'Cosby Show' Educated America On Race & Class

CLEVELAND - Bill Cosby became famous in the early 1960's because of his massive comedic gifts. In the 1980's, he became a certified icon and visionary when he reshaped the television landscape, as well as White America's perception of Black families.

What an accomplishment.

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the debut of The Cosby Show, the groundbreaking series loosely based on Cosby's real-life family. It was an immediate hit for NBC and, even though it consisted of an all-Black cast, it resonated with people of varying race and social class. What was so unique about the series was its portrayal of an African-American family. Up until this point, Blacks were portrayed on television as destitute, marginally educated and occasionally buffoonish. Cosby made sure that the sitcom would present an upper middle class family with well educated parents that have successful professional careers. Indeed, his character Cliff Huxtable was an OB/GYN and his wife Claire was a high-powered attorney at a major law firm.

This was unprecedented on television at the time.

The Huxtable children, five in all were inspired by Cosby's own offspring. Ranging in age from kindergarten to college, the children's personalities and "adventures" were so common to kids all across the country that the stories presented on the show began to make non-Blacks aware of just how similar we all are, regardless of race.

Classic Black sitcoms such as Good Times and Sanford and Son gave African-Americans a TV reputation of pervasive poverty and undereducated foolishness in the 1970's. This became the accepted truth amongst many Whites of how Blacks were in real life. When 'Cosby' hit on September 20, 1984, the sight of an esteemed doctor and his educated and intellectual attorney wife living in an elegant, Brooklyn brownstone stunned mainstream America. Success and intellect had never before been shown in this way on television with Blacks at the center of it all.

The Cosby Show lasted for eight seasons and when it finally ended in 1992, it had become a legitimate and important part of America's cultural evolution. Recently, Cosby's on-screen wife Phylicia Rashad declared that "these Black families had existed for decades prior to the show...they were only "new" to television."

Absolutely.

It is amazing to me just how racist and closed-minded America was in the 1980's. Many of these beliefs seemed to be antiquated relics from the '50's or '60's. But, it was still in existence then, and to be honest, even now in some ways.

I salute Mr. Cosby for what he brought to the attention of America. Too bad more lessons weren't learned from this brilliance piece of history.