Comedian jailed for sexually assaulting more than 50 women, released: Who is Bill Cosby?

His full name is William Henry Cosby Jr., he was born on July 12, 1937, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born one of four sons to Anna Hite Pearl, whose mother was a maid, and to William Henry Cosby Sr., whose father was a caterer in the US Navy. Educated at Mary Channing Wister Public School in Philadelphia, Cosby was class president and captain of both the baseball and track and field teams.

Preferring to joke over study, Cosby described himself as the class clown. Continuing his education at FitzSimons Middle School, Cosby took part in games and continued to compete in sports. Later, Cosby attended Central High School, an academically rigorous college preparatory school in Philadelphia, where he was involved in track and field, baseball, football, and basketball.

Joining the Navy in 1956, Cosby served as a hospital corps and remained in the post until 1960. Receiving his high school equivalency diploma through correspondence courses, Cosby enrolled at Temple University in 1961, winning an athletics scholarship. Meanwhile, he started working as a bartender at a Philadelphia club, earning big tips by making customers laugh. Cosby started performing on stage and dropped out of college to pursue a career in comedy. In 1971, Cosby received her undergraduate degree from Temple University, followed by his graduate studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, graduating in 1972.

Beginning in 1961, Cosby began appearing on stage in stand-up jobs and worked in Chicago, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. respectively. He set a date to take place in cities such as In 1963, he received national exposure on NBC's talk show The Tonight Show. This is to Cosby, Warner Bros. Records and released his debut album "Bill Cosby Is a Very Funny Fellow...Right!" in 1964. contributed to its publication.

In 1965, he co-starred with Robert Culp in the NBC secret agent adventure television series "I Spy." The film became the first weekly dramatic television series to feature an African-American. The series managed to become a big hit with the ratings it received and was among the twenty most watched programs of that year. He won three consecutive Emmy Awards for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series for his performance.

His 1968 album "To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With" was ranked number one on the "40 Greatest Comedy Albums of All Time" list by Spin magazine and described the album as a "stand-up comedy masterpiece". That same year, Cosby's release of "Black History: Lost, Stolen, or Strayed," a CBS documentary about the representation of blacks in popular culture, caused a lot of controversy. Cosby has produced films, including television specials of Cosby, under the name Tetragrammaton Records, a division of the Los Angeles-based production company "Campbell, Silver, Cosby(CSC) Corporation" co-founded with his manager Roy Silver and filmmaker Bruce Post Campbell. He also produced records.

The following year, he returned to the screens with the sitcom TV series "The Bill Cosby Show". This is Cosby's first solo debut on television and the first time an African-American has appeared in the self-titled comedy series. The series, which was a modest success in criticism, broke rating records. He returned in 1972 with the CBS variety television series "The New Bill Cosby Show." In the same year, he released the animated television series "Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids" created, produced and presented by Cosby. The series was named the 82nd best animated series and earned an Emmy Award nomination. In 1993, it was named the best cartoon series of the 1970s by TV Guide magazine.

In 1974, he co-starred with Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte in the action comedy crime film "Uptown Saturday Night" directed by Sidney Poitier. The film achieved both positive reviews and moderate box office success. The following year, he appeared in the action crime comedy "Let's Do It Again" directed by Poitier, with a black cast of stars such as Sidney Poitier and Jimmie Walker. He later co-starred with Raquel Welch and Harvey Keitel in the black comedy film "Mother, Jugs & Speed" directed by Peter Yates. In the same year, he hosted the sketch comedy/variety TV series "Cos". The series, which was not successful in the ratings, was canceled after one season.

In 1977, he reunited with Sidney Poitier and James Earl Jones in the crime comedy "A Piece of the Action" directed by Sidney Poitier. He later appeared as part of a large cast in the anthology comedy "California Suite" (1978), directed by Herbert Ross and based on the play of the same name. The film, which was acclaimed both critically and at the box office, also won many awards and nominations.

In 1983, he made a big splash with the television sitcom "The Cosby Show", which Cosby co-produced and starred in. The series focused on an upper-middle-class African-American family living in Brooklyn. The series was listed as "TV's biggest hit of the 1980s" and ranked 28th on the Top 50 Shows list. The series continued with top ratings for five consecutive seasons. released the comedy concert film "Bill Cosby: Himself", which is considered "the greatest comedy concert movie ever".

In 1987, he starred in the spy parody movie "Leonard Part 6" directed by Paul Weiland. The film received negative reviews from critics, and was considered one of the worst films ever made and failed at the box office. In 1990, he starred in the fantasy comedy film "Ghost Dad" directed by Sidney Poitier. The film was not successful both at the box office and critically. During the 1992-1993 season, he hosted the comedy quiz series "You Bet Your Life", which was broadcast on both radio and television.

Later that year, he starred in the superhero comedy "The Meteor Man," written and directed by Robert Townsend. The movie became one of the first superhero movies to feature an African-American lead. The following year, he starred in the mystery drama television series "The Cosby Mysteries."

In 1996, he took the lead role in the comedy-drama film "Jack" directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film received negative reviews and achieved moderate financial commercial gains at the box office. In the same year, he appeared in the tv sitcom "Cosby" in which he co-starred with Phylicia Rashad. The series was canceled after four seasons. He also hosted the CBS special "Kids Say the Darndest Things" and hosted it from 1998 to 2000.

He then appeared in the animated educational television series "Little Bill," created by Cosby and aired on Nickelodeon from 1999 to 2004. Later that year, he had the lead role in the live-action/animated comedy film "Fat Albert" created by Cosby and based on his TV series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. The film, which received generally negative reviews, resulted in a moderate financial gain at the box office.

In 2013, Cosby made "Bill Cosby: Far from Finished," the first TV stand-up show in 30 years, on Comedy Central. The following year, the stand-up comedy show "Bill Cosby 77", in which he starred, was selected to air on Netflix, but its release date was delayed and later canceled due to some accusations against Cosby.

His last known stand-up performance was with his show at LaRose Jazz Club in Philadelphia on January 23, 2018.

Private life

On January 25, 1964, Cosby married TV producer Camille Hanks. The couple has five children named Erika, Erinn, Ennis, Ensa and Evin.

A popular advertising spokesperson from the 1960s to the early 2000s, Cosby, as of 2002, held the record for being the longest-serving celebrity spokesperson for a product, thanks to her work with the brand Jell-O. In 2011, he was honored with the President's Award from the Advertising Hall of Fame for Contribution to Advertising. One of the first black people to appear as an advertising spokesperson in the United States, Cosby's fortunes grew because of these contracts.

In addition, Cosby opposes any movement against racial discrimination and speaks by participating in all kinds of support and aid funds. Also in 1977, Cosby was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2016, Cosby was reported by his lawyers to be now legally blind.

Cosby, who was found guilty of rape and harassment against more than 50 women, whose lawsuits date back to 1965 and continue to this day, first denied the allegations and accepted. Later, Cosby admitted what he had done in his deposition, and on April 26, 2018, he was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault. A few months later, Cosby, sentenced to three to ten years in prison, was transferred to SCI Phoenix, a state prison in Skippack Township, Pennsylvania. In addition, several organizations severed ties with Cosby as the allegations began. Honors and titles previously given to Cosby have been withdrawn. Additionally, twenty-five colleges and universities have revoked honorary degrees.

Cosby, whose conviction was overturned by a court decision in June 2021, was released from prison the same day. Cosby, whose legal problems continued after he was released from prison, considered continuing his career after his release. But he could not take part in any production, series, movie or industry.