden Pond couldn't muster much interest during May sweeps despite a much-hyped reunion between Sound of Music costars Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. The TV production of Ernest Thompson's 1978 play about an elderly couple returning to their summer home pulled in just 11.8 million viewers to land in third place--behind both ABC's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and NBC's Sunday Night Movie, U.S. Marshals.

Still, the teledrama was one of the few stumbling blocks for CBS as Survivor, C.S.I. and its usual slate of Monday comedies kept the network neck-and-neck with NBC during the early stages of May sweeps, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Overall, CBS edged out NBC in total viewers (12 million vs. 11.8 million) and households (8.4 rating/14 share vs. 8.2 rating/14 share), while the Peacock Network prevailed among adults 18-49, the demographic coveted by TV advertisers (NBC's 4.9 rating topped CBS' 3.8).

But viewers were too busy playing outside in the springtime weather to care much. And neither sweeps-related stunts nor proven TV hits seemed to yield much attention.

Friends featured Winona Ryder "making out" (yeah right) with Jennifer Aniston, but viewership Thursday dropped 2 percent from the week prior (16.3 million). Same goes for Survivor: The Australian Outback, which pared its cast of emaciated Outbackers down to three, but saw its viewership drop 5 percent to 28.4 million--its lowest turnout in two months. And despite its decent premiere-week performance, NBC's Weakest Link already showed signs of weakening, with its Monday showing (14.1 million viewers) down 6 percent from the week prior.

Then there was On Golden Pond, which initially generated debate over whether the live production could match the 1981 film--which featured Oscar-winning performances by Katharine Hepburn and Henry Fonda.

Critics applauded the work of Andrews and Plummer (the pair brought "charm, class and energy" to the production, according to the Orlando Sentinel). But while technical glitches marred some moments, most reviewers simply didn't think On Golden Pond was worth turning into a live production in the first place.

Meanwhile, not everything was hurt by the slow week. NBC's med drama ER still landed atop the Nielsens in households, thanks in part to the return of guest star Sally Field. The episode pulled in 25.4 million viewers for a 17.5 rating and 29 share.

A ratings point represents 1,022,000 households, or 1 percent of the nation's estimated 102.2 million TV homes. The share is the percentage of turned-on TVs tuned to a particular show.

Overall, ABC dropped into third place with an average of 10.3 million viewers (7.1 rating/12 share in households), followed by Fox with 8.9 million viewers (5.7 rating/10 share). Fox, meanwhile, edged out CBS among young-adult viewers to land in second place, behind NBC, in the advertiser-friendly demographic (4.3 rating/13 share).

Among the smaller networks, UPN topped the WB in total viewers (3.7 million vs. 3.4 million) and households (2.4 rating vs. 2.3 rating) while tying among young adult viewers. Interestingly enough, Buffy the Vampire Slayer was the WB's second highest-rated show among the young 'uns last week--something that will work to UPN's advantage starting next fall.

Here's a rundown of the week's top 10 among households:

1. ER, NBC, 17.5 rating, 29 share
2. Survivor: The Australian Outback, CBS, 16.6 rating, 27 share
3. C.S.I., CBS, 14.4 rating, 22 share
4. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (Sunday), ABC, 12.0 rating, 18 share
5. The West Wing, NBC, 11.9 rating, 19 share
6. Millionaire (Tuesday), ABC, 11.7 rating, 20 share
7. Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS, 11.4 rating, 17 share
8. Law & Order, NBC, 11.3 rating, 19 share
9. The Practice, ABC, 11.2 rating, 18 share
10. Friends, NBC, 10.9 rating, 19 share