The Cosby Mysteries

*The Cosby Mysteries*
The Cosby Mysteries
	Intertitle
Created by	David Black; William Link
Starring	Bill Cosby; Robert Stanton; James Naughton; Rita Moreno
Composers	Craig Handy, David Weiss
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	20 (18 + pilot)
Production
Running time	60 minutes per episode
Original release
Network	NBC
Release	January 31, 1994 –; April 12, 1995

The Cosby Mysteries is an American television mystery series that starred Bill Cosby. It is the first television series to star Cosby since The Cosby Show (which ended in the spring of 1992) and lasted only one season (1994–1995).^[1] Actor/Rapper Mos Def appeared in several episodes (credited as Dante Bezé).^[2]

Premise

Cosby played Guy Hanks, a New York City Police Department criminalist who retired from the force after winning $44 million in the lottery. His peaceful retirement was frequently interrupted by his former colleagues, Detective Adam Sully (James Naughton) and Medical Examiner John Chapman (Robert Stanton), who ask him to consult on tough cases. As Hanks used his wits and his forensics knowledge to solve crimes, he dealt with his holistic housekeeper Angie (Rita Moreno) and his girlfriend Barbara Lorenz (Lynn Whitfield).^[3]

The show was created by David Black and William Link. Link's previous series included Columbo and Murder, She Wrote. Link developed the series at Cosby's request, as Cosby wanted to do an intelligent, character-driven mystery series that did not rely on graphic violence.

The show began in January 1994 as a two-hour movie, and regular episodes began airing on NBC in September. Critics expressed hope that The Cosby Mysteries would fare better than Cosby's previous two ventures,^[4] Here and Now and the game-show remake, You Bet Your Life. The Cosby Mysteries only lasted 18 episodes.

The Cosby Mysteries has been re-run in the UK on digital channel ITV1, and in the US on A&E and TVOne.

In popular culture

In The Simpsons episode "Guess Who's Coming to Criticize Dinner?", Homer laments the cancellation of The Cosby Mysteries, saying "That show had limitless possibilities!"

A Saturday Night Live episode hosted by Patrick Stewart on February 5, 1994, did a parody sketch of the Cosby series. Adam Sandler played Cosby as a buffoonish character who rambles on incoherently with dialog full of made-up nonsense words.^[5]

In February 2010, as a promotion for the show Glee, character Rachel Berry used Twitter to show her lament and surprise at the show's cancellation, exclaiming "Wait, The Cosby Mysteries was cancelled?!?!".

References

^ "The '95 TV Season: Who's Gone? Who's New? Who's Back?". Ebony. 50 (12): 94. 1995. ISSN 0012-9011. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
^ "The Cosby Mysteries (1994) (TV)". The Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
^ Johnson, Robert E. (1994). "Bill Cosby Begins TV Season With New Mystery Series Co-Starring Lynn Whitfield". JET. 86 (21): 60–63. ISSN 0021-5996. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
^ Randolph, Laura B. (1994). "Activist-Actor Celebrates 30 Years of Wedded Bliss, Continues Fight Against Black Stereotypes on TV". Ebony. 49 (7): 104. ISSN 0012-9011. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
^ "FuzzyMemories.TV – Saturday Night Live – "The Cosby Mysteries" (1994)". February 5, 1994. Retrieved 29 February 2012.

External links

[1] "The '95 TV Season: Who's Gone? Who's New? Who's Back?". Ebony. 50 (12): 94. 1995. ISSN 0012-9011. Retrieved 2010-01-06.

[2] "The Cosby Mysteries (1994) (TV)". The Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2010-01-06.

[3] Johnson, Robert E. (1994). "Bill Cosby Begins TV Season With New Mystery Series Co-Starring Lynn Whitfield". JET. 86 (21): 60–63. ISSN 0021-5996. Retrieved 2010-01-06.

[4] Randolph, Laura B. (1994). "Activist-Actor Celebrates 30 Years of Wedded Bliss, Continues Fight Against Black Stereotypes on TV". Ebony. 49 (7): 104. ISSN 0012-9011. Retrieved 2010-01-06.

[5] "FuzzyMemories.TV – Saturday Night Live – "The Cosby Mysteries" (1994)". February 5, 1994. Retrieved 29 February 2012.

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v t e Bill Cosby
Filmography Discography In advertising List of awards List of honorary degrees Sexual assault cases
Comedy albums	Bill Cosby Is a Very Funny Fellow...Right! (1963) I Started Out as a Child (1964) Why Is There Air? (1965) Wonderfulness (1966) Revenge (1967) To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With (1968) 200 M.P.H. (1968) It's True! It's True! (1969) 8:15 12:15 (1969) Sports (1969) Live: Madison Square Garden Center (1970) When I Was a Kid (1971) For Adults Only (1971) Inside the Mind of Bill Cosby (1972) Fat Albert (1973) My Father Confused Me... What Must I Do? What Must I Do? (1977) Bill's Best Friend (1978) Bill Cosby: Himself (1982) Those of You with or Without Children, You'll Understand (1986) Oh, Baby! (1991)
Music albums	Silver Throat: Bill Cosby Sings (1967) Bill Cosby Sings Hooray for the Salvation Army Band! (1968) Badfoot Brown & the Bunions Bradford Funeral & Marching Band (1971) Bill Cosby Talks to Kids About Drugs (1971) Bill Cosby Presents Badfoot Brown & the Bunions Bradford Funeral Marching Band (1972) At Last Bill Cosby Really Sings (1974) Bill Cosby Is Not Himself These Days (1976) Disco Bill (1977) State of Emergency (2009)
Compilations	The Best of Bill Cosby (1969) More of the Best of Bill Cosby (1970) Bill (1973) Down Under (1975)
Singles	"Little Ole Man (Uptight, Everything's Alright)" (1967)
Television	The Bill Cosby Show (1969–71) The New Bill Cosby Show (1972-73) Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972–85) Cos (1976) The Cosby Show (1984–92) A Different World (1987–93) The Cosby Mysteries (1994–95) Cosby (1996–2000) Little Bill (1999–2004) Fatherhood (2004–05)
Stand-up comedy films and specials	Himself (1983) Bill Cosby 77 (unreleased)
Family	Camille Cosby Ennis Cosby Erika Cosby
Related articles	Fatherhood (1986) Pound Cake speech (2004) Tetragrammaton Records Collection of African-American art Andrea Constand lawsuit We Need to Talk About Cosby (2022)