For over thirty years, Bill Cosby has been one of the world's most respected and well-known entertainers and comedians. In his early twenties he appeared on many well-known variety programs including The Ed Sullivan Show. His big break came when he appeared as Alexander Scott in I Spy, winning numerous Emmys for his performance. He later appeared in The Bill Cosby Show, playing a teacher. He then created Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, a Hanna-Barbera cartoon based on many of his high school buddies. The theme was humorous but also focused on Cosby's more educational side. He studied for many years during his career in the sixties and seventies and received a doctorate in Education from the University of Massachusetts. Cosby starred in some highly successful movies such as Uptown Saturday Night, Let's Do It Again, A Piece of the Action, Mother, Jugs & Speed, and California Suite. He featured in the series Pinwheel during the late seventies and then appeared in The Devil and Max Devlin. In 1984 The Cosby Show was launched. In 1987 Cosby was dissatisfied with the way minorities were portrayed on television, and he produced the TV series A Different World. He then went on to star in a number of movies, and produced such films as Men of Honor, and shows including Little Bill. Throughout the years Bill Cosby has taken a socially conscious tone, often associated with family values, coupled with a distinctly urban spin on his style.