Confirmed: Greatest TV Dad Ever, Bill Cosby, Returning To NBC As Early As Summer 2015

Ladies and gentlemen, Deadline has finally confirmed that television’s greatest TV dad ever, Mr. Bill Cosby, is on his way back to NBC. While the name for this new multi-generational family comedy is yet unknown, what is known is that the legendary Bill Cosby will play “Jonathan Franklin, a patriarch of a multi-generational family who shares his many years of wit, wisdom and experience to help his daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren navigate their complicated modern lives.”

The new family comedy will be executive produced by Tom Werner, who according to Carsey-Werner Productions is one of the brilliant minds behind “That ’70s Show,” “Roseanne,” “A Different World,” “Grace Under Fire,” “3rd Rock From The Sun,” “Grounded For Life” and “The Cosby Show,” among others. Likewise, the comedy will be written by Mike O’Malley, an actor/writer who IMDB reports starred and/or guest-starred in such hits as “Yes, Dear,” “My Name Is Earl,” “Raising Hope” and Glee.

According to the Associated Press, this new Bill Cosby comedy “will use multi-cameras and be filmed in front of a studio audience,” much like traditional NBC comedies (think “Frasier,” “Friends,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and “Seinfeld”). This format differs from the currently celebrated single-camera format used in shows like “30 Rock” and “The Office.”

The best news of all, or at least for traditionalists, is that according to E! Online, the new Bill Cosby show will focus primarily on good, old-fashioned family values (the type that are quite in decline these days):

“… [V]iewers missing an old-school, feel-good TV show will be happy to hear [NBC president Jennifer] Selke’s description of the series: ‘It’s just a classic, big, extended family sitcom,’ with Cosby ‘dispelling classic wisdom on relationships and parenthood.'”

The bad news is that the show is not expected to drop until summer 2015 at the earliest, though its arrival could potentially be delayed until as late as fall 2015.

All this comes as the legendary Bill Cosby himself makes somewhat of a comeback that The Grio reveals started last year with the stand-up special “Bill Cosby: Far From Finished.” While Bill’s stand-up style has slowed down a lot due to his age, his storytelling ability still remains as strong as ever.

Speaking of which, Bill Cosby performed on the newly rehashed “Arsenio Hall Show” back in May. Check below to see his performance get a glimpse of the brilliance you can expect to hit your TV screens come next summer:

Image via [Google Images]