First 'Live!' Episode After Regis Philbin's Departure Draws Good Ratings

"Live! With Kelly"

Monday's Live! WIth Kelly with Kelly Ripa and guest co-host Jerry Seinfeld didn't miss a beat, drawing good ratigns numbers for the first episode of the renamed morning talker just days after Regis Philbin departed after 28 years.

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The episode, featuring guests Jason Segel and chef Jamie Oliver, delivered a 4.0 household rating in the metered markets and a 2.2 in the women 25-54 demographic, up 38 percent and 57 percent compared to last year's comparable November ratings performance.

In its time period, Live! was No. 1 in 14 of the top 15 markets and improved on its lead-in by 73 percent in all metered markets, including 13 of 15 top markets.

Among the top 25 markets, Dayton posted the highest household rating with an 8.9, with Atlanta (7.1) and Pittsburgh (6.6) following.

Expectedly, Monday's ratings are a far cry from Philbin's final Live! episode that aired Nov. 18, which drew a 7.3 household rating with 23 percent of homes tuning in to see his farewell, according to preliminary metered-market numbers. To compare, that episode was lower than Oprah Winfrey’s final broadcast last May, which pulled in a 11.7 household rating with higher viewing levels overall at 4 p.m. when Oprah aired.

Seinfeld's last day co-hosting with Ripa is Wednesday. Neil Patrick Harris will take over for a full week beginning Nov. 28.