As the fallout from Bill Cosby’s guilty verdict from his sexual assault case continues, The Television Academy made an “unprecedented” move as they have decided to remove the influential comedian’s name from its Hall of Fame.
The disgraced figure, who was inducted in 1992, is reportedly having his name and any likeness of him and his work stricken from the Television Academy’s record as a spokesperson informed Deadline that “All references to Mr. Cosby were removed from the website.”
The Academy’s bust of Cosby will no longer be present for the public either. Thought it was “removed during construction of the new Saban Media Center,” according to the spokesperson, “and at the time it was announced that they would be rotated from storage into the courtyard. We have no plans to place Mr. Cosby’s bust in the courtyard.”
While the Academy is making the shocking move of severing all ties to Cosby, he will still hold his four primetime Emmys and its Bob Hope Humanitarian Award. “We have no plans at the present time to rescind his awards,” the spokesperson said.
Cosby was found guilty on all three counts of sexually assaulting and drugging Andrea Constand at his home 14 years ago.
Cosby’s trial was the latest after disgraced producer and film executive Harvey Weinstein was kicked out of the Academy in November. Various allegations came to light that he had allegedly sexually assaulted numerous women. Unlike Weinstein however, Cosby can’t be kicked out because he “was never a member,” the spokesperson said.
Source: deadline.com