Bill Cosby: A Fallen Star

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Bill Cosby: A Fallen Star Once a shining star, Bill Cosby’s popularity is fading. The actor, comedian, author, and activist has been in the spotlight for many years. In the 1960’s, he starred as a supporting actor in I Spy, a secret-agent adventure series, and he created Fat Albert, based on his childhood. Also, in the 1970’s, he went on to be the spokesperson for Jell-o, a gelatin and pudding company. From 1984 to 1992, Cosby acted as the father figure Cliff Huxtable on the Bill Cosby Show. However, after all his years of success, on October 9, 2015, Dateline did a broadcast titled The Cosby Accusers’ Speak. Twenty-seven women, ages 46 to 80, of diverse races and backgrounds, shared their stories of being violated by Cosby. There were…show more content…
The case settled out of court with financial compensation, and Constad signed a confidentiality agreement not to talk publicly, so she could not appear on Dateline. That same year, Cosby signed testimony admitting that he gave some young women Qualludes, a prescription sedative, because he wanted to have sex with them. Also, he said that some of the women knew they were taking the drug. Thus, Cosby felt some justification for what he did to them. On November 13, 2014, Barbara Bowman wrote a Washington Post article questioning why it took 30 years for people to believe her story about Cosby. She did not understand why she did not get the same reaction of shock and revulsion when she originally reported her allegations. She said, “I was convinced no one would listen to me…Eventually, I had to move on with my life and my career.” Thus, Bowman had lived with her trauma for years without any support, and now she advocates for women who survived sexual…show more content…
Camille, his devoted wife, stated that she believes in her husband and will continue to be by his side. Some of Cosby’s television family members have also given interviews stating their full support of him. When T.V. executives were asked for comments, one of them said, “These recent new reports are beyond our knowledge and comprehension.” Then the Playboy founder Hugh Hefner stated that he has known Cosby for many years and can stand by his reputation and character. Interestingly, several of Cosby’s encounters with his accusers happened at Playboy Clubs. Thus, although Cosby has people who support him, they may change their tunes about him as the reports about his sexual escapades continue. Numerous universities that bestowed honorary degrees upon Cosby are now revoking them. These institutions recognized his celebrity, philanthropy, and community activism. However, as the scandal against him has grown, some of the universities have started a trend questioning Cosby’s integrity and character. These actions were quite a blow to Cosby, who believes in higher
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