BEIJING, Sept. 25 (Xinhuanet) -- The premiere of "The War", the first chapter of Ken Burns' seven-part documentary about World War II, brought in 7.3 million viewers on Sunday night, media reports said Tuesday quoting PBS Public Broadcasting Service.

    It began on Sunday and will air on PBS as a 15-hour, seven-episode series.

    "The War" averaged a 5 rating/7 share in TV households. PBS said it was its highest-rated program in seven years, since an episode of "Antiques Roadshow," and the biggest opener for a PBS miniseries since the last Ken Burns documentary, "Lewis and Clark," which averaged a 6.1 overnight rating in November 1997.

    "The War" ran between 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. against season premieres on CBS and Fox, as well as a heavily watched "Sunday Night Football" match up between the Dallas Cowboys and the Chicago Bears. 

    With the addition of a second airing nationwide, the first episode averaged 18.7 million viewers total, PBS said. The first episode was particularly strong in such markets as Minneapolis-St. Paul, Seattle, San Francisco and New York.

    (Agencies)