Anti-heroes

[spikechiquet]

It's always bugged me how the radio stations in my area reacted when he died. They had taken his songs off the air when the child molestation charges began, then put the songs back on when he died.

It's as if they were saying, "Eh, he's a pedophile, but now he's dead so it's safe to put his songs back on the air now."

Curious if this will happen for Cosby after he dies. Will The Cosby Show be back on TVLand?

 

[PCLoadLetter]

Curious if this will happen for Cosby after he dies. Will The Cosby Show be back on TVLand?

I doubt it. I can hear "Wanna Be Starting Something" without giving much thought to the guy who created it. With "The Cosby Show" I'm looking at him, nd listening to his character talk about his magic barbecue sauce that drugs women so you can take advantage of them.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

My two chief people I've given up on are Morrissey and Ryan Adams. Was a big fan of both and they are both just complete shipbirds.

This is actually a thing I've given a lot of thought to, in terms of where you draw the line between artist and art. Ultimately, I've concluded that there are no answers here, and if the art of a shipty person still appeals to you then enjoy it. I can no longer listen to Morrissey's solo work or anything by Ryan Adams (and I have like 13 of that forker's records on vinyl). On the other hand, I can still enjoy Van Morrison's old work, and he's become a giant ashhole. I haven't watched a Woody Allen movie in decades but I suspect I would still love "Annie Hall" and "Manhattan." (Although much of "Manhattan" is probably pretty uncomfortable now.)

I would think it would be tough for a fan to still listen to R Kelly, given that much of his catalog is about his desire to have sex with underage girls.

 

[Webster]

I doubt it. I can hear "Wanna Be Starting Something" without giving much thought to the guy who created it. With "The Cosby Show" I'm looking at him, nd listening to his character talk about his magic barbecue sauce that drugs women so you can take advantage of them.

Bill Cosby's most famous role was as the role model father and husband. For years, even before the Cosby Show, he portrayed himself as some sort of moral arbiter so that the lines between Cliff Huxtable and Bill Cosby were blurred. You believed in him and the world he created and I simply can't watch the show now without thinking about the allegations and how everything on screen was a lie.

I can listen to the music of Michael Jackson without thinking of the allegations against him. Just like I can listen to the music of many people whose politics I abhor — I won't give them my money in concert but I can enjoy the songs.

 

[Huggy]

Snake Plissken

I thought he was dead.

 

[Liut]

I thought he was dead.

Gotta a smoke?

 

[outofplace]

Bill Cosby's most famous role was as the role model father and husband. For years, even before the Cosby Show, he portrayed himself as some sort of moral arbiter so that the lines between Cliff Huxtable and Bill Cosby were blurred. You believed in him and the world he created and I simply can't watch the show now without thinking about the allegations and how everything on screen was a lie.

I can listen to the music of Michael Jackson without thinking of the allegations against him. Just like I can listen to the music of many people whose politics I abhor — I won't give them my money in concert but I can enjoy the songs.

I still can't fully remove some old Cosby jokes from my head. Some of them still make me smile, but I wouldn't want to watch the show or any of his standup again.

That said, I think we can move past accusations. We know what he did. Cosby is a serial rapist. Let's call him what he is.

 

[Starman]

"Forunate Son": The official song of the Vietnam War.

i think it was very much understood at the time that "Fortunate Son" was being sung by draftees Pished off at the rich forkers who had sent them off to war.
fork, I was like 12 when it came out and **I** understood that's what it was about.
Creedence wss not perceived in any way at the time as being "pro-Vietnam War." I don't think there was any major artist that was.

 

[swingline]

We watched The Cosby Show because that's what you did at the time. But for the most part, that show sucked.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

We watched The Cosby Show because that's what you did at the time. But for the most part, that show sucked.

Nah, this is unfair.

There are a lot of hit shows of the era that flat-out sucked. Cosby wasn't one of them, at least at the beginning of the run. It was genuinely smart and funny. There were episodes that stand up among the best sitcom episodes ever -- the Gordon Gartrelle shirt, the "you haven't EATEN YET" episode -- but it did tire out over the years as family members came and went.

 

[Batman]

i think it was very much understood at the time that "Fortunate Son" was being sung by draftees Pished off at the rich forkers who had sent them off to war.
fork, I was like 12 when it came out and **I** understood that's what it was about.
Creedence wss not perceived in any way at the time as being "pro-Vietnam War." I don't think there was any major artist that was.

Well no ship. The lyrics aren't exactly subtle.
The point of that bit was how "Fortunate Son" has been used in every Vietnam movie for the last 40+ years.

 

[Webster]

I still can't fully remove some old Cosby jokes from my head. Some of them still make me smile, but I wouldn't want to watch the show or any of his standup again.

That said, I think we can move past accusations. We know what he did. Cosby is a serial rapist. Let's call him what he is.

There isn't a current criminal conviction, which is why I used the phrase. I'm quite sure he is a sexual predator, but once a lawyer . . .