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Description: Dr. Heathcliff "Cliff" Huxtable was an OBGYN (obstetrician/gynecologist), and his wife Clair was a successful attorney. They had five children: Sondra, Denise, Theo, Vanessa and Rudy. Sondra was rarely seen during the first season because she was away at Princeton. She became a regular character in the second season, and was usually seen with her on-again off-again beau, Elvin. They eventually married and had twins; but not before stunning their families by announcing the fact that Elvin was dropping out of medical school to open a camping store, and Sondra was dropping out of law school to help her husband in his endeavor. Denise was the "unique" child, the black sheep of the family. She had her own way of doing things, right down to the style of clothing she wore. After graduating high school, she left for Hillman College in 1986 (a year later, this would become the setting for the spin-off A Different World), but returned two years later with news that she was dropping out. She eventually decided to become a photographer's assistant, and left for Africa for a year. When she returned, she had yet another bombshell: she had become a wife and mother while over in Africa. She married a navy man, Martin; who had a child, Olivia, from a previous marriage. During the final season, Denise travelled with Martin as he was stationed in Asia. Olivia stayed behind with Cliff and Clair. Theo, Vanessa and Rudy were probably the most popular of the five kids, due to the fact that they were seen more often then Sondra and Denise. Most of the stories revolved around the three youngest children. Stories dealt mainly with dating and school life, as well as Cliff's never-ending fear that his children would never leave home. In the final episode, Theo graduated from college. The Cosby Show was for the late '80s what Dallas was for the early eighties. Dallas was the number one show during most of the early eighties; but then situation comedies bumped all prime-time soaps down. The Cosby Show proved to be fierce competition, becoming the number one show from 1985-1990. In fact, in 8 years it never dropped below the top 20. NBC Broadcast History September 1984-June 1992----Thursdays----8:00 p.m. July 1992-September 1992----Thursdays----8:30 p.m. Nielsen Ratings: (Top 30 or Better) #3 in the 1984-1985 Season #1 in the 1985-1986 Season #1 in the 1986-1987 Season #1 in the 1987-1988 Season #1 in the 1988-1989 Season #1 in the 1989-1990 Season #5 in the 1990-1991 Season #18 in the 1991-1992 Season The most watched Cosby Show episode ever was "Say Hello to a Good Buy" which aired on January 22, 1987. The episode received a 41.3 rating, 56 share, and was seen by 64,980,000 viewers. Watch The Cosby Show on TBS. Weekdays at 1pm & 1:30pm The Cosby Show is also being shown in syndication, check local listings.

Overview

Production Company:
  • Bill Cosby
  • Carsey-Werner Company
Initial Release Date: Sep 20, 1984
Number of seasons: 8 Seasons
Rating: TV-14
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