I'M PROBABLY ALONE HERE, BUT I'M TIRED OF BILL COSBY
Even though Bill Cosby has been labeled "America's Black Dad" for the past 25 years, I've always looked at the most famous Jell-O pudding salesman ever as a fatherly figure in my life. Sure, I had a father and he was there in my life, but based on their similarities it was hard to see Mr. Cosby as being anything but a paternal force. They were both born in 1937, both of them were in the service, and both of them had the ability to make you laugh while delivering vivid stories that always seemed to have a point to them. The only difference was that I never saw Heathcliff Huxtable tell Theo how he "wasn't shit" and that he "wouldn't amount to anything." Matter of fact, one of the few times that my father and I bonded were those fleeting moments listening to old Bill Cosby records, the both of us laughing in unison. Even at an early age, I recognized the man's comedic genius, not for nothing, but I found myself severing my small intestines in laughter, actually finding a clean act hilarious. From listening to those old records made before I was born, watching old ISpy re-runs, my eternal love for both "Uptown Saturday Night" and "A Piece of the Action," and we can't forget "The Cosby Show," my role as Cosby apologist was already cemented.
When people would point to his early stand-up routine as being devoid of any social consciousness, I'd point to him actually being in the trenches during the Civil Rights Era as proof to his loyalty to his people. When people complained that he never tried to force the writers of ISpy to inject some relevant commentary in sync with the times, I'd always argue that he was breaking ground just by being on the show, and that I'm sure there wasn't much Mr. Cosby could do. When people attacked The Cosby Show, saying that it was unrealistic and never tackled any hard hitting issues in the black community, I always saw that as the detractors way of trying to dumb down the show for the legions of baboon's asses out there.
But come 2004, my feelings on Dr. Cosby had changed drastically. What once seemed like "America's Black Dad" had all of a sudden merged into a rather cantankerous and crotchety old man. Sure, I'm completely with black folks taking responsibly, and how many of us in the black community have to stop putting an emphasis on sports and fashion, and focus more on self-respect and self improvement. On the surface, that sounds like the type of shit I want to hear from a black leader, and many educators and leaders who share my melanin complexion praised Dr. Cosby for him "putting a mirror" up to our people so to speak. But I wasn't that quick to buy one of those ugly-ass sweaters and build a shrine in my house to the man. The tone always seemed rather angry, supposed "tough love" that comes across like black folks have been pissing in his cornflakes for years - witnessed by the way he constantly generalizes about Hip Hop culture as harshly and ignorantly as any right wing conservative that you can find.
Overall, I've remained virtually silent on my blog about Dr. Cosby over the past couple of years, because even though he was clumsy in his assessment, his heart was in the right place. (I guessed.) Besides, with my father six feet in the ground, I felt weird about ripping the man who reminds me of my dad a journalistic "new one." That was until last week, when Bill Cosby said it was crazy for Tupac, who died in Vegas in 1996, and his mother Afeni to enjoy the proceeds from Shakur's drug sales. He went on to say:
"How wonderful. Isn't that wonderful. You've got to be kidding. How many lives have you ruined selling packets? How many mothers are not going to go to work because they want to snort? How many dead mothers because of crack, how many babies we got to make turn around because they are crack babies?"
Listen, I'm not exactly what you'd call a Tupac apologist - I couldn't tell you how many times I wanted to fight whenever someone tried to tell me that he was better than Rakim on the mic - but Cosby's incoherent drivel would be funny if it wasn't so sad and uninformed. I'm not a walking encyclopedia when it comes to Tupac's biography, but I'm certain that even the most casual fan of Mr. Shakur would relay that his tenure in street pharmaceuticals was pretty short-lived. Is that how you want to strengthen the black community Mr. Cosby? Smear a dead guy and his grieving mother? I have to ask, sir: is the reason why you sit behind your Bully pulpit and attack the dead, pass down judgment and generalize poor people, even going as far as to nitpick the names that black folks decide to give their children - is it because you want to make up for all the decades that you decided against injecting social commentary in aspects of your career?
I know that Mr. Cosby is one of the biggest humanitarians out there, but the bile that oozes out of him as of late isn't helping. He just reminds me of one of those old men in the balcony of "The Muppet Show" - just constantly talking shit without any apparent rhyme or reason. I mean, how dare you talk about people who use "broken English" when there is a character that you created named "Mushmouth" out there. Matter of fact, the entire cast of that show didn't exactly speak the Queen's english. How about all that Jive ass shit you were spitting in those flicks you did with Sidney Poitier? So slang was cool back then, but now it's reprehensible? That's great, Bill, really. Matter of fact, I have to wonder what the Bill Cosby of the early '70s would think of the Bill Cosby of 2007 - suddenly, the words "Jive ass Turkey" comes to mind. As for the "personal responsibility" that you want to lecture us on ad naseum - care to go into detail about the financial payments you sent to that child out of wedlock that you thought you had? How about that lawsuit you settled with that woman who claimed that you drugged her with blue pills, molested her, and when she came to, her bra was undone and her clothes were in disarray? "Blue Pills"?? Who do you think you are, Morpheus? Listen, I don't even know the legitimacy of those claims, but people in glass houses shouldn't be firing off bazookas.
