In a lot of ways, The Cosby Show is kind of like Lord Voldemort in that it is the show that shall not be named. We all know why the sitcom's legacy is tarnised, so I'm not going to get into that. That said, with unfortunate death of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, people started name-dropping the show again (even though MJW was more than just Theo Huxtable).
You know what? I'm actually glad, because The Cosby Show SHOULD be mentioned given what an important series it was. Now, while I'm purely speaking from a Black perspective, it wasn’t important to solely Black people. Nope.
It was important to America as a whole. Because kind of like how Diddy has become sort of a punchline with today's kids, younger generations likely have no idea the impact that The Cosby Show had on this country, and I want to get into that.
Here Was A Show Starring A Black Family That America Openly Embraced
I'm going to let you in on a little secret. I did NOT like The Cosby Show when I was a little kid. I actually grew up watching The Simpsons, which was a competitor to the Huxtable family at the time. The Cosby Show just seemed too…safe, I suppose? Too homey. (And I mean “homey” as in comforting. Not “homey” as in Homey the Clown from In Living Color, which I also watched - they had Jim Carrey!)
Anyway, The Cosby Show was just too plain Jane for me for constant viewing. Yes, I watched episodes here and there as a child - and even hated to admit that I enjoyed them - but I was a Fox Network kid all day who bled Simpsons yellow.
But, do you want to know who did grow up watching The Cosby Show on a regular basis when she was younger? My Filipino wife. For all the reasons I didn't want to watch The Cosby Show, her family did. Because here was a safe, inviting Black family that America embraced with open arms. They presented parenting challenges that any family, no matter the race, could understand, which is why they were often called “America's family.”
That fact still blows my mind today. Yes, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air also transcended racial boundaries, but that show's popularity skewed younger because of Will Smith. I genuinely believe that some folks who might not be fond of Black people WANT to like us, but they might be afraid because of what they possibly saw on the news. The Huxtable family wasn't scary, though, which I think was very important for the Black community as a whole.
Cliff And Clair Huxtable Also Offered Something For Black Kids To Look Up To, Both Professionally And As Parents
Cliff Huxtable was a doctor, and his wife, Clair, was a lawyer, and I don't think I can overstate what a big deal this was back in the day. Because even today, if you ask most parents what they'd like their children to become once they're older, they would probably be least ashamed if their children either went into medicine or law.
Now, yes. I'm well aware of what kind of doctor Cliff was (and that his office was in the basement), but I'd rather just focus on the fact that both Huxtable parents were professionals, and that they were also loving parents. Because guess what. A lot of young people grow up wanting to be something they saw on TV or in a movie when they were younger.
For instance, I wonder how many Black kids watched The Cosby Show and wanted to become doctors or lawyers (or good parents!) when they grew up. I also wonder how many of them went to Med school, or Law school because they, too, wanted to be like the Huxtables and own a brownstone in Brooklyn Heights to raise a family.
Today, a lot of my Black and Hispanic students (I'm a teacher outside of working for this website) dream of becoming athletes or YouTubers. They don't really have a Cliff or Clair Huxtable to look up to these days. But, my generation did, and that was a big freaking deal.
There Were So Many Life Lessons On The Show That Still Hold Up Today
As I said earlier, I didn't really watch The Cosby Show when I was a kid. I actually watched it when I was 18 and it was on Nick at Nite (which alongside shows like Roseanne and A Different World, I think The Cosby Show was one of the best shows on the late night programming block).
Because as an adult, I could appreciate many of the life lessons each episode tried to get across. For example, the pursuit of education was an ongoing theme on the show. Cliff and Clair often mentioned college, and the kids were often seen studying or worrying about upcoming tests. (Hell, the last episode of the series featured Theo graduating from college).
Or, what about how the Huxtable children were treated? Growing up, I laughed as Homer literally strangled his child, but the Huxtable children were listened to, given guidance, and allowed to make mistakes. I know a lot of parents today look to Bluey for guidance on how to raise their children (including myself), but The Cosby Show was showing people how to be model parents decades prior to the loveable dog family.
In every way, The Cosby Show had something to teach both impressionable kids AND impressionable adults, and pretty much all of those lessons still hold up today.
Lastly, It Felt Safe And Warm, And It Still Feels Safe And Warm
I've recently gotten my daughter into The Simpsons, and while I'm happy that I have one more thing that I can share with her, I also kind of regret it. Because some of the more risque jokes literally have me cringing when we watch it together. Also, some of the jokes can actually be pretty dark, like the death or Maud Flanders or Frank Grimes.
However, I wouldn't have this problem with The Cosby Show, since it always felt like safe and warm humor. Unfortunately, the show isn't readily available these days like The Simpsons (again, for obvious reasons), so I can only really show her clips of the show. That said, those clips feel unlike anything we have today, since The Cosby Show was just special.
And yes, I have no problem saying that. I often have a hard time separating the art from the artist, and The Cosby Show will unfortunately never be viewed in the same way that it once was in its heyday. That said, it still doesn't take away from how important the show once was to myself (in my later years) and to millions of others. It was the warm, safe show.
So, yes. I get it. You may not want to mention The Cosby Show, but I do; elephant in the room, notwithstanding.
But, what do you think? Good or bad, I'd love to hear your thoughts.
