Filmed in Ontario, this classic stand up film from Bill Cosby taking about his family and life in general. Some eagle eyed people who are fans of the The Cosby show back in the day will spot that some of the routines in this actually ending up being part of the show. It illuminates why I remember the series to be always funny, because behind the scenes there were folks who held the art of comedic timing in high esteem - and learnt it the hard way, on the road.
In fact, without this film, there would be no `The Cosby Show`, as the the shows makers who had had previous success with "Mork and Mindy" at the ABC channel were watching this on TV thinking "This could be made into a sitcom". They had left ABC, and were now striking out on their own, and they desperately needed a big hit for their first project ... Boy, did they get one!
It must be said that, Bill had a high degree of control over the show and the original idea slated by the producers that he would play a father in a blue collar family was dropped at his insistence and - remarkable for that time - his character was made into a doctor, rather than a limousine driver. You just didn`t see affluent black people on TV those days, and even though it`s no big deal now, back then it was.
The bits where he talks about his son Ennis, who features in the opening credits, are a bit hard to watch, knowing that the poor fella was murdered during a mugging. But that aside, you got yourself a full performance of vintage Cosby.
A rather interesting take on the legacy of the Cosby show by Priya Neyan can be found on the Guardian Website
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