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BILL Cosby--everybody's favorite TV star--is back, but the overall quality and quantity of Black-oriented network programming continues to decline. The '96 TV season opens with only one new Black-oriented show--CBS' Cosby. Since last season, the number of Black shows airing on the four major networks has dropped from seven to five. And none of the networks has a Black dramatic series on its new fall schedule. All three of NBC's Black programs--Fresh Prince of gel-Air, In The House and Minor Adjustments--have been canceled. Family Matters is back on ABC, but Hangin' With Mr. Cooper will not air until mid-season. Martin and Living Single returned to FOX.

CBS didn't have any Black shows to cancel.

Fortunately, all of the color wasn't drained out of prime-time. Most of it is being broadcast not by the major networks, but by the two upstarts--United Paramount Network (UPN) and the Warner Bros. network (the WB). Together, they added six Black series to their fall line-ups. One or more African-Americans will star on all nine of UPN's series and on half of the 12 shows airing on the WB.

Unfortunately, all of the Black-oriented network series airing this fall are comedies--none of the networks is debuting a Black dramatic series.

Cosby brings back the unbeatable team of Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad--on a different network, in a new format and with a new television family. The TV couple will also be joined by a neighbor, played by Madeline Kahn (see "ALL BETS ARE ON COSBY ON CBS").

Cosby and Rashad's former television son, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Sherman Hemsley, James Avery and Robin Givens are among the Black actors appearing in new series on UPN and the WB.

Other Black prime-time series and performers include the winning line-up of Queen Latifah, Kim Coles, newlywed Kim Fields Freeman, Erika Alexander, John Henton and T.C. Carson in Living Single, now in its fourth season on FOX. Watch to see how Synclaire deals with the expectations of her family and friends after she and Overton announce their engagement.

And Martin fans will find out if this is the year Martin and Gina become homeowners on the FOX comedy starring Martin Lawrence, Tisha Campbell, Tichina Arnold, Tommy Ford and Carl Payne.

Family Matters, which is enjoying its eighth successful season on ABC, stars Reginald VelJohnson, JoMarie Payton Noble, Darius McCrary, Kellie Shanygne Williams and Jaleel White.

This fall, Steve Urkel goes away to college and his alter ego, Stefan Urquelle, becomes a more frequent visitor around the Winslow household. Actor Orlando Brown will also join the show as a recurring character and play a troubled youth that Urkel attempts to mentor.

When Hangin' With Mr. Cooper returns to ABC mid-season, look for Mark Cooper and Vanessa Russell to become engaged and to eventually marry. The comedy stars Mark Curry, Holly Robinson Peete, Saundra Quarterman, Marquise Wilson and Raven-Symone.

Fans of In The House were probably happy to learn that UPN picked up the popular program after NBC dropped it last season. In its revised format, Jackie Warren (Debbie Allen) and her son Austin (Jeffery Wood) have moved back East, leaving Tiffany (Maia Campbell) in Marion's care until she finishes high school.

The laughs begin again when Dr. Maxwell Stanton, played by Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star Alfonso Ribeiro, Marion Hill (LL Cool J) and Tonia (Kim Wayans) attempt to manage the sports clinic they co-own. Quincy Jones remains as the series' co-producer.

In 13 new fall shows, Blacks will take on major co-starring roles. They include Joseph Lattimore in Public Morals, Ron Glass in Mr. Rhodes and Karyn Parsons in Lush Life. Della Reese, Yaphet Kotto, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Malik Yoba, Robert Townsend, Andre Braugher, Blair Underwood, Meshach Taylor and Eriq ; LaSalle are among the veteran performers returning to prime-time. Several noteworthy specials, including Lena Home: Finding Her Voice, a PBS documentary airing November 25, are also coming to primetime this season. And look for the ABC production of The Wedding, the first in the network's Oprah Winfrey Presents film franchise. Winfrey is the executive producer of the movie, which is based on the book by the same name written by Harlem Renaissance author Dorothy West.

THE '96 PRIME-TIME TV ROUND-UP

SUNDAYS NEW 7 p.m. (FOX) L.A. FIREFIGHTERS Carlton Wilborn 8 p.m. (CBS) TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL Della Reese NEW (NBC) 3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN Simbi Khali

(WB) THE PARENT 'HOOD(*) Robert Townsend, Suzzanne Douglas, Kenny Blank, Reagan Gomez-Preston, Curtis Williams Jr., Ashli Amari Adams and Faizon Love

NEW 8:30 p.m. (NBC) BOSTON COMMON Tasha Smith NEW (WB) THE STEVE HARVEY SHOW(*) Steve Harvey, Cedric The Entertainer, Merlin Santana and Tracy Vilar

MONDAYS NEW 8 p.m. (CBS) COSBY(*) Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad and Doug E. Doug NEW (ABC) DANGEROUS MINDS Tamala Jones, LaToya Howlett, Vicellous Reon Shannon and Cedrick Terrell Recurring: Coolio

(UPN) IN THE HOUSE(*) LL Cool J, Kim Wayans, Alfonso Ribeiro and Maia Campbell

NEW 8:30 p.m. (NBC) MR. RHODES Ron Glass NEW (UPN) MALCOLM & EDDIE(*) Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Eddie Griffin

NEW 9 p.m. (UPN) GOODE BEHAVIOR(*) Sherman Hemsley, Dorien Wilson, Alex Datcher and Bianca Lawson NEW 9:30 p.m. (FOX) LUSH LIFE Karyn Parsons

NEW (UPN) SPARKS(*) James Avery, Robin Givens, Miguel A. Nunez Jr., Terrence Howard, Wilma Cuthbert, Kym Whitiey and Arif S. Kinchen 10 p.m. (CBS) CHICAGO HOPE Vondie Curtis-Hall

TUESDAYS 8 p.m. (UPN) MOESHA(*) Brandy, Sheryl Lee Ralph, William Allen Young, Countess Vaughn, Marcus T. Paulk, Lamont Bentley, YveHe Wilson and Shar Jackson Recurring: Bernie Mac

NEW 8:30 p.m. (UPN) HOMEBOYS IN OUTER SPACE(*) Flex, Darryl M. Bell Rhona L. Bennett, Kevin M. Richardson and Paulette Braxton

9 p.m. (ABC) HOME IMPROVEMENT Recurring: Charlie Robinson

NEW (UPN) THE BURNING ZONE James Black

10 p.m. (ABC) NYPD BLUE James McDaniel

WEDNESDAYS 8 p.m. (WB) SISTER, SISTER(*) Tim Reid, Jackee Harry, Tamera Mowry, Tia Mowry and Marques Houston

(UPN) THE SENTINEL Bruce A. Young

8:30 p.m. (NBC) THE JOHN LARROQUETTE SHOW Daryl (Chill) Mitchell and Chi McBride

NEW (WB) NICK FRENO: LICENSED TEACHER Clinton Jackson and Arjay Smith 9 p.m. (NBC) NEWSRADIO Khandi Alexander

(WB) THE WAYANS BROS.(*) Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, John Witherspoon, and Anna Marie Horsford (UPN) STAR TREK: VOYAGER Tim Russ

NEW 9:30 p.m. (CBS) PUBLIC MORALS Joseph Lattimore

NEW (WB) THE JAMIE FOXX SHOW(*) Jamie Foxx, Garrett Morris, Ellia English, Garcelle Beauvais, Christopher B. Duncan and Andrew Mark Berman 10 p.m. (NBC) LAW & ORDER S. Epatha Merkerson

Thursdays 8 p.m. (CBS) DIAGNOSIS: MURDER Victoria Rowell

(ABC) HIGH INCIDENT Blair Unclerwood, Aunjanue Ellis and Wendy Davis

(FOX) MARTIN(*) Martin Lawrence, Tisha Campbell, Tichina Arnold, Tommy Ford and Carl Payne 8:30 p.m. (NBC) THE SINGLE GUY Shawn Michael Howard

(FOX) LIVING SINGLE(*) Queen Latifah, Kim Coles, Kim Fields Freeman, Erika Alexander, T.C. Carson and John Henton

9 p.m. (ABC) MURDER ONE David Bryan Woodside (FOX) NEW YORK UNDERCOVER Malik Yoba, Fatima Saloye and George Gore II

10 p.m. (NBC) ER Eriq LaSalle, Gloria Reuben Recurring: Khandi Alexander, Yvette Freeman and Deezer D

Fridays 8 p.m. (CBS) DAVE'S WORLD Meshach Taylor

(ABC) FAMILY MATTERS(*) Reginald VelJohnson, JoMarie Paytan Noble, Darius McCrary, Kellie Shanygne William and Jaleel White Recurring: Bryton McClure, Rosetta LeNoire and Orlando Brown

NEW (FOX) SLIDERS Cleavant Derricks

NEW 9 p.m. (ABC) CLUELESS Stacey Dash, Donald Adeosun Faison and Sean Holland

9:30 p.m. (ABC) BOY MEETS WORLD Will Friedle

10 p.m. (NBC) HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STRETS Yaphet Kotto, Andre Braugher and Clark Johnson

Saturdays 8 p.m. (CBS) DR. QUINN: MEDICINE WOMAN Jonelle Allen and Henry G. Sanders

NEW 9 p.m. (CBS) EARLY EDmON Shanesia Davis 10 p.m. (CBS) WALKER, TEXAS RANGER Clarence Gilyard

NEW (NBC) PROFILER Erick Gimpel and Michael Whaley

(*) Denotes a Black-oriented series All times are Eastern Standard.

RELATED ARTICLE: ALL BETS ARE ON COSBY ON CBS

MONDAYS, 8 p.m.

Bill Cosby is back on prime-time TV and CBS executives are optimistic that he will be able to once again perform a television miracle. The hope is that Cosby will do for CBS in the '90s what The Cosby Show did for NBC in the '80s--rescue the network in its losing battle in the prime-time ratings war.

Both Cosby, who has starred in two unsuccessful TV projects since The Cosby Show, and CBS, which entered the fall season ranked third behind NBC and ABC in overall ratings, have a lot riding on the deal.

In a rare display of confidence, the network has ordered 44 episodes of the new series, the equivalent of a two-year contract. And Cosby, which airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EST, has been positioned at the top of CBS' weekday, prime-time line-up. It is also rumored that Cosby, who is also one of the sitcom's executive producers, will receive as much as $1 million per episode, reportedly the most lucrative deal in television history.

Cosby says that if the show is not successful, he won't hold the network to the deal. "With my ego," Cosby said, "if the show is not good, according to the way I feel and talking to others I trust, if it's low in the ratings, then I don't want to cost CBS any more money."

Relying on a tried-and-true formula, Cosby has again enlisted the assistance of Phylicia Rashad. The actors play Ruthie and Hilton Lucas, a working class New York City couple who have been married 32 years.

The series' format centers on 60-year-old Hilton Lucas, a recent casualty of corporate downsizing who has been given the pink slip after 30 years on the job.

In the meantime, Ruthie, who understands her husband's frustration, is trying to help him adjust. But it isn't easy because with more time on his hands than he's had for years, Hilton insists on fixing things that aren't broken, moving other things out of their established places and generally making a nuisance of himself. And every time she turns around, he's muttering and complaining about the current state of the world.

Rounding out the cast are Doug E. Doug and Madeline Kahn. Kahn plays Pauline, Ruthie's sympathetic friend and co-worker at the local flower shop.

Cosby is a distinct departure from The Cosby Show. For instance, economic insecurity was never a problem for the upwardly mobile Huxtables. Hilton Lucas, on the other hand, begins his TV life out of a job through no fault of his own.

The two series do, however, share healthy doses of old-fashioned morality and solid family values that most viewers, regardless of their economic standings, can agree with and can understand. And in the end, Cosby's success, like its predecessor, may very well hinge on its ability to bridge the chasms that so often exist between segments of the television viewing public.

COPYRIGHT 1996 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group

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