Jimmy Fallon's TONIGHT SHOW Debut Week Nets 22-Year Highs with L+3

The addition of time-shifted viewers has lifted the post-Olympic Feb. 17-21 premiere week of "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" to the biggest "Tonight Show" week in total viewers in nearly 22 years, dating back to Johnny Carson's last week on the show in May 1992.

In preliminary time period-based affiliate "live plus three day" results, the debut week of "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" averaged a 3.6 rating in adults 18-49 and 10.418 million viewers overall. Those are increases versus initial "live plus same day" results of 29% in 18-49 rating (to a 3.6 from a 2.8) and 23% or 1.9 million persons in total viewers (10.418 million vs. 8.493 million).

The 10.418 million for Fallon's week of post-Olympic telecasts is "Tonight's" biggest weeklong audience in "live plus three day" results since before the era of DVR time-shifting. It was last topped during Johnny Carson's final week hosting "The Tonight Show" from May 18-22, 1992 (19.453 million). The 3.6 in 18-49 is "Tonight's" best week by that measure since May 11-15, 1998 (3.7 for the week of the "Seinfeld" finale).

It was also the youngest audience for any week this season of "Tonight," "Late Show with David Letterman" or "Jimmy Kimmel Live," with the median age of Fallon's audience last week coming in at 52.6. Current season-average median ages are: "Late Show," 58.7; "Kimmel," 54.2; and "Tonight," excluding last week's post-Olympic telecasts, 58.1.

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