In one of his old routines, the patriarchal comedian Bill Cosby quipped about wanting to die before his wife did. He reasoned that after one's demise the soul is put up for verdict, and he didn't want his wife up there first because "the judgment will be horrendous." In fact, the assessment of the sitcom doctor has already begun.
Cosby, currently on a North American stand-up tour at age 77, is embroiled in a controversy involving a history of alleged sexual assaults against women. Several U.S. tour dates have been cancelled, but three appearances in Southern Ontario this week – at theatres in Kitchener, London and Hamilton – are going ahead as planned. For financial reasons, the venues and the tour's U.S.-based promoter are not cancelling the shows.
Protests are planned, though, inside and outside the halls. The sweater-wearing comedian will likely face heckling so pointed as to make Pudding Pops melt. Cosby has not been charged with any crime, but the trial is happening.
As his peer Flip Wilson used to shout, "Here comes the judge, here comes the judge."