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Comments
1.
DJ Black Adam says:
Well, I agree with Mr. Cosby overall in his call for responsibility however; you seem to have quantfied what it was about his approach that has been bothering me.
03/05/2007 at 7:59 PM
2.
rose says:
Truthfully there is a lot of truth to what Bill is saying. The things that African Americans are doing doesn't get them ahead, it sets them back. The language- won't even change it for a job interview, the pants- want even pull them up to look acceptable- the naming of their children after cars, and drugs, come on now- put that stuff on a resume- in the trash. But still he cares- I mean if he didn't he wouldn't have donated more than 50 million to education. Older age just makes people more comfortable to say things out loud they would not have said, in their younger life. I love your writing though.
03/04/2007 at 10:49 PM
3.
Simplenigma says:
Re: bad PR...when was the last time Bill Cosby made a movie, or did anything noteworthy in his field . Yet, here we are in 2007 talking about him. If that's not great PR, I don't know what is.
And if it takes an I-don't-have-a-clue commentary on Tupac to get folks riled up enough to SAY something about anything, then mutha-effin kudos to the man! It may be ignorant, it may be untrue, but it roused Shanequa and Daekwon long enough out of their collective stupors to look at the other shit he's saying. Or maybe to even say "Fukk you Bill Cosby, and decide that they don't want that representation of themselves out there."
HC, you and Bill Cosby are a lot alike, believe it or not...People may not agree with the shit you say, but it sure as hell keeps them talkin', laughing, thinking, doing something rather than just accepting information in a near-catatonic state.
03/02/2007 at 3:07 PM
4.
Real Funkee says:
Bill Cosby gets the November 2006
“TRICK SIT DOWN” AWARD
that includes a lifetime supply of Jello Pudding
an 8-track tape of Richard Pryor’s: That Nigga’s Crazy Album
and a side order of shut the F*&# up!
he paid off the women who have accused him of drugging and raping them...seems to me he should not even try to be the voice of reason or any type of leader for the black community or any community for that matter...he has enough skrilla let him pay for his pu**y like any other man. in the end that's what happened anyway!
Camille Cosby = Black Hillary Clinton
03/01/2007 at 10:54 PM
5.
911 says:
My sentiments exactly but better....salute.
03/01/2007 at 9:05 PM
6.
Monk says:
Mr. Cosby is just talking about things that he really don't have a full understanding of. He apparently also have not done the research so it is basically drivel. I pay it no mind as I do when any "Know-It-All" talks a bunch of nonsense without knowledge and does NOTHING actively to affect change. Good Post!!
03/01/2007 at 5:18 PM
7.
dannielle says:
Lol. As usual yor post is both witty and insightful. But the truth of the matter is this Bill Cosby is a seventy year old man. and like most people in that age group feels he has the right to sit and wax poetic about things that he truly has no knowledge about. How many people's grandparents refer to 50 cent as that "2 quarters boy" or am i the only one? The only difference is that he has a national forum as to which he can do it from. My advice? Handle Bill Cosby like you do any other elder. Soak up the wisdom that's bound to surface and ignore all the drivel.
03/01/2007 at 1:40 PM
8.
thoreauly77 says:
bill cosby thinks he is a prophet. the ego that people like cosby display is truly sickening. and his critique of tupac is merely an illustration that he is indeed absolutely fucking clueless and even worse, disrespectful to a man who truly attempted to make a difference in his community.
02/28/2007 at 10:21 PM
9.
Kevin says:
Great post man, people need to stop giving props to black folks who aren't providing any solutions.(regardless how old they are)
02/28/2007 at 8:33 PM
10.
Jill says:
1. Hell, Bill Cosby needs to be worried about the closing of public schools, hospitals, and firehouse, instead of worrying about what black people name their kids.
2. Alienating black folks isn't helping anyone, just another black voice talking and not doing anything about it.
3. I disagree with the first commenter, there is such a thing as bad PR, because after a while you come across as the boy who cried wolf and you become irrelevant.
02/28/2007 at 8:30 PM
11.
Simplenigma says:
Wait, Tupac's DEAD????!!!!
1. There's no such thing as bad PR. The fact that Cosby can still manage to get folks to discuss him is a PR feat in itself.
2. I liken his comments to that of Howard Stern and Star (from the Star n Bucwild show). Some people will say anything and do anything to get a reaction.
3. And isn't it a damn shame that most people won't say shit when it's about the closing of the public schools, hospitals and firehouses in black neighborhoods, but will scream at the top of their lungs 'cause Cosby is critiquing names like LaQuashia.
02/28/2007 at 7:34 PM