Wages of War

ABC saga storms the ratings

There was banner-headline boasting. "More people relived the war than fought in it," trumpeted the newspaper ad ABC took in seven newspapers and six trade papers to gloat over the ratings storm blown up by The Winds of War. The 18-hour, $40 million extravaganza averaged a 38.6 rating and a hefty 53 share of the audience, placing it close behind the 1977 Roots--also aired by ABC--as the highest-rated mini-series in television history. Said ABC President John Severino: "Absolutely sensational! We're elated!"

ABC also called Winds "the most watched program in television history." The network's research department estimated that the show, which ran in prime time over an eight-day period, reached an average of 32.15 million households, and that 140 million people watched "some segment" of the 18 hours. Roots, despite its higher ratings, reached an average of 32 million households and was watched by 135 million people. The inconsistency is explained by the fact that there were fewer TV households in America in 1977. Interestingly, no single episode of Winds placed in the 36 alltime highest-rated shows (a list that ranges from the Who Shot J.R.? segment of Dallas at the top to a 1964 episode of The Beverly Hillbillies). More people may have seen "some segment" of Winds simply because, at 18 hours compared with twelve for Roots and NBC's 1980 Shogun, there was more of it on the air.

The other networks professed polite corporate pleasure at Winds' success. Says Susan Baerwald, NBC's vice president for miniseries: "Winds was a gamble for ABC, and I'm thrilled it paid off. It gives the mini-series another lease on life." NBC is cranking up 15 new miniseries, CBS is playing it conservative with only three, and ABC will admit to having only two in the works. One of them, the ten-hour The Thorn Birds, will air starting in late March.

ABC is similarly guarded about plans for filming Herman Wouk's Winds sequel, War and Remembrance. Says ABC Entertainment President Brandon Stoddard: "No decision has been made. The sequel would take from four to six years to produce, and that's a lot more than $40 million right there." One obstacle, at least, has been removed. Wouk's "reservations about moving ahead in that direction" have been put aside by the success of Winds. "I think War and Remembrance is a more powerful story," says Wouk, "but so far no network executives have approached me." This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.