Synopses & Reviews
The most in-depth biography yet of a true American original, comedian Bill Cosby. Based on extensive research and interviews with scores of sources, including Cosby and many of his closest friends and associates, itand#8217;s both a riveting social history and a funny and frank personal narrative.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;In the 1960s, Bill Cosby revolutionized the world of comedy with his hilarious stand-up routines and became the first black star of a prime-time drama in andlt;Iandgt;I Spyandlt;/Iandgt;. In the 1970s, he launched a Saturday morning childrenand#8217;s cartoon show that ran for thirteen years. In the 1980s and and#8216;90s, he starred in one of the most groundbreaking shows in TV history. andlt;Iandgt;The Cosby Showandlt;/Iandgt; topped the ratings for five straight years and revived the sitcom format.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Raised in a housing project by a smart and energetic mother who worked as a housemaid, with a largely absent father, Cosby pulled himself together in the Navy after an aimless adolescence. He went on to early success in Greenwich Village clubs, on andlt;iandgt;The Tonight Showandlt;/iandgt;, and with a string of Grammy-winning comedy albums.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Whitaker deals candidly with Cosbyand#8217;s private life, including romantic and business disputes. Cosby and his wife, now celebrating fifty years of marriage, fled Hollywood, raised five children, suffered through the murder of their only son and a temporary rebellion of one daughter. Today, he is still performing and making headlines with provocative stands on racial and political issues.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Whitaker has written a powerful biography of a man whose life itself is a fascinating story.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;/Bandgt;
Review
and#8220;Whenever I think of why my life as a comedian happened, the first name I think of is Bill Cosby. I know certain religions forbid idol worship. If anyone ever told me I had to stop idolizing Bill Cosby, I would say, and#8216;Sorry, but Iand#8217;m out of this religion.and#8217; So if you want to join the Religion of Cosby, as I did back in 1966, Mark Whitakerand#8217;s wonderful new book would be our Bible.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Cosby always makes things look so easy. This compelling book tells us it wasnand#8217;t always so. A revealing, honest look at my favorite comedian.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;If I was Americaand#8217;s and#8216;sweetheartand#8217;and#8212;turning the world on with a smileand#8212;then Bill Cosby was and still is our and#8216;best man.and#8217; In his masterly telling of a great storytellerand#8217;s story, Mark Whitaker reminds us why we all love Bill Cosby.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Mark Whitaker has written a terrific book about one of Americaand#8217;s greatest cultural heroes. Comprehensive and compelling, by turns moving and hilarious, Cosby brings powerfully to life the story of the most influential comedian of our times.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Mark Whitakerand#8217;s take on Bill Cosby is intimate, revealing, generous, and honest. He does what the best biographers doand#8212;fuses historical fact with the narrative of a fine novel and polishes everything with an objective eye. This is the biography Cosby so richly deserves.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Bill Cosby has contributed more to comedy, television, education and humanitarian causes than any person I know. Actually any hundred people I know. And heand#8217;s still funny. Itand#8217;s really not fair.and#8221;
Review
Readable, thoughtful life of the brilliant comedian and entrepreneur. Later generations of comedians have made a good living from portraying Bill Cosby (b. 1937) as a milquetoast unwilling to court controversy. Theyand#8217;re unfounded, suggests Whitaker (andlt;iandgt;My Long Trip Home: A Family Memoirandlt;/iandgt;, 2011), who was the first African-American editor of andlt;iandgt;Newsweekandlt;/iandgt;. Cosby may incline toward a kind of meritocratic conservatism, but when he was at the peak of his game, he was always bending and breaking the rules, and#8220;stubbornly dispensing with all of the usual ingredients.and#8221; He was also a pioneer, the Jackie Robinson of popular entertainment, the first black comedian to find true superstardom among a predominantly white audience, using that renown to subtly advance the civil rights agendaand#8230; Whitaker closes this lucid, often entertaining biography with a pointed look at the oft-mooted question: Did Bill Cosby make Barack Obama possible? The answer is yes, and in more ways than one. An eye-opening book and a pleasure to read.
