Palin draws big ratings for Saturday Night Live
Fey was answering questions at a news conference, something Palin hasn’t done yet as the Republican vice-presidential nominee, when Palin walked on the stage. Fey beat a hasty retreat in the opening segment, walking past the real Palin with a barely perceptible nod.
Palin’s guest shot, widely anticipated since Fey began imitating her a month ago, led Saturday Night Live to its highest mark in overnight Nielsen Media Research ratings since March 1994, when assaulted skater Nancy Kerrigan was a guest host.
Although a complete audience estimate for the rest of the country won’t be available until later in the week, it is likely to be about 14 million.
For the first half-hour, when Palin first came out, the audience was about 17 million — impressive for a TV programme broadcasting around midnight.
Palin told WWOR-TV in New York in an interview afterwards that she had a great time — but did not attend the after-party.
“I would do that again in a heartbeat,” she said. “It was the most welcoming and friendly environment that you could imagine. Everyone was so nice, and you know, you have to have a sense of humour through all of this. You have to have some levity through this.
“Otherwise, it would really, I think, grind on you and wear you out.”
