The Bill Cosby Show is an American sitcom television series, that aired for two seasons on NBC's Sunday night schedule from 1969 until 1971, under the sponsorship of Procter & Gamble. There were 52 episodes made in the series. It marked Bill Cosby's first solo foray in television, after his co-starring role with Robert Culp in I Spy. The series also marked the first time an African American starred in their own eponymous comedy series. Synopsis Cosby played the role of Chet Kincaid, a physical education teacher at a Los Angeles high school, a bachelor, and an average cool guy trying to earn a living and help people out along the way. The show ran for two seasons, 52 episodes in all. While only a modest critical success, the series was nominated for two Primetime Emmys. The Bill Cosby Show was a ratings hit, finishing eleventh in its first season. With the high school as the setting of most episodes, storylines involve life lessons, students and fellow teachers, family drama, a coach's purview, and a few challenging forays, such as a substitute teacher of algebra or English. Cosby was lauded for using some infrequently seen classic African American performers, such as Lillian Randolph (as Kincaid's mother) and Rex Ingram. Well-known stars who rarely did television appeared as well, including Henry Fonda and veteran comedians Mantan Moreland and Moms Mabley as Kincaid's feuding uncle and aunt. The show's brass-heavy, funky theme song, "Hikky Burr", was written by Cosby and Quincy Jones, with Cosby providing the vocals. A new version of the theme was recorded for the second season. The show did not use a laugh track; in that regard it was unique among half-hour situation comedies at the time. Cosby and NBC were at odds over his refusal to include a laugh track in the show. Cosby felt that viewers were intelligent enough to find the humor themselves, without being prompted. While a few comedy dramas already aired without laugh tracks, few sitcoms went without, and those that did had studio audiences. The handful of non-drama sitcoms without a laugh track or studio audience prior to this included The Trouble with Father and The Beulah Show. Episodes Season 1 (1969–70) Season 2 (1970–71) Syndication In September 1984, Cosby returned to NBC, with a similarly named sitcom titled The Cosby Show. The popularity of that sitcom led to reruns of this one