Anita Bryant was a good singer, but I’ll always remember her as an overly religious homophobe nutjob.
AND I wish she (and OJ) would disappear.
But yet, that other celebrity, that did just died, no one cares about his rape allegations. The arrest, the out of court settlement, the admission that it “might not have been consensual” - all forgotten. People are just crying and acting like the greatest persons that ever lived died.
The Los Angeles Times’ Robin Abcarian said in an essay in 2018, about Kobe and Weinstein and Polanski and #Metoo, “Why are the sexual misdeeds of some men forgivable, while others are not?” This thread proves it’s still true.
There was ONE rape allegation against Kobe Bryant. Repeat: ONE.
OTOH, more than 60 women have accused him of either attempted sexual assault, rape, drug-facilitated sexual assault, sexual battery, child sexual abuse, or sexual misconduct, all of which he has denied, and the statute of limitations had by the mid-2010s expired in nearly all cases. Cosby was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault and sentenced to three to ten years in prison in September 2018,
Get your facts right.
Yes, this. It didn’t make him a rapist, it made him a depressingly successful rapist. So successful that even now we have people defending him.
How about, “funniest rapist in recent memory”, any better?
I would never have thought in the 1990’s that Mike Tyson would be rehabilitated in the public eye. A convicted rapist, wife beater, hooker thrasher and part-time cannibal and all-round nut case.
And yet here we are.
How Cosby is remembered even 20-35 years from now is basically unknowable.
In random order:
Comedian who might’ve been funny in the ‘60s. Any humor he had then or subsequently has been so irrevocably tainted as to make it a moot point as to whether he was ever truly funny.
TV icon whose TV persona was believed by millions of gullible people to accurately reflect his true personality.
Owner – for less than one day – of a Cobra 427 Super Snake (one of two ever made), which he returned to Carroll Shelby because it was too much car for him.
https://www.musclecarfan.com/true-stories-of-the-muscle-car-fan-carroll-shelby-bill-cosby-the-super-snake/
Serial rapist.
That’s overstating things IMHO. I’m seeing plenty of people bring it up.
This has got to be satire.
Not at all.
Let him fall through the cracks into obscurity never to be brought up again outside of a few future scholars researching forgotten figures in mass culture.
Oh, well, that’s OK I guess. Only ONE. I’m sure the victim feels much better. He only raped one woman. Easy to forgive.
Just stating the obvious,
And don’t get me started on Michael Vick.
Anyway, my reply to the thread title? Not at all.
I hope we will remember him as a rapist who died in prison.
Could he be remembered like Fatty Arbuckle? I think he is more remembered for the bad stuff than his career.
Except it’s likely that Fatty Arbuckle was innocent of the particular charges he was prosecuted for.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I personally am not “mourning” Kobe Bryant, being largely uninterested in his field of specialty, and when I heard the news of his death, the first thought that came to my mind was the rape accusation.
It’s not obvious to me what exactly you’re trying to say. Do you think that Cosby’s dozens and dozens of acts of sexual assault and rape are unmemorable?
You are the one telling everyone in the thread that they are judgemental for calling Cosby a rapist, despite his 60+ rape accusations and having been convicted of rape.
It is inconsistent then for you to care that Bryant got a single rape accusation which was rescinded. By your logic, calling him a rapist would be even more “judgmental.”
Of course, there is nothing judgmental about calling Cosby a rapist. Not only were there multiple victims, but he was convicted on a court of law and is in prison for rape.
As for Bryant, the point is that this single case is not nearly as clear. The case was dropped. The story itself was messy, where consent was given and sex occurred, but then consent was withdrawn. It is perfectly possible that Bryant did not understand that consent was withdrawn, as he claimed. The lack of any other victims does suggest it was a misunderstanding.
We know with 100% certainty that Bill Cosby was a serial rapist. We do not for sure know Kobe Bryant was a rapist. There is no inconsistency on the other side. Only on yours.
There are also a huge number of Kobe fans who were at most kids when his scandal broke. It’s essentially in the past for them. The fact of the matter is, he was able to shake it off.
There will not be a comeback for Cosby. He’s going to prison. Is he gets out before he dies, he’s not going to get back on TV or go on tour.
Rapist. No contest.
Bill Cosby was one of the best and most important Comedians of the 20th century and would be remembered for the influence he had on almost every comedian after 1970 and the door he opened for all sorts of African American entertainers as well as the tremendous amount of money he poured into philanthropy and making sure African American students had access to higher education regardless of financial means. He made a huge positive impact on the world.
He was also a serial rapist, and that’s how he will actually be remembered, and how he should be. The serial rape pretty much wipes out the good in his legacy.
Well, the serial rape and one good comedy skit (Eddie Murphy in Raw, not Bill Cosby himself)