October 01, 2017
Jerry Seinfeld appeared on the "Late Show with Stephen Colbert" Friday night to promote his new Netflix special, "Jerry Before Seinfeld," which showcases much of Seinfeld’s breadth of work before the comedian was famous.
Discussing their shared interest in comedy growing up, Colbert asked Seinfeld what comedian he had most admired.
“Well, the comedian was Bill Cosby,” Seinfeld said in the interview. Also in regards to Cosby, Seinfeld noted, “the greatest body of work in comedy is his.”
“Can you still listen to his comedy?” Colbert asked, alluding to the more than 50 public accusations from different women claiming Cosby raped or sexually assaulted them. Thirty-five of the alleged victims were profiled in 2015, a few months after the accusations came to light.
Seinfeld responded, "Oh, yeah," that he had no issue still listening to Cosby's work.
In response, Colbert said he also loved listening to Cosby’s work growing up, which helped him cope with a tragic event in his childhood.
“And yet, I can’t listen to them now. I can’t separate it,” Colbert told Seinfeld.
Seinfeld seemed a bit dumbstruck by Colbert’s story, then began referencing Jerry Lewis, who passed last August, and the revelation that he left no money to his sons in his will.
“See, that upset me, because I adore Jerry Lewis, but I’m not gonna not watch 'The Bellboy.’”
Cosby's trial last June on charges that he drugged and molested accusor Andrea Constand was locked in a stalemate for jurors, who labeled the case a mistrial. The current date for a retrial is April 2.
