Bill Cosby

Abandoned by his welder father at an early age and forced to look after his younger brothers while his mother worked as a domestic, Bill Cosby rose from the projects of north Philadelphia to become one of the most highly-paid television personalities in America—reportedly worth $325 million in 1995. After a four year stint as a Navy medical corpsman—during which he completed high school—he excelled at the high jump and played varsity football at Temple University but dropped out of college when his comedy career started taking off, returning at a later date not only completing his undergraduate studies, but also eventually earning both a masters and doctorate in education. His first comedy album, "Bill Cosby Is a Very Funny Fellow, Right!", garnered him a 1963 Grammy nomination, and for the rest of the decade he dominated the category, winning six consecutive Grammy Awards until Flip Wilson finally broke the string in 1970.

Cosby broke into series TV co-starring opposite Robert Culp in "I Spy" (NBC, 1965-1969) and copped three consecutive Emmy Awards as Outstanding Lead in a Dramatic Series. He has remained a force on the small screen ever since alternating between sitcoms (like NBC's "The Bill Cosby Show" from 1969-71), variety series and specials (including 1968's Emmy-winning "The Bill Cosby Special" on NBC) and as host and voice actor for the animated "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" (CBS, 1972-79). He made a rare foray into drama as star and producer of "To All My Friends on Shore" (CBS, 1972), which focused on a family coping with their son's struggle with sickle cell anemia. Cosby's warmth and his affinity with children made him a perfect pitchman for such products as Jell-O, Kodak and Coca-Cola, but he is perhaps best-recalled as the creator and star of the phenomenally successful "The Cosby Show" (NBC, 1984-92). At the time of its premiere, pundits were declaring the situation comedy near death but the popularity of "The Cosby Show" practically single-handedly saved the genre.

Comparable success on the big screen has always eluded him, though in the 1970s he starred in three popular films ("Uptown Saturday Night" 1974, "Let's Do It Again" 1975, "A Piece of the Action" 1977) with director-actor Sidney Poitier. He was teamed with Richard Pryor in a slapstick heavy segment of "California Suite" (1978) scripted by Neil Simon. Cosby warned audiences to stay away from the megabomb "Leonard, Part 6" (1987), for which he received story and producer credit, and reunited with Poitier (who only directed) on "Ghost Dad" (1990) couldn't raise the level of the material above that of an extended sitcom. More recently, he has taken supporting roles in the features like "The Meteor Man" (1993) and "Jack" (1996).

Quietly, Cosby has done as much as anyone in entertainment to advance the role of blacks. As a stand-up comic in the 60s, he refused to "go the chitlin' route," eschewing racial comedy in favor of commentary on universal family situations. In addition to proving he was an accomplished serious actor on "I Spy", the comedian had the added distinction of being the first black male performer to star in a regular dramatic series on American TV. Much as Poitier had done in his non-stereotypical film roles, Cosby set a model for black actors and black characters, playing a part devoid of racial overtones. Two decades later when NBC's "The Cosby Show" was the top-rated television program of the 80s, American audiences had become "color-blind" enough to accept him as a universal father figure, enjoying his portrayal of obstetrician Cliff Huxtable raising his family in a calm and loving manner. Insisting on total creative control, Cosby shaped the series into a showcase for his educational and child-rearing theories developed during his doctoral studies in the 70s. When he returned to series TV with the CBS sitcom "Cosby" (1996-2000), he attempted to stretch, playing an out-of-work curmudgeon who drives his wife (again played by "The Cosby Show" co-star Phylicia Rashad) crazy. After the initial season, though, the character was softened and the addition of a pre-school allowed the comic actor to do what he does best—interact with children.

The quintessential family man, Cosby drew much of his early stand-up material from his experiences growing up, naming one Grammy-winning album "To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With" (1968), but once he started having children of his own, they proved an endless source for his bemused accounts of child-rearing. "The Cosby Show" mirrored his own family of four girls and one boy, and as America mourned the senseless tragic murder of Cosby's son Ennis in 1997, it was learned just how close the portrait of Theo Huxtable (played by Malcolm-Jamal Warner) was to that of Ennis Cosby. Like the affable but ever-struggling Theo, Ennis had his troubles with school, but once diagnosed as dyslexic, overcame the disability, graduated from Morehouse College and dedicated himself to helping others with similar learning disabilities. At the end of the first episode of "Cosby" following the murder, the proud father broadcast a brief, eloquent tribute across the screen: "My hero. My son."

Fast on the heels of his son's death, Cosby weathered an extortion attempt on the part of Autumn Jackson, a young woman who believed she was the product of a liaison between her mother Shawn Thompson Upshaw and Cosby. Though there was no proof of his paternity—though he did acknowledge the affair—the entertainer had provided financial assistance, including college tuition but he balked at what he deemed excessive demands. In spite of his personal grief and the whiff of scandal, Cosby refused to cancel personal engagements, appearing as part of the healing process, telling one audience, "I want you all to know you don't have to forget what happened. But we're supposed to laugh, have a good time. Be together." The loss of his only son staggered the performer and caused the Reverend Jesse Jackson to compare Cosby to Job, saying "he and his family are facing a sudden storm. How they will handle it is really the ultimate way one's character and strength are measured." The performer has responded by throwing himself into work, maintaining "Cosby" while simultaneously hosting "Kids Say the Darndest Things" (CBS, 1998-2000), based on a popular segment of "Art Linkletter's House Party" (CBS, 1952-69).

Despite his overwhelming celebrity and skill as an actor, Cosby maintained a low profile in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. Occasionally, he would pop up as himself—he appeared in “Lightening in a Bottle” (2002), a documentary showcase for some of the greatest names in blues music; and briefly in Jerry Seinfeld’s theatrically released documentary “Comedian” (2002). Then after years of trying, Cosby finally brought “Fat Albert” (2005) to the big screen. Always in artistic control—he co-wrote the script and served as executive producer—Cosby spent years searching for the right talent and eventually landed Joel Zwick to direct and Keenan Thompson to star as the jovial fat man. Upon release, the feature made enough box office dollars to avoid being labeled a flop, but not enough to warrant a sequel—a fortuitous event, given the critical drubbing the movie took.