This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

Bill Cosby became the first black entertainer to star in a dramatic network television series. In an interview in 1965, he envisioned a different approach to the situation comedy genre made popular by The Dick Van Dyke Show. He envisioned an all Black family. On September 20, 1984, The Cosby Show--a situation comedy about a family known as the Huxtables premiered. Bill Cosby stars in the leading role as Heathcliff (Cliff) Huxtable, together with his TV wife Clair and their five children. P, an employee of D, claims that in 1980, four years prior to the premiere of The Cosby Show, he proposed to D a 'new' idea for a half-hour situation comedy starring Bill Cosby. In a written proposal submitted to D, P described his series called 'Father's Day' as 'wholesome . . . entertainment' with an all Black family. The leading character will be the father, . . . a devoted family man and a compassionate, proud, authority figure. . . .The program may well resemble 'Father Knows Best' and 'The Dick Van Dyke Show.' It will be radically different from 'The Jeffersons,' 'Good Times,' 'Different Strokes,' and 'That's My Mama.' The father will not be a buffoon, a supermasculine menial, or a phantom. . . . The program will show how a Black father can respond with love . . ., and will present . . . a closely-knit family. . . . P sued D for misappropriation, conversion, breach of implied contract, unjust enrichment and fraud. The court granted D’s motion for summary judgment holding that the idea was not novel. P appealed.

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