Biography
Cosby was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at Northwest Philadelphia's Germantown Hospital at 3:00 A.M to William Henry Cosby and Anna Pearl Hite. He began attending Central High School of Philadelphia, but dropped out in the tenth grade and joined the Navy, and completed high school through correspondence courses (GED). He served 4 years in the Navy, achieving the rank of Hospital Corpsman Third Class. During his service, he was stationed at Bethesda Naval Hospital, and played for the Quantico Marines football team and the Naval Hospital Bethesda basketball team. He was discharged in 1961. Later, he won an athletic scholarship to Temple University.
After working as a bartender for several years, he began his career as a stand-up comic, working the "chitlin circuit" for a time before his big break with Bill Cosby Is A Very Funny Fellow Right!. Unlike many contemporary Afro-American comedians, Cosby told stories rather than jokes, often surrounding his Philadelphia childhood, particularly in tales about his little brother Russell and friends Old Weird Harold and Fat Albert. Unlike his contemporaries on the circuit, he avoided the use of harsh language. As a result, Cosby was deemed acceptable to white audiences which found these stories to be universal. He won fame for his performances and a series of best-selling record albums. His breakout routine was an imagined conversation between God and a skeptical Noah, which made its first appearance on his first vinyl release.
TV producer Sheldon Leonard landed Cosby a break-out television role in I Spy (1965), the first time an African-American actor starred in a weekly dramatic television series. Cosby won two Emmy Awards for his portrayal of undercover CIA agent Alexander Scott.
Cosby then appeared in a series of shows named after himself: The Bill Cosby Show, The New Bill Cosby Show, the animated Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, Cos, The Cosby Show, The Cosby Mysteries, and Cosby (based upon the British series One Foot In The Grave). He has producer, writer, director and even composer credits on many of his projects.
Cosby was a regular on the Captain Kangaroo show in the 1980s, presenting the "Picture Pages" segment which was later syndicated on its own.
Cosbyology (2001)
He won several Grammy awards for his comedy albums, had a top forty song ("Little Old Man") in 1969, and sang on a number of albums. He won more Grammies for comedy than any other artist, winning every year from 1965 to 1970 and again in 1987. As of 2005, he had 3 gold- and 6 platinum-certified comedy albums. He has also written several humorous books about different aspects of life, based on his stand-up comedy such as Fatherhood and Love and Marriage. In fact, Fatherhood and Time Flies were the best selling non-fiction hardback books of 1986 and 1987, respectively.
Cosby has also made occasional forays into film acting, but the critical and popular success which came so abundantly to his stage and television work has not blessed his movie performances: His natural charisma has often been undermined by mediocre scripts in films like The Devil and Max Devlin (1981) and Ghost Dad (1990), and the notorious flop Leonard Part 6 (1987), although his work in ensemble casts in Uptown Saturday Night and Let's Do it Again, a pair of productions headed up by Sidney Poitier in the mid-1970s, received favorable reviews, as did his supporting role in Francis Ford Coppola's Jack (1996).
One of Cosby's more colorful performances was his portrayal as a bigot in Bill Cosby on Prejudice (1971).
His many commercial endorsements, made at the height of his popularity in the 1970s and '80s for products such as Jell-O, Texas Instruments, Eastman Kodak, and Coca-Cola, have been widely parodied.
Cosby earned a doctorate in education from the University of Massachusetts in 1977: his dissertation concerned the use of the Fat Albert series as a teaching aid. He has attempted to integrate education with television in some projects, such as Picture Pages, where Cosby taught children how to draw in a series of shorts aired by PBS. Notably, he structured the 80's Cosby family to represent children at all ages, and the addition of daughter Sondra (Sabrina Le Beauf) as a Princeton-educated lawyer is meant to send the message that good parenting and education of children leads to success. The Cosby Show also addressed social issues, such as drugs, illiteracy, teen pregnancy, and gang violence.
Cosby is now a leading educational philanthropist.
He hosted the television program Kids Say the Darndest Things, which aired from 1996 through 2002.
