How high can it go?

No one knows, but last night's Season 6 premiere of Fox's "American Idol," perhaps the highest-rated non-sports show to ever come out of Minneapolis, averaged 37.3 million viewers, according to the preliminary Nielsens.

That's not only higher than I can count on fingers and toes, but it's nearly 2 million more people than watched last year's record-breaking premiere.

What continues to amaze me is the way viewership continues to peak in the final half-hour -- last night, it was 41.48 million from 9:30 to 10 -- even in an audition show with no conclusive results being announced then.