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LENO, FALLON Score Season Highs in Key Demos & Total Viewers

NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" have scored season highs in viewers 18-49 and total viewers during the week of December 17-21, with both show achieving 15-week highs in adult 18-49 viewers.

In total viewers, Jay generated his biggest overall audience in 10 months and Jimmy scored his top total-viewer result in nearly three years.

Ratings were boosted last week by the Tuesday, Dec. 18 primetime finale of "The Voice" and by an appearance on the Wednesday telecast of "Tonight" by "Voice" winner Cassadee Pope. Thursday's "Late Night" featured Billy Crystal, Tyson Chandler and musical guest Cee Lo Green, who sat in with The Roots, as well as an appearance by Jerry Seinfeld.

Jay's 1.264 million adults 18-49 viewers for the week is "Tonight's" highest since September 3-7 (1.340 million), the week of a major NFL overrun, and Jimmy's 776,000 adults 18-49 is also "Late Night's" highest since that same week (855,000). Excluding weeks of major sport overruns, it's the biggest 18-49 audience for "Tonight" in 10 months (since the week of February 6-10, 1.307 million) and biggest for "Late Night" in 18 months (June 20-24, 2011, 899,000).

In total viewers, Jay's 4.057 million persons is his highest average since the week of February 6-10 (4.075 million), the post-Super Bowl week, which featured the premiere of the prior "Voice" cycle, and Jimmy's 2.029 million is his biggest overall audience since the week of January 18-22, 2010 (2.162 million).

For the week, "Tonight" and "Late Night" beat the time-period competition on ABC and CBS in all key ratings categories: adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, plus total viewers.

Season to date for the 2012-13 season, "Tonight" has stretched its leads versus one year ago over CBS's "Late Show" in viewers 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54. In viewers 18-49, "Tonight" has established a margin over "Late Show" of 13 percent (1.047 million vs. 925,000), eliminating last year's "Late Show" advantage of 1 percent. Jay has also generated a 25-54 advantage this season of 10 percent (1.331 million vs. 1.215 million) after trailing by 0.2 percent at this point last year, and has stretched his 18-34 lead to 18 percent (348,000 vs. 296,000), up from last year's 15 percent.

Jimmy Fallon has established an 18 percent lead over "Late Late Show" this season in viewers 18-49 (671,000 vs. 570,000), up from 13 percent at this point last season.

"Tonight" delivered a bigger 18-49 audience than "Late Show" for the eighth time in the last nine weeks, while Jimmy Fallon has attracted a bigger 18-49 audience than "Late Late Show" for 11 weeks in a row.

WEEKLY AVERAGES

(According to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research for the week of December 17-21. Ratings reflect "live plus same day" data from Nielsen Media Research unless otherwise noted. Season-to-date figures are averages of "live plus seven day" data except for the two most recent weeks, which are "live plus same day.")

ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m.-12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 1.0 rating, 4 share
CBS "Late Show," 0.7/3
11:35 p.m.-12 midnight ET
ABC "Nightline," 0.8/3
12 midnight-1 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 0.5/2*
12:35-1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 0.6/3
CBS "Late Late Show," 0.4/2
1:35-2:05 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.3/2*

TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m.-12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 4.1 million viewers
CBS "Late Show," 3.1 million viewers
11:35 p.m.-12 midnight ET
ABC "Nightline," 4.0 million viewers
12 midnight-1 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 1.8 million viewers*
12:35-1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 2.0 million viewers
CBS "Late Late Show," 1.4 million viewers
1:35-2:05 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.9 million viewers*
*Friday's "Last Call" and Wednesday through Friday's "Kimmels" were encores.

SEASON TO DATE

ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m.-12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 0.8 rating, 3 share
CBS "Late Show," 0.7/3
11:35 p.m.-12 midnight ET
ABC "Nightline," 0.9/3
12 midnight-1 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 0.5/2
12:35-1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 0.5/3
CBS "Late Late Show," 0.5/3
1:35-2:05 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.3/2

TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m.-12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 3.5 million viewers
CBS "Late Show," 3.1 million viewers
11:35 p.m.-12 midnight ET
ABC "Nightline," 3.9 million viewers
12 midnight-1 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 1.9 million viewers
12:35-1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 1.7 million viewers
CBS "Late Late Show," 1.5 million viewers
1:35-2:05 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.9 million viewers

SELECTED CABLE RESULTS, WEEK OF DECEMBER 17-21

NATIONAL ADULT 18-49 RATING
Comedy Central, 11-11:30 p.m. ET, "The Daily Show," 0.4 with encore telecasts
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m.-midnight ET, "The Colbert Report," 0.3 with encore telecasts
TBS, 11 p.m.-midnight, "Conan," 0.5
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 1.0
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 0.6

Each adult 18-49 rating point equals 1.27 million viewers

TOTAL VIEWERS
Comedy Central, 11-11:30 p.m. "The Daily Show," 0.7 million with encore telecasts
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m.-midnight ET, "The Colbert Report," 0.6 million with encore telecast
TBS, 11 p.m.-midnight, "Conan," 1.0 million
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 2.2 million
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 1.5 million