Notably, Darryn "Dutch" Martin of Project 21 posted an open letter to Cosby demanding that he apologize for his comments regarding Clarence Thomas, comparing those remarks to the attacks Cosby himself had faced after expressing some conservative views during a commemoration three years ago of the 50th anniversary of "Brown v. Board of Education."
About halfway through the October 18 show, as he interviewed Cosby and co-author Dr. Alvin Poussaint of Harvard, King brought up Justice Thomas as he suggested there was a similarity in the views of Cosby and Thomas, to Cosby's apparent chagrin. King: "Judge Clarence Thomas, the conservative black judge on the United States Supreme Court, Bill, says that he went conservative because he thinks that the black responsibility is to himself. He doesn't need any help. He doesn't want any help. He doesn't need that pick-me-up."
Cosby jumped in: "And he doesn't want to help anybody."
Cosby was so fixated on this accusation that he repeated the same words four more times in response to several other statements or questions by King:
KING: He doesn't need affirmative action.
COSBY: And he doesn't want to help anybody.
Dr. ALVIN POUSSAINT, Harvard University: But he got affirmative action.
KING: He got affirmative action.
COSBY: He got plenty of, he got a whole lot of help, and now he doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: Do you think he's hypocritical?
COSBY: He doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: I know it. Do you think he's-
COSBY: He doesn't want to help anybody.
King then brought up more directly the apparent "partial" similarity in the views of Cosby and Thomas, prompting Cosby to distance himself from the conservative justice while calling him "brother lite."
KING: All right. But he says blacks don't need help, they can do it themselves. And that's partially what you're saying, isn't it?
COSBY: But, well, that's not, yes, see, partially is where you get into trouble if you're trying to put me in the room with Clarence Thomas, the brother lite.
KING, laughing: Brother lite.
COSBY: Larry-
KING: I'm just asking.
COSBY: No, no, no. I understand. I'm trying, and Alvin is trying to reach those people who feel abandoned, who feel for so many years -- generational, whatever -- that they can't do it.
After a commercial break, King asked Cosby if he was supporting Barack Obama for President. Cosby conveyed some dissatisfaction over the way the media covers Obama and Hillary Clinton, among other things complaining that Obama and Hillary are treated "like some anomaly," and that the media spend too much time covering these candidates at the expense of others. Cosby brought up his "love" for Kucinich as he challenged King to guess his name while pronouncing the "ch" sound from the Democratic Congressman's name: "There's a guy in Ohio I happen to love. Ch, ch, you can't finish his name?"
After King took a moment to guess since "Kucinich" starts with a "k" and not a "ch," Cosby continued, realizing that he had mistakenly pronounced the "ch" instead of the "k": "Well, okay. Kucinich. All right. I love what he says."
Below is a transcript of relevant portions of the Thursday October 18 "Larry King Live," which was rebroadcast on Saturday November 3:
BILL COSBY: And he doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: He doesn't need affirmative action.
COSBY: And he doesn't want to help anybody.
Dr. ALVIN POUSSAINT, Harvard University: But he got affirmative action.
KING: He got affirmative action.
COSBY: He got plenty of, he got a whole lot of help, and now he doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: Do you think he's hypocritical?
COSBY: He doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: I know it. Do you think he's-
COSBY: He doesn't want to help anybody.
KING: All right. But he says blacks don't need help, they can do it themselves. And that's partially what you're saying, isn't it?
COSBY: But, well, that's not, yes, see, partially is where you get into trouble if you're trying to put me in the room with Clarence Thomas, the brother lite.
KING, laughing: Brother lite.
COSBY: Larry-
KING: I'm just asking.
COSBY: No, no, no. I understand. I'm trying, and Alvin is trying to reach those people who feel abandoned, who feel for so many years -- generational, whatever -- that they can't do it.
After a commercial break, the program continued:
KING: In this atmosphere, Dr. Poussaint and Bill, does Barack Obama represent a kind of, for black people, a hope?
POUSSAINT: Well, I think obviously he does, and he's rallied a lot of black people behind him, and black people are contributing to his campaign, including, you know, upper and middle class black people. So I think, yes, that's important and, symbolically and otherwise, because it shows just as we get people as Secretary of State and these other positions that we can go to the very top.
KING: Are you supporting him, Bill?
COSBY: I want to say that it's unfair -- do you ask white people this question?
KING: No, I'm-
COSBY: I'm asking you -- I'm not raising my voice, I'm asking, have you-
KING: Oh, I ask white people if they support Obama, sure.
COSBY: No, no, have you asked them, seriously? Because I get people, they ask me this, and then it's sort of like those other people are not running. I want to know why this fellow especially is brought up in such a special way.
KING: I'll tell you-
COSBY: And here's the question I'm asking. How many Americans in media really take him seriously, or do they look at him like some prize brown baby like a-
KING: I think he's taken seriously by most of American media. He proves it every time he talks, whether you're for him or not.
COSBY: Look, I see journalists, whether it's CNN or whatever, and they talk about him in a manner that I feel says, well, okay, what did he say, and how special was he for what he said and how hard does he have to work? Everybody else, nobody else is held, those four Republicans that didn't show up at Morgan State happen to be more accountable in terms of what they didn't do, especially for the brown people, as well. What is it that they're not saying about those four guys that didn't show up? They're not saying that we didn't, we as black people, didn't vote for them. That's silly. Because if you need votes and if you want votes, and brown people are waiting to ask you some questions and the black people are waiting to ask you, and Asian people are waiting to ask you questions, how could you not show up? And so who is it you're trying to appease that you feel happens to be worth more than the eight percent vote that you might have gotten by standing up and answering some questions?
KING: Just as Hillary has changed the landscape for women in that there's a woman with a chance to be President, Obama has changed the landscape for blacks.
COSBY: But I think it's stupid.
KING: But it's normal for any minority or underdog, if there were a major Jewish candidate for President, many Jews would want to support him, just for the feeling of pride. That's understandable, isn't it?
COSBY: That's not the point. My point is, he's treated, and so is Hillary treated, like some anomaly. Can the person do it? Of course. Look at the education. Look at where they're coming from. And do I, if I support him, if I don't support him, if I support her, the time between the Clintons and Barack Obama, the people making their decision on who they're going to vote for, there's a guy in Ohio I happen to love. Ch, ch, you can't finish his name?
KING: Ohio?
COSBY: Running for President. Ch.
KING: Dennis Kucinich.
COSBY: Well, okay. Kucinich. All right. I love what he says.
KING: He's a good little guy.
COSBY: I love what he-
KING: He's got a good book out.
COSBY: I love what he says. And-
KING: Let me get a break. And we'll come right back.
COSBY, in a joking voice: What are you doing? Ch.
KING: We'll be right back with Cosby and Poussaint. The book is "Come on People." Destined for a best-seller. Don't go away.
