Season finales send TV ratings soaring

CBS soared in the ratings with major plot moves on the season finales of its two most popular shows. On the comedy “The Big Bang Theory,” Sheldon and Amy’s characters tied the knot, while Pauley Perrette’s character, Abby, signed off from “NCIS” after a decade and a half with the drama. Both programs reached more than 15 million viewers last week, well above any other show on the air, the Nielsen company said. With the television season coming to an end — and networks presenting next season’s schedules to advertisers in New York this week — broadcasters ran almost exclusively original programs.