What Caused Bill Cosby’s Blindness, Is He Still In Jail And How Much Is He Worth Now?

He began his career with appearances on stage productions and soon made his way to TV. Bill developed his eponymous show, The Cosby Show which aired for two seasons on NBC. He also came up with “Fat Einstein and the Cosby Kids” an animated educational series for kids. The show ran for 13 years (1972-1985) and it was based on the recollections of his childhood gang. The comedian continued to gain fame over the years and he won several awards for his works

Sadly, all his hard work went down the drain when various women came up with sexual allegations against him which ranged from, rape, child sexual misconduct down to drugging his victims to sexually assault them. Bill was charged to court and found guilty of most of the cases which got him a jail term that could last from 3 to 10 years. More misfortune also struck Cosby during this period as it was discovered that he had an eye ailment which could make him lose his sight completely.

Bill Cosby’s Net Worth Might Take A Plunge Due To His Questionable Reputation

Cosby bolstered the money he earned from numerous TV gigs with lucrative endorsement deals with giant companies including Coca-Cola, Kodak, and Ford among others. His current net worth estimated at $400 million and this sumptuous figure can also be attributed to the fact that he owns huge and luxurious mansions in Shelburne, Massachusetts Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, and Pacific Palisades, California.

Prior to his imprisonment, it was known that the comedian loved to live a lavish lifestyle and he owns a Shelby AC Cobra equipped V10-6.4 liter engine machine which features anti-lock brakes and every other feature a luxury car should have. However, his generous side cannot be left out as Bill Cosby aids foundations and charitable organizations which help the needy. He has contributed to the likes of Airlift Foundation which he founded in 2008 to help on matters pertaining to orthopedic research. Others are the Children’s Network Miracle Hospitals, Keep a Child Alive, and the Jackie Robinson Foundation.

See Also: A List All The Women Rodney Dangerfield Married In His Life Time 

Analysis of His Net Worth

Bill Cosby has also made tens of millions more from endorsements, most notable among them is Jell-O. He has also made lots of money from movie appearances, live comedy shows and other TV series. His 2014 comedy tour grossed $11 million over 100 shows.

As of now, although his net worth still looks quite good, it is worth noting that the cases of sexual assault brought against him have cost the comedian some major endorsement losses including the one with Jerry Seinfeld and David Letterman. More so, many other associations including universities that gave him honorary degrees have withdrawn the titles from him and with this trend, it is expected that Cosby’s net worth might be dealt a heavy blow by the time he is free from his ongoing predicament.

These are Bill Cosby’s Highest Grossing Movies and Comedy Releases: 

1. Fat Albert: $48.6 million.
2. Ghost Dad: $25 million.
3. The Devil and Max Devlin: $16 million.
4. Let’s Do It Again: $11.8 million.
5. The Meteor Man: $8 million.
6. Mother, Jugs & Speed: $7 million.
7. Uptown Saturday Night: $6.7 million.

Bill Cosby received around 70 honorary degrees and several other honours since 1985. However, Most of these degrees and honours were revoked after he was accused or convicted of sexual offences.

The Rare Disease That Took Bill Cosby’s Eyesight

Back in 2004 when Cosby was in the heat of the lawsuit filed against him by Andrea Constand who was an employee of Temple University, it was also revealed that the comedian is not just at the brink of losing his freedom but his sight as well. He was diagnosed with a declining eye disease called Keratoconus commonly known as KC. The ailment is best described as a non-inflammatory eye disease in which the cornea bulges into a cone. This distorted shape will result in the sufferer’s vision becoming blurry coupled with seeing images in multiples and the aftermath is impaired eyesight.

KC is rare and research has it that only 1 person out of 1000 persons is at risk of developing the eye condition and if they would, it would be during their late teenage years. This hereby made Cosby’s case unusual because it is believed that it could have been detected a very long time ago rather than the sudden discovery made in 2015 and in less than 2 years, he made it known publicly that he was totally blind. According to reports, the comedian told his wife sometime in 2017 that he could not see again. On the other hand, some sources have it that the comedian must have had the eye condition for a long time, and since his pictures at that time show that his eyes appear a bit abnormal.

However, having Keratoconus does not mean one might not be able to see properly again because it is curable and the results afterwards might be close to perfect eyesight. In Bill Cosby’s case, many believe that he has received treatment for the eye condition and he is doing quite fine and this was prior to the commencement of his jail term in November 2018. More so, others believe that he came up with the blind act just to get minimal punishment for his crime because most of his movement outside court after the verdict indicates he had good eyesight.

How Being Blind Affected The Comedian In Jail

As of this writing, Cosby is still in jail serving his 3 to 10 years jail term with regards to Andrea Constand’s lawsuit and it is expected that another lady identified as Chloe Goins is coming after him with more sexual assault charges, although the case is likely to be dismissed. With regards to his stay in prison, the comedian was initially isolated for 4 months at a secluded facility in Phoenix and this was intended to keep him safe from any threat in prison especially with his eye condition being a limitation on his part.

However, late in January 2019, the news was out that, the comedian’s isolation time was over and he would be joining the main prison facility like all other inmates in Pennsylvania. This decision was further confirmed by the spokeswoman in charge of the Pennsylvania Department of Correction—Amy Worden. She made it clear that Cosby would be joining other inmates. More so, the idea proposed by the comedian’s spokesman—Andrew Wyatt—to give Cosby special facilities like a one-man cell because of his age was declined as Ms. Worden emphasized that the prison does not have such provisions for old inmates. However, since, Cosby is still blind, he will have some inmates assigned to help him move around.