Michael Phelps: Saturday night fever on NBC

By now NBC must be thinking about trying to cast Michael Phelps in an episode of "Heroes," if not a starring vehicle of his own (maybe "Aquaman" rights are available?).

Phelps' quest for the record-busting gold medal No. 8 at the Beijing summer Games gave the Peacock its most watched Saturday night in 18 years, since George Bush the elder was in office. Nearly 40 million people (39.9 mil to be exact) tuned in to the 11-11:30 p.m. half-hour to watch Phelps and his teammates clinch the 100 meter men's relay event.

Peacock's primetime coverage average 31.1 million viewers. NBC estimates 70 million folks watched some portion of Saturday's 8:30-11:45 p.m. Olympics coverage.