GEENA SCORES A SLAM DUNK

Bette Midler isn't the only Hollywood diva in a good mood this morning. Despite dreadful reviews, The Geena Davis Show premiered Tuesday night to strong ratings. The ABC comedy — starring Davis as a flighty New Yorker who falls for a widowed father of two (played by former Thirtysomething star Peter Horton) — attracted more than 17 million viewers, retaining a whopping 93 percent of the audience from its lead-in, Dharma & Greg. At 10 pm, ABC also scored with the debut of the Andre Braugher hospital drama, Gideon's Crossing, which finished a strong second to the season premiere of CBS's Judging Amy. Next week, Gideon faces stiffer competition when it moves to its regular Wednesday-night timeslot opposite NBC's venerable Law & Order. Over at Fox, Dark Angel showed some staying power after its blockbuster premiere last week. The James Cameron sci-fi series drew more than 13 million viewers and likely will rank as Fox's top-rated series for the week.