He is married to Camille Hanks and they have four daughters. Their only son Ennis Cosby, aged 27, was murdered on January 16, 1997, while changing a flat tire in Los Angeles, California. On March 12, 1997, his assailant, Mikail Markhasev, was arrested in Los Angeles and charged with attempted robbery and murder. He was convicted on July 7, 1998 and is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Cosby, as of 2005 maintains a home in Shelburne, Massachusetts.
Honors
Cosby received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Cincinnati during the 2001 graduation ceremony.
Cosby recieved an Honorary Doctorate from West Chester University of Pennsylvania during the 2003 graduation ceremony.
In a British 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted amongst the top 50 comedy acts ever by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.
He received Kennedy Center Honors in 1998.
Political views
Bill Cosby's sociopolitical views, especially about the African-American community, are complex and have often been reduced to a simplistic representation. He has a long history of endeavors to advance African-Americans while some statements he has made have been critical of African-Americans.
During the 1970's, Cosby was on the "enemies list" of President Richard Nixon.
He was the first bigtime entertainer to cancel an appearance in Cincinnati after a boycott was called in response to the 2001 Cincinnati Riots. His support of this cause encouraged other stars to follow.
Cosby has been critical of African-Americans regarding those who hold low standards and allowing fatherless single parent households, high crime rates, and high illiteracy rates. He encouraged a more proactive effort from African-Americans to reduce those problems. He expanded upon his remarks in San Jose, California during an event to promote the Read-2-Lead Classic. The way his speeches were portrayed by popular media provoked a great deal of anger from African-Americans.
The Pound Cake Speech
The neutrality of this section is disputed.
Please see discussion on the talk page.
In May 2004 as his address during the 50th Anniversary commemoration of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, Cosby made public remarks critical of those Blacks who he believed were putting higher priorities on sports and fashion than on education and self-improvement. When his address was reported by the national media, the headlines implied that Cosby was placing the blame of socioeconomic disparity solely on African-Americans.
"Bill Cosby has more harsh words for black community" San Francisco Chronicle July 1, 2004
"Bill Cosby Remarks Divide Black Community" Black America Web, May 31, 2004 (Associated Press)
There were other lead-in paragraphs that suggest a huge division:
CHICAGO — Bill Cosby went off on another tirade against the black community Thursday, telling a room full of activists that black children are running around not knowing how to read or write and "going nowhere." Fox News, Friday, July 02, 2004 (Associated Press)
Cosby again came under sharp criticism, and again he was largely unapologetic for his stance. He made similar remarks during a speech on July 1 at a Rainbow Coalition meeting commemorating the anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. During that speech, he admonished Blacks for not assisting or concerning themselves with the individuals who are in crime or have counter-productive aspirations. He further described those who needed attention as "Blacks (who) had forgotten the sacrifices of those in the Civil Rights Movement. The talk was interrupted several times by applause and received praise from leaders such as Jesse Jackson.
In the same speech he made scathing remarks about Christians and the police, as well as praise for the efforts of the Black Muslim organization and its effectiveness; however, these statements were not reported in the articles in the mainstream media. Cosby later appeared on WBUR to comment on his speech, his various remarks and African-Americans generally.
Cosby and Jazz
Since his youth in 1950s Philadelphia, Cosby has been a fan and supporter of jazz music. He hosted at his home the 1983 wedding of jazz innovator Miles Davis and actress Cicely Tyson, and on The Cosby Show he wrote the fathers of both Cliff Huxtable and his wife to be aged jazz musicians. Cosby has stated, many times in his stand up shows, that "kids these days don't know what the jazz is all about".
Controversy
In 1997, Cosby was the target of allegations from Autumn Jackson, a young woman who claimed she was his daughter. In court, Cosby testified that he had sex once with Jackson's mother, when he was already married to his wife. Cosby further admitted he gave financial support to Jackson's mother. Cosby said he told Jackson he would be a father figure to her, but that he was not her father. Autumn Jackson was later convicted on extortion charges.
