The return of Bill Cosby

Legendary comedian and monologist Bill Cosby will return to Toledo on May 2 with brand new material.

"I've been practicing," Cosby said.

For the 48 years that Cosby has been in the entertainment industry, he has been the appropriated writer for all of his material, including "Fat Albert" and "The Cosby Show." His familial and relative style of storytelling has influenced American comedy since the late ‘60s.

"I saw my style in a Chinese restaurant," he said. "I was alone, getting ready to go to work, in college, and there was a party of about eight or nine people, laughing, regaling, women holding napkins up to hide their faces. And I looked over to a fellow talking. He didn't have the appearance of a performer, just somebody talking to the other people. Men were banging on the table, laughing. Even if you didn't understand English, you knew these people were having fun. The key is what this man is to the other people. He's not a professional performer, he's a friend. A friend. I said, ‘That's it, that's my style of performance.'"

Cosby loves what he does as an entertainer and spends considerable time crafting his word choices for every performance.

"I sit down and write," he said. "It's very important to writers. It's interesting, I don't think writers do that to acknowledge whether they're writers or not. I think that the essential part of writing is thinking, which is obvious. I like to pace at times. Sometimes I'll sit and not have an instrument or paper. Just sit and run over the characters and then get up, go over, and write."

Cosby went on to explain the practice of observing and memorizing people's behaviors, mannerisms, and stories. For Cosby, narrating what he has observed is a way to immerse the listener in the experience.

"While doing pieces, I've always felt [the need] to make the connection with the audience," he said. "My reputation on the good side of performance always ends up with people saying, ‘How did he get into our house?' or ‘I'm not alone.' Comedy and the performance thereof as a monologist is very interesting. When we're on, we're good with our comedy, it doesn't make a difference if you're on the stage using profanity, if you're filthy dirty, or if you're regaling or yelling."

According to Cosby, the fallout of the economy caused a dry spell in the world of stand-up comedy. He used to perform in Toledo every couple of years and "sell out in no time."

"Eventually people weren't able to easily afford entertainment," he said. "They had to move their family dollars in a direction to support their children and grandchildren. So I had to wait."

His Toledo performance will be a trial of the city's economical situation.

"Toledo is the first step towards testing whether or not this economy has come back," he said. "I'm going to put a big surge in to let them know, remind them of the fun that we used to have."

Cosby believes that the power of comedy and laughter have the ability to heal ailments and enlighten. Laughter can manifest a sense of love through autonomous release. The truths of everyday life can be told in such a way that empower, guide, and entertain the listener.

"I'm saying this on behalf of all people who make people laugh," he said. "Whether they're in film, whether they're in television, radio, I think that this is as equal to the singers, I'm not saying that I can match Johnny Mathis' records for people falling in love. I'm not saying that I can match Sarah Vaughan or Bruce Springsteen for what they do to people holding hands. But I'm saying that we do wonderful things. We know that there's a frown, and that any doctor that sees two faces will choose the one that smiles."

Cosby expressed his excitement for standing in front of a roaring crowd at the Stranahan Theatre. He preached about the word "smile" and promised that a smile is a positive exchange for a laugh, because a smile carries memories.

"And if it's a smile, then it must be pleasant," he said. "You tell those students and readers to come out and laugh."