The John Report with Bob

"The John Report With Bob" was a hilarious attempt to return local sketch comedy to the Seattle area after the cancellation of "Almost Live," which aired from 1984-1999. Anchored by former "Almost Live" cast members John Keister and Bob Nelson, "The John Report With Bob" featured a bevy of very talented performers from various local sketch comedy groups. After a strong premier in April of 2000, the show began a sharp drop off the radar; with the last new episodes produced in the fall of 2000 and finally being pulled from the air by February 2001. Viewers had apparently expected a clone of "Almost Live," and due to the show's slightly different format (one which presumably attempted to allow room for greater growth through relying less on local satire) viewers never really caught on. The quality of the show began to suffer, and fighting "Saturday Night Live" in its time slot probably didn't help much.

The show had many bright spots, including performers Winlar and Brad Upton, to add to the solid foundation of writing and performance provided by Keister and Nelson; guest stars included Louie Anderson. If you have the means, I highly recommend watching a few episodes. It's a shame it failed so quickly.