In January 2005 a woman alleged she was drugged and fondled by Cosby in May 2004. In a statement from Cosby's publicist, Cosby's attorney said, "the charges are categorically false and we have no further comment." Pennsylvania authorities found "insufficient credible and admissible evidence" to support the woman's claims, according to Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor.
In February 2005 a second woman, California lawyer Tamara Green (nee Lucier), came forward alleging that in the 1970s she was drugged and groped by Cosby. Cosby's attorney has denied any merit to the allegations, stating "Mr. Cosby does not have any knowledge of a woman named Tamara Green or Tamara Lucia."
While prosecutors have declined to press charges against Cosby, the first accuser has filed a federal civil suit against the performer. Attorneys for the woman suing Bill Cosby for sexual assault claim that at least ten other women are prepared to testify about "prior similar sexual assaults and/or drugging incidents" perpetrated by the comedian.
In June 2005, the Channel 101 series House of Cosbys was served a cease and desist order by Bill Cosby's lawyers for not being "licensed or authorized to use Cosby's name, voice, or likeness".
TV Series
I Spy (1965-1968)- Alexander 'Scotty' Scott
The Bill Cosby Show (1969-1971)- Chet Kincaid
The Electric Company (1971-1977)- Various Characters (1971-1972)
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972-1984)- Various Characters
The New Bill Cosby Show (1972-1973)- Host
Cos (1976)- Host
The Cosby Show (1984-1992)- Dr. Heathcliff 'Cliff' Huxtable
The Cosby Mysteries (1994-1995)- Guy Hanks
Cosby (1996-2000)- Hilton Lucas
Kids Say the Darndest Things (1998-2000)- Host
Movies and albums
Bill Cosby Is A Very Funny Fellow Right! 1963
I Started Out as a Child 1964
Why Is There Air? 1965
Wonderfulness 1966
Revenge 1967
Silver Throat: Bill Cosby Sings 1967
To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With 1968
200 mph ~1968
Bill Cosby Sings: Hooray for the Salvation Army Band 1968
8:15 12:15 1968
The Best of Bill Cosby 1969
It's True! It's True 1969
Live Madison Square Garden Center 1970
Sports 1970
More of the Best of Bill Cosby 1970
For Adults Only 1971
Talk to Kids About Drugs 1971
When I Was a Kid 1971
Inside the Mind of Bill Cosby 1972
Fat Albert 1973
Bill 1973
At Last Bill Cosby Really Sings 1974
Bill Cosby is Not Himself These Days 1976
Disco Bill 1977
My Father Confused Me... What Must I Do? What Must I Do? 1977
Bill's Best Friend 1978
Bill Cosby: Himself 1983
Hard Headed Boys (EP) 1985
Those of You With or Without Children, You'll Understand 1986
Bill Cosby: 49 1986
Oh Baby 1991
20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Bill Cosby 2001
Altars in the Street 2002
The Bill Cosby Collection 2004
Books
Fatherhood (1986) - ISBN 0425097722
Time Flies (1987) - ISBN 0553277243
Love and Marriage (1989) - ISBN 0553284673
Childhood (1991) - ISBN 0399136479
Kids Say the Darndest Things (1998) - ISBN 0553581260
Congratulations! Now What? A Book for Graduates (1999) - ISBN 0786865725
Cosbyology: Essays and Observations from the Doctor of Comedy (2001) - ISBN 0786868104
I Am What I Ate...and I'm Frightened!!! (2003) - ISBN 0060545739
Trivia
Cosby is an avid cigar smoker, which he attributes to his comedy idol Groucho Marx.
Cosby is also a member of Omega Psi Phi.
Cosby continues to speak at seminars to high school students around the U.S. about the benefits of community college.
Like Bob Newhart and Brian Regan, Cosby does not use profanity in his act (one exception being his segment about cocaine from Bill Cosby Himself, which includes one well-placed swear).
Cosby has been spoofed in some episodes of animated comedies like The Simpsons, South Park, Family Guy and The Boondocks.
