This isn't strictly TV-on-DVD news, but it's related quite a bit. The comedy routines of Bill Cosby were the inspiration for his hugely successful 1984 series,
The Cosby Show. The smash NBC sitcom incorporated a LOT of material from Cosby's routines into the first season, and inspired a whole new generation of situation comedy television.
The precursor to the series was
Bill Cosby: Himself, an on-stage performance filmed in front of a live audience, with the best of Cosby's stand-up act done solo by the master. Anyone who had Cable TV in the early 80's was exposed to this routinely...and who could resist? It was one of the funniest things out there! This also enjoyed a brief theatrical run at the time, even though it was filmed in 1.37:1 ratio.
Fox has let it be known that
Bill Cosby: Himself is coming to DVD later this year. No date has been decided on yet, but you can look for it in the late Summer/early Fall timeframe. Price will be $14.98 SRP. And it will contain both the Fullscreen and Widescreen versions of the performance, so noone need resist this great piece of history, one that inspired a great television show. The theatrical trailer will also be on board.
No, it's not
The Cosby Show, not yet anyway. The property-owners of that show are currently shopping around for a distributor of their various TV Series on DVD, so they can bring them to retail in North America. We'll report on that fast when it happens, so stay tuned.
In the meantime, if you don't mind paying the high prices, Columbia House has some
Cosby Show DVDs available for thier members. Since CH won't provide detailed information to us on their releases, we can't report on them. But save your money in any case, because the retail release IS going to happen. In the meantime,
Bill Cosby: Himself will be a nice warm-up!
UPDATED
The release date for this title is August 10th, and here's the cover art:
