CBS (Fridays, 8p.m. ET)
C+
Last time Bill Cosby fiddled with classic TV, he did a syndicated update of You Bet Your Life starring himself as a kinder version of Groucho Marx. Bad idea. Here he's in the right revival, inspired by the kid-chat segments on Art Linkletter's House Party (CBS, 1952-69). Cos can't miss in the company of youngsters, especially when he assembles a panel of three and questions them like a country lawyer. But this half-hour show, which premiered Jan. 9, after two hour-long specials last year, is padded with previews of coming laughs, mock-apologetic lead-ins to the commercials, and clips from the Linkletter vault that often seem too darned cute to be true. Watching the premiere, we tried not to notice that Art moved his lips like a bad ventriloquist while the little people were being funny.
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