hfan77
I have seen very few episodes of Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids because i bowled in a league when the show aired but in the shows I saw, it was an excellent blend of entertainment and education. Bill Cosby was a true genius behind the show as creator, host and voice of several characters, including the main title character. Not only did the show have a long run on Saturday mornings, it also helped Cosby earn his doctorate in education. That's why viewers saw the credit on his next big hit The Cosby Show William H. Cosby Jr. Ed.d.Another key to the show's success was that the characters were based on real-life friends and relatives of Cosby from his days growing up in Philadelphia. It showed a lot of realism and helped viewers learn about important subjects such as health, TV addiction and respect for authority. Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids was one of TV's best cartoons of all time. Hey hey hey!
Don McCullen
When Bill Cosby told the audience that they may learn something before the show was done, he really meant it. "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" was a perfect fit with Lou Scheimer's philosophy in Children's TV. In fact it was the most successful show for Scheimer's Flimation Production company in which many of the shows they produced had educational elements to the show and most of time very cheesy story writing.Fat Albert was down to earth. The show was based on Cosby's childhood and some of his stand-up routines about Fat Albert. In the show Albert and his friends would learn about life and how to better their lives and those around them. Their were frequency live-action cut aways in which Cosby himself would deliver some commentary about what was happening in the story. At the end of the show a song was featured that reinforced the lesson in the episode.By the late 70's the show was retooled and ending song was replaced by Science Fiction shorts which featured a space hero called the "Brown Hornet" which was seen at the beginning of the show. The Hornet shorts featured an educational message to Fat Albert, his friends, and the real life audience. That message was reinforced in an everyday situation that Albert and his friends would deal with. Cosby continued with live-action cut aways as in the original version of the show.Flimation may have not been the greatest production company when it comes to kids TV, but they did have a few great shows under their belt. "Fat Albert & the Cosby Kids" was one of them. In fact their were the best of Flimation's best
raysond
In the late 1960's,and throughout the 1970's and 1980's for that matter, Lou Scheimer and his partner Norm Prescott crank out a ton of cartoons for Filmation productions during the time. They were some that were in fact down right awful,and some that were very successful indeed(like their animated version of Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek,and The Archies) to name a few. But the one that blew them out of the water and perhaps one of the better Saturday Morning cartoon shows that had a minority in a starring role was that of "Fat Albert". There was some criticism during this show's run,but when it was on CBS,it garnered more awards and praises then any children's show ever produced. It was the show that broke the mold and the quinessential animated show of all time. As a kid growing up,I couldn't wait for it to come on. Each episode had the kids in usual predictments,and after the band would sing a song regarding the lesson they learned. However,me and me friend had a debate on who was singing those songs. We knew that Bill Cosby was the voice behind Fat Albert,but we it was a unknown singer that did the songs.........From its premiere episode in September of 1972 to the final episode of the series in September of 1985,this was the show to watch. However,the years on CBS were from 1972-1979,and when the network cancelled "Fat Albert",the series went into syndication from 1979-1985,under the title,"The New Adventures Of Fat Albert". Bill Cosby was not only the star of the show,but served as executive producer,executive in charge of production and also as the educational consultant for the series. Repeats of the show ran every Saturday Morning from two decades(1970's and 1980's)and later on in syndication markets.It was a great show. However,their were many specials produced that were good including the riveting "A Fat Albert Christmas" and others. It a crying shame that this series isn't on Cartoon Network or FOX family channel or the Odyssey network,since the show had family values. It would be nice if Bill Cosby would release these episodes on videocassette or DVD(as a box set..they did with the animated version of Star Trek). Great show from the groovy 1970's!!
Vlad one
This is the quintessential animated show of all times. Bill Cosby has masterfully created an amazing show complete with an array of vocally diverse characters.Hey Hey Hey, Its Fat Albert time !!!!We must petition Bill Cosby to release this series on videotape or at least on The Cartoon Network...It has been at least 15 years since this animated masterpiece was in syndication.