Character
BOB COLLINSWORTH is the co-anchor of the 6PM and 11PM News on WKWB Channel 3, Capeside's local TV station. Bob majored in journalism in the Midwest, and cut his chops as a local reporter in Kansas City. He transfered to Capeside a year ago to take a position as co-anchor. Even though Capeside is a much smaller market than Kansas City, this co-anchor position (Bob hopes) will springboard him to a larger New England market, like Portland or Boston. His ultimate goal is a position on a network news team. Bob at first found life in Capeside a hard adjustment. He had broken up with his long-time girlfriend when she decided not to make the move to Capeside, and he knew no one when he first moved to the small coastal town. Ambitious, he threw himself into his job, and quickly became friends with his attractive co-anchor Gale Leery. In her, Bob found a partner who shared his ambition to make the local newscast a big success and improve ratings. As months went on and they spent more time together, their energetic business partnership expanded into a very physical affair. Bob knew Gale was married for almost twenty years, and loved her husband and son very much, but she seemed able to balance everything: her job, time with him, and time with her family.
Series arc
In "The Pilot," Bob gives Gale a ride home from work late one night, and kisses her goodbye, which is (unknown to Bob and Gale) observed by Joey. A couple weeks later, in "Discovery," Bob and Gale are shopping in town for a new sportcoat for the co-anchor (viewers had made detrimental comments about the ones he had been wearing on-air), when they unexpectedly run into Dawson and Joey. The consummate anchorman, Bob remains cool and casual as he meets Gale's son for the first time, even encouraging the kid to come down to the station*. There, on the next day, Bob kisses Gale in a hallway, observed (unknown to them) by Dawson. In "Hurricane," Dawson confronts his mother with the knowledge of her affair and forces her to confess it to Mitch, who is devastated. Gale ends the romance with Bob, but they continue to work closely together, and Bob calls her at home in "Double Date," infuriating Mitch. Bob has managed in his short time in Capeside to make his own personal life a hotter story than the ones he stoically reports to the town nightly. One cannot wait to see what he'll do next -- "Back to you, Bob!"
