10 Items or Less [TV Series] (2006)

In the tradition of The Office and Reno 911!, the half-hour cable sitcom 10 Items or Less was largely ad-libbed and improvised by its unknown but talented cast. John Lehr doubled as co-creator and series star, playing Leslie Pool, son of the founder of Green & Grains, a medium-sized grocery store somewhere in Ohio. A lifelong failure and foul-up, Leslie was determined to succeed in his efforts to keep his late dad's store afloat after inheriting the place, despite the formidable competition of the neighboring "big box" operation Super Value Mart -- which was managed by Amy Anderson (Jennifer Elise Cox), who happened to be the girl who'd broken Leslie's heart back in high school. Not surprisingly, Leslie's staff was comprised of eccentrics and social misfits, all of whom wished that they were somewhere else or someone else. Carl (Bob Clendenin) was the goofy stock boy who'd appointed himself Leslie's second in command; Yolanda (Roberta Valderrama) worked in the produce department, and at the beginning of the series was also poised to "produce" Carl's baby within a few months; Buck (Greg Davis Jr.) was the grocery bagger, with both eyes on bigger things in life and both feet firmly entrenched in minimum-wage employment; Ingrid (Kirsten Gronfield), the customer-service person, had a lot of trouble dealing with the realities of life, preferring the camaraderie of her fellow Renaissance Faire aficionados; Richard (Christopher Liam Moore), the erudite cashier, aspired to be an ice dancer; and Todd (Chris Payne Gilbert), the hunky butcher, dreamed of racing on the stock-car circuit. 10 Items or Less was added to the TBS superstation lineup on November 27, 2006, for a five-episode trial run. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi