(This review will not discuss the… real life travails of its creator and star. We’re here to just take a look at the show itself. I hope you’re not disappointed.)
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Hey. Hey, Hey! It's Fat-Ass Andrew! And I'm write an adequate and somewhat witty and milquetoast review for youuuu!
Throughout the early history of Saturday Morning Cartoons, many didn’t feature African-American characters (whether predominantly or just one or two). It took until 1969 before a black character finally graced our screens (actually two), 1970 would bless us with the first black female character, and 1971 would give us the first all black cast in a Saturday Morning Cartoon. And now, the first Saturday Morning Cartoon… with an all black cast… that not only entertains you… but also teaches you! And sings to you too. It’s time to buck buck it up and have a good time with Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids.
Created and produced by comedy legend Bill Cosby and airing on CBS from September 9 to December 9 in 1972, the series centers on Fat Albert and his friends living it up at their favorite place -- the local junkyard in North Philadelphia. While there and outside it, they (and/or their one-episode friends/acquaintances/enemies) get into situations that test their happiness, sensibilities, integrity and well-being. Fortunately, each of them has something special that they put together to fix whatever issues they face while they just be themselves. After this, they work together to solve their negative problems and turn them into positive solutions and experiences. Also, between animated scenes, Cosby explains what’s happening to the viewers and what they should and shouldn’t do should they end up in a situation the characters ended up in.
Cosby created the series based on the routines of his stand-up career; the Fat Albert character debuted in the routine “Buck Buck” from his 1967 comedy album Revenge, with the stories based on his childhood and adolescence in North Philadelphia. Due to the success of Revenge and the popularity of Fat Albert and his Junkyard Gang led Cosby -- then the star of his eponymous sitcom on NBC -- to team up with animation vet Ken Mundle to bring him to the small screen with a primetime special on the Peacock entitled Hey, Hey, Hey, It’s Fat Albert. The live-action/animation special was a smash and led to this very series. Cosby also wanted to not only make it both entertaining and educational to kids, but also create characters for black viewers that they would look like and look up to.
Characters:
Fat Albert Robertson (voiced by Cosby): the titular protagonist of the series, he’s the leader of the Junkyard Gang and . He may have a big body, but he also has a bigger heart; he’s wise beyond his years, and is very humble. He sees the good in everyone and does his best to rid the bad in all. And despite his massive size, he’s very athletic.
James Mush aka Mushmouth (also voiced by Cosby): As his nickname implies, this big-ass lipped simpleton tends to speak in a slightly pronounced bout of gibberish or a version of the ZOOM-created language Ubbi Dubbi.
William “Bill” Cosby (voiced by… you know, obviously): A younger animated version of host Cosby. He’s a sports fan who’s great at athletics but terrible at keeping out of trouble his little brother…
Russell Cosby (voiced by Jan Crawford [guess what she is…]): Known for wearing a heavy coat, boots and winter hat despite the series mostly not taking place in winter, he’s even known for his smart mouth and zero filter, with blunt hypotheses about anything or anyone (especially Rudy) that crosses his path whenever the opportunity arises (which is a lot)
“Dumb” Donald Parker (voiced by EP Lou Scheimer {who’s not black}): He’s… an idiot. With a giant, face-hiding hat to match.
“Rude” Rudy Davis (voiced by Eric Sutter): He’s ritzy, he’s cocky and he’s overconfident. He’s also a smartass wannabe huckster responsible for the conflicts in most episodes. He does have a heart and does learn from his mistakes.
Weird Harold Simmons (voiced by Gerald Edwards): The tallest and skinniest of the gang, and also very clumsy. He also wears two different socks (one brown, one red).
Before this series, there were only three black characters in Saturday Morning Cartoons history:
Pete Jones from The Hardy Boys,
Kip Chogi from Hot Wheels (both of whom are voiced by white men),
and Valerie Brown from Josie and the Pussycats
(and unlike the guys, she’s also the first black character to be voiced by a black actor -- Barbara Pariot).
And the (family) members of The Jackson 5ive were the first all black cast of characters, and the first black male actors to voice male black male characters in a Saturday Morning Cartoon.
Ironically still, some characters are also voiced by white actors, but others are voiced by black actors (or rather black actor -- that being Bill Cosby). Other than that, they do a fine job voicing the characters and give them genuine personality and characteristics that kids can laugh at, relate to, care about and fall in love with.
