Nielsen Top 10, February 26th – March 10th, 1956

Here are the top ten programs for the two-week period running Sunday, February 26th through Saturday, March 10th, 1956. The week of Sunday, February 19th was a Nielsen “black week” and no ratings were taken. Read more about “black weeks” here. The first table lists the top ten by households and the second by rating.

I Love Lucy once again topped both charts, this time by a pretty decent margin. The two episodes aired during this ratings period were “Paris at Least” (on Monday, February 27th) and “Lucy Meets Charles Boyer” (on Monday, March 5th).

The Jack Benny Program aired on Sunday, February 26th while Private Secretary (which didn’t crack the Top 10 this week) aired on Sunday, March 4th.

ABC’s Disneyland featured “Trip Through Adventureland–Water Birds” on Wednesday, February 29th and “On Vacation” on Wednesday, March 7th (with Jiminy Cricket as host).

G.E. Theater presented “Try to Remember” on Sunday, February 26th with Ronald Reagan, Kim Hunter, and Angie Dickinson. “A Letter from the Queen” aired on Sunday, March 4th with Paul Muni, Christopher Plummer, and Polly Bergen.

Number of TV Homes Reached
## Program Network Homes
1. I Love Lucy CBS 16,953,000
2. $64,000 Question CBS 15,620,000
3. Ed Sullivan Show CBS 14,496,000
4. December Bride CBS 13,689,000
5. Jack Benny Show CBS 13,233,000
6. Disneyland ABC 12,671,000
7. Dragnet NBC 12,636,000
8. You Bet Your Life NBC 12,390,000
9. The Millionaire CBS 12,110,000
10. G.E. Theatre CBS 12,110,000

Percent of TV Homes Reached
## Program Network Rating (%)
1. I Love Lucy CBS 50.1
2 $64,000 Question CBS 46.3
3. Ed Sullivan Show CBS 43.2
4. December Bride CBS 40.5
5. Jack Benny Show CBS 40.1
6. Disneyland ABC 37.4
7. Dragnet NBC 36.7
8. The Millionaire CBS 36.6
9. You Bet Your Life NBC 36.3
  G.E. Theatre CBS 36.3

Copyright 1956 by A. C. Nielsen Co.

Note: Prior to July 1960, Nielsen ratings were not based on the total number of television households in the United States. From 1950 to 1953, ratings were a percentage of households in cities/markets in which the program was broadcast. From 1953 to 1960, ratings were a percentage of households capable of viewing a program.

Source:
“Latest Ratings: Nielsen.” Broadcasting*Telecasting. 9 Apr. 1956: 44.


Related Posts

Become a Patron Today

Are you a fan of obscure television? Please support Television Obscurities on Patreon by becoming a patron today.

One Reply to “Nielsen Top 10, February 26th – March 10th, 1956”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.