Review
and#8220;Bill Cosby is a modern American troubadour, a griot and a comic genius. This revealing book evokes the world that inspired his artistry, tells us how much it has cost him and makes us grateful that he has been willing to pay the price.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Readable, thoughtful life of the brilliant comedian and entrepreneurand#8230;Whitaker closes this lucid, often entertaining biography with a pointed look at the oft-mooted question: Did Bill Cosby make Barack Obama possible? The answer is yes, and in more ways than one. An eye-opening book and a pleasure to read.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Bill Cosby has his image complicated in this absorbing biography from former andlt;iandgt;Newsweek andlt;/iandgt;editor Whitaker...[Whitaker] illuminates, with telling detail, Cosbyand#8217;s remarkable achievements as a comedic technician who avoided easy gags and carefully honed his long-form stand-up routines while approaching acting roles with naturalistic improvisationand#8230;[Whitaker] makes a persuasive case for Cosby as a groundbreaking comic and a quiet but far-ranging pioneer of black advancement.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;A smart, revealing biography of an iconic American funnyman. . . . A fascinating look at a complicated genius.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Whitakerand#8217;s wonderfully thorough biography of Americaand#8217;s most accomand#173;plished comedian provides context and depth as he analyzes Bill Cosbyand#8217;s work.and#8221;
Review
Fluid, admiring, packed with detail and anecdotes.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Invaluable . . . Whitaker makes a convincing argument that issues of race and politics have preoccupied Cosby throughout his life.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Whitakerand#8217;s clear-eyed, fair-minded and deftly written book takes up all the momentous stops of Cosbyand#8217;s lifeand#8217;s journey . . . by allowing us to see Cosbyand#8217;s tumultuous life in full, Whitakerand#8217;s book makes it possible to imagine Bill Cosby being regarded as one of the first prophets of what optimists of all colors believe will someday be a and#8220;post-racial America.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Absorbing . . . makes a persuasive case for Cosby as a groundbreaking comic and a quiet but far-ranging pioneer of black advancement.and#8221;
Synopsis
The first major biography of an American icon, comedian Bill Cosby. Based on extensive research and in-depth interviews with Cosby and more than sixty of his closest friends and associates, it is a frank, fun and fascinating account of his life and historic legacy.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Far from the gentle worlds of his routines or TV shows, Cosby grew up in a Philadelphia housing project, the son of an alcoholic, largely absent father and a loving but overworked mother. With novelistic detail, award winning journalist Mark Whitaker tells the story of how, after dropping out of high school, Cosby turned his life around by joining the Navy, talking his way into college, and seizing his first breaks as a stand-up comedian.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Published on the 30th anniversary of andlt;Iandgt;The Cosby Showandlt;/Iandgt;, the book reveals the behind-the-scenes story of that groundbreaking sitcom as well as Cosbyand#8217;s bestselling albums, breakout role on andlt;Iandgt;I Spyandlt;/Iandgt;, and pioneering place in childrenand#8217;s TV. But it also deals with professional setbacks and personal dramas, from an affair that sparked public scandal to the murder of his only son, and the private influence of his wife of fifty years, Camille Cosby.andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Whitaker explores the roots of Cosbyand#8217;s controversial stands on race, as well as and#8220;the Cosby effectand#8221; that helped pave the way for a black president. For any fan of Bill Cosbyand#8217;s work, and any student of American television, comedy, or social history, andlt;Iandgt;Cosby: His Life and Timesandlt;/Iandgt; is an essential read.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;andlt;/Bandgt;
About the Author
Mark Whitaker is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, andlt;iandgt;My Long Trip Homeandlt;/iandgt;. The former managing editor of CNN Worldwide, he was previously the Washington bureau chief for NBC News and a reporter and editor at andlt;iandgt;Newsweek, andlt;/iandgt;where he rose to become the first African-American leader of a national newsweekly.