Writing/etc:
Besides the jokes, each episode featured rock-solid morals teaching viewers lessons about important issues and topics that face them and other characters (by extension, the viewers in real life too) every day (and some are still relevant today). Season one alone features topics like friendship, honesty/lying, meeting new people, facing fears, accepting others, hooky, hard work, kindness, gender norms and stage fright. What I like about the writing is the fact that the writers don’t skimp on the important morals so the kids can learn them upfront, and there is a touch of sensitivity so that these lessons and morals do not intimidate or straight up scare them. While I love animated series of many kinds, this is a type of animated series this was truly needed (in 1972, the years between and 2022), so that not only would the viewers be entertained by the characters and their antics, but also educated by the choices the characters (both main and one-shot) made to their detriment or benefit.
Animation:
It’s Filmation. They are infamous for their basic, shoddy, repetitive and somewhat-inconsistent ink-and-paint work. And this series is no exception. But the character designs are very good yet slightly absurd (which explains why they get away with Albert’s colossal girth and the large lips and borderline unappealing appearances, because they wouldn’t and couldn't get away with it in real life) and the backgrounds are bright, appealing and somewhat realistic to fit the North Philly setting (because if you weren’t told that the series takes place in North Philly, you would’ve thought it takes place in Brooklyn or Compton or any other urban (read: ghetto) area of any city in America. For the special that begat the series, Ken Mundle hired former Disney animator Amby Paliwoda to bring the characters from sound to screen, and his work was impressive (as it was to Cosby to keep the looks the same for the series). Speaking of, for the series itself, the slack was picked up by artist Randy Hollar -- with help from former Disney artist Michelle McKinney under the direction of Ken Brown. For all intents and purposes, they do a marvelous job adapting the designs for weekly television, even with the limitations of Filmation.
Music:
Let’s begin with the most recognizable composition -- and the series' most memorable/unforgettable anything, the theme song. Sung by the main character, this funk and pop-based theme song welcomes viewers and shows them a thing or two -- specifically their. Not only is it catchy and upbeat as I don’t know what, it’s also undeniable, unforgettable and - not to mention undeniably and unwaveringly black.
Speaking of undeniable, the series also featured original music, with each track tied to each moral of each story as performed by fictional band The Junkyard Gang. Each song is well-written, well-sung, well-produced, truly catchy and perfectly funky.
Laugh Track:
Yes, it has one. But honestly, it’s much better created & utilized than Hanna-Barbera ever could. While you recognize the same tracks, there are more tracks than H-B ever uses, and they vary both between each other and depending on the scene. And even more surprising (and refreshing because trust me, you need only one episode of a Hanna-Barbera cartoon to find the exact same track with the female sounding chuckle at the end. Hanna-Barbera is horrible with laugh tracks whenever they choose to use them.
What surprised me though is the fact that this series also features an applause track. Yep, a recorded group of grown people clapping is featured in an animated series made for children. Honestly, I’ll take it because if an SMC chooses to have a laugh track, an applause track should also be implemented. They act like a live-action sitcom so wherever possible, use an applause track too. It’s stupid nonetheless, and I personally hate them, but I still prefer it this way anyway over just laugh track.
Conclusion:
As said earlier, Bill Cosby created and produced Fat Albert as both an entertaining and educational series. And on both fronts, he succeeded with flying colors. As an educational series, it taught young viewers various lessons that can be applied strongly in their lives -- like friendship, honesty, staying in school, common sense, staying out of trouble, -- and presenting those lessons with genuine honesty, conviction and sensitivity (meaning while they’re not shown in an in-your-face way, they’re certainly not held back and the viewers are not talked down to). As an entertaining series, it’s absolutely so; it’s a lot of fun, the plots mix funny and humbling, some dialogue is hilarious (whether the scripts and slang were timeless or outdated), and the animation (despite [or even because of] being from Filmation) still holds up well today. The characters are extremely lovable and unforgettable, their antics are either sweet and endearing or hilarious and goofy, and their actions to help out each other or their one-shot acquaintances certainly tug on the heartstrings. As long as you… ignore certain things (which is easier said than done), this series is perfect viewing for everyone -- young and old -- to learn about or relate to the morals of the stories and laugh along with goofy yet upstanding (mostly) relatable and unforgettable characters.
And that’s all for my review of Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids…
I’ll be back next week from the wondrous and colossal city of Rome as we meet The groovy Roman Holidays.
Thank you all for tuning in, and I hope you’ve all been living your best lives throughout the past few months. I promise to do my best to entertain you with this series and other segments on the site. Enjoy the summer, and see you again next week. Ubbuntubbil thubben, Ubbi’m Ubbandrubbew, ubband mubbay thubbe gubbood nubbews bubbe yubbours!!
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