'Animal Practice,' starring Justin Kirk, left, as a veterinarian, reached an average of 12.8 million viewers in a special airing during the Olympics' closing ceremonies.
In its perennial quest to escape the ratings cellar, the network previewed two new sitcoms on Olympics nights, and opened a reality show and Season 2 of fantasy drama Grimm the day after closing ceremonies.
"Given where we are, we felt it was imperative to take advantage of the Olympics performance," says NBC entertainment president Jennifer Salke.
