This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 7:14 PM- Like the flashy and conniving Sharpay, the people behind the new "High School Musical 2" probably are feeling "Fabulous" today.
According to early ratings from Nielsen Media Research, Friday's premiere of the new Disney Channel made-for-TV movie - shot entirely in Utah - was the most-watched basic cable television program of all time.
With 17.2 million viewers tuned into Friday night's 9 p.m. premiere, the highlyanticipated movie also was the most-watched basic cable movie of all time, the highest-rated television program ever for children age 6 to 11 and the second-highest-rated television program of all time (behind only the 2004 Super Bowl) for viewers age 9 to 14.
It also was the most-viewed Friday television telecast, cable or broadcast, in the past five years, according to Nielsen. In comparison, the series finale of "The Sopranos" earlier this year drew only 11.9 million viewers on HBO.
The new movie follows the East High School Wildcats (which include stars Zac Efron, Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale) as they work summer jobs at a posh golf resort.
Its spectacular ratings were not unexpected.
"I believe the opening is going to be astouding," the film's producer, Don Schain, said last week before the premiere of "High School Musical 2," which was shot at East High School in Salt Lake City and the Entrada at Snow Canyon Country Club in St. George.
Schain's Salt Lake City-based Salty Pictures produced the movie.
The first "High School Musical," which also was shot entirely in Utah, was the highest-rated program ever for the Disney Channel and quickly became a pop culture phenomemon when it premiered January 2006.
It since has spawned an industry of its own, including the best-selling CD of last year, a national concert tour, regional musical productions and two more sequels. The third film, which takes place during the Wildcats' graduation, will be made for movie theaters. A fourth film, "Haunted High School Musical" returns the franchise to television.