Simon Helberg, Johnny Galecki, Kunal Nayyar and Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
A funny thing happened last week. A quiet little comedy that neither stars Charlie Sheen nor teases us with the identity of a proverbial Mother hit a ratings milestone (9.9 million viewers), putting a certain behemoth of a dance competition to shame in the process. Yep, we're talking about CBS' The Big Bang Theory (Mondays at 8 pm/ET), which in its second season is proving to be one of the most reliable laugh generators on all of prime time.
Of course, that's not to say it's immune to the occasional sweeps stunt. Exec producer Bill Prady shared with TVGuide.com a look at how some Top Models get wrapped up in our boy geniuses' world, as well as reveals the show's overall formula for success. (Thankfully, it does not involve string theory.)
TVGuide.com: Congratulations on the series-high ratings. Is the 10 million threshold in your sights?
Bill Prady: I've got to tell you, I was waiting for when we beat Dancing with the Stars in the demo, which we did. That was sort of my goal. And it felt really good!
TVGuide.com: What's great is that as the series surges, you're not doing anything different. You haven't dumbed it down or "made it more accessible." It is what it's always been.
Prady: I think we only know how to do this. [Laughs] It's interesting because the thing we're here to talk about, it didn't start out as, "How can we do a stunt with Top Model?" It was just a storyline ...
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Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki in The Big Bang Theory by Robert Voets/CBS
This, friends, is nearly on par with Henry Gray stumping for Mer-Der via séance. Robyn Asimov, daughter of the late Isaac Asimov ("the prolific writer, scientist and charismatic geek," as she herself puts it) reached out to us in response to a TVGuide.com feature on CBS' The Big Bang Theory, and to share her especially qualified affinity for the show about a pair of quirky physicists. "[It] is delightfully witty, a brilliant mix of intelligent dialogue with comedy, and absolutely spot-on regarding the wonderful, cerebrally sexy world of nerds," she told us.Asimov — who in 2004 countered film critics with her support of the big-screen take on her father's I, Robot short-story series, and now is chairman and trustee of his estate — referenced this week's episode, saying that "discussing my father’s Three Laws of Robotics during the hysterical conversation among three of the cast members, theorizing if one was a robot — and would he want to be told — was p...
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