Fall out from last week’s guilty verdict for Bill Cosby continues. After being removed from the Television Hall of Fame, Adweek is reporting that the American Advertising Federation has decided to remove the actor/comedian from its Hall of Fame.
Cosby was inducted into the AAF Hall of Fame in 2011 and at the time also received the President’s Award, which was also revoked.
“This is the first time the Council has voted to rescind an induction or award in the Hall’s 69-year history,” the AAF said in a statement.
At the height of his popularity, Cosby appeared in various TV and print campaigns for giant brands including Coca-Cola, Jell-O and Ford. With his portrayal of Dr. Cliff Huxtable on The Cosby Show and his hit animated series, Fat Albert, Cosby became America’s dad and, for a time, the voice of the American consumer.
In 2007, he was the keynote speaker at Carnegie-Mellon’s commencement ceremony. Here, Cosby attributed his success to telling stories about his own life.
“People crave authenticity just about more than anything else, and one way to be your authentic self and connect with an audience is by using examples and stories from your own life that illuminate your message in an engaging, memorable way.”
Cosby was found guilty of three counts of aggregated indecent assault last Friday. The verdict came 11 months after a mistrial was declared in the defamed actor’s first trial. Cosby’s sentencing is scheduled for July 11 and he could face up to 30 years in prison, 10 for each count. Cosby was freed on $1 million bail and is currently on house arrest and is only allowed only to leave for medical purposes. More than 50 other women also have accused him of similar crimes, including drugging and sexually assaulting them.
Yesterday, Cosby’s name and statue were removed from the Television Academy’s Hall of Fame. Inducted in 1992, his name no longer appears among its official list of honorees when you visit the website.
The Wrap is also reporting that Cosby’s wife Camille, has issued a three-page letter Thursday, calling for a criminal investigation into what she called an “unethical” prosecution by Kevin Steele, the district attorney in Pennsylvania’s Montgomery County who led the retrial of the case following hung jury on the same charges last summer.
“This is a homogeneous group of exploitive and corrupt people, whose primary purpose is to advance themselves professionally and economically at the expense of Mr. Cosby’s life,” she wrote. “If they can do this to Mr. Cosby, they can do so to anyone.”
Reel Chicago reached out to the AAF and they had no further comment other than Cosby’s induction was rescinded.
Contact Colin Costello at colin@reelchicago.com or follow him on Twitter @colincostello10.
