It was a great year for television -- and we have the numbers to prove it.
1 -- Number of sitcoms this year to portray a baby's funeral ("It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia").
1.4 -- The average next-day rating in the 18-49 demographic for NBC's "The Playboy Club," the first fall show to be cancelled. It was replaced with the much cheaper-to-produce "Rock Center," which averages a 1.0 rating.
2 -- Number of scalpings shown in primetime this season (on "Hell on Wheels" and "Boardwalk Empire").
3 -- TV hosts who left their jobs after more than two decades (each) on their shows. (Oprah Winfrey, Mary Hart, Regis Philbin).
4 -- Number of daytime soap operas that will remain on the air after "One Life to Live" ends its 44-season run on Jan. 13. In 1976, when Time magazine ran its "Sex and Suffering in the Afternoon" cover story that proclaimed daytime soaps as "TV's richest market," there were 14 daytime soaps.
5 -- Number of recent dramas with plots involving dead or endangered children ("American Horror Story," "Dexter," "Breaking Bad," "The Walking Dead," "Homeland").
6 -- Number of shows that replaced a star ("CSI" added Ted Danson; "Two and a Half Men," Ashton Kutcher; CNN, Piers Morgan; "The Office," James Spader; "Law & Order: SVU," Danny Pino; and "American Idol," Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez.
7 -- Where Tina Fey's memoir "Bossypants" falls on the list of the top 10 bestselling adult non-fiction books of 2011, according to Nielsen BookScan.
8 -- Number of holiday specials featuring Justin Bieber this year ("A Michael Buble Christmas," "Christmas in Rockefeller Center," "Christmas in Washington," "A Home for the Holidays With Martina McBride," MuchMusic Presents Justin Bieber: Home for the Holidays," "Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade," "This Is Justin Bieber" and "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest")
13 -- Number of shows with "Wives" or "Wife" in the title ("Real Housewives of O.C.," "Real Housewives of New York City," "Real Housewives of Atlanta," "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," "Real Housewives of New Jersey," "Real Housewives of Miami," "Mob Wives," "The Good Wife," "Baseball Wives," "Basketball Wives," "Sister Wives," "Army Wives" and "Prison Wives").
39.1 -- Percentage ratings gain for "Two and a Half Men" this season over last (as of November) -- making it the biggest network ratings gainer of the fall.
3.2 million -- Number of total primetime viewers for USA, the top-rated cable network. It averages a 1.08 rating in the 18-49 demo, essentially flat with last year, and remains on top for its sixth consecutive year.
55 -- Percentage ratings loss for "Chuck" this season over last (as of November) -- making it the biggest network ratings loser of the fall.
64 -- Number of years NBC's "Meet the Press" has been on the air, making it the longest-running TV series -- currently airing and ever.
577 -- Occurrences of product placement during the 10th season of "American Idol," according to Nielsen. "AI" leads all primetime shows in product placement, while only one scripted series -- "Friday Night Lights" -- is in the top 10.
81.8 million -- Number of people (in 66 countries) who watch "House" each week, making it the most-watched TV series in the world, according to the 2012 "Guinness World Records" book.
To look back at 2011, we're including a few numbers on the storylines, product placements and ratings that made it the year it was.
Not all the numbers are good: We also look back at the year's sadder moments, including the shows that died quick deaths, the ratings slides, and the face-offs that didn't end so happily for some of our favorite characters.
Click through and have a look for yourself:
-- Tim Molloy
