Bill Cosby starred in a television show.
Bill Cosby . Using the Fat Albert character developed during his stand-up routines , Cosby created , produced , and hosted the animated comedy television series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids , a show that ran from 1972 to 1985 , centering on a group of young friends growing up in an urban area . Beginning in the 1980s , Cosby produced and starred in a television sitcom , The Cosby Show , which aired from 1984 to 1992 and was rated as the number one show in America for five years , 1984 through 1989 . Cosby produced the Cosby Show spin-off sitcom A Different World , which aired from 1987 to 1993 , starred in The Cosby Mysteries from 1994 to 1995 , starred in the sitcom Cosby from 1996 to 2000 ; and hosted Kids Say the Darndest Things for two seasons , from 1998 to 2000 .