And another one…
Via PageSix
Kathie Lee Gifford has been one of Bill Cosby‘s biggest defenders, but even that comes with a caveat.
As more allegations of sexual abuse are leveled at the once-beloved comedian, Gifford, who opened for Cosby while he was on tour in the late ’70s, revealed on Tuesday’s episode of NBC‘s “Today” show that he once tried to kiss her.
“I will admit towards the very, very end of the last time I saw him, he did try to kiss me,” she said. “I said, ‘No, Bill, no, we’re friends,’ and he said, ‘OK, good night,’ and I said, ‘Good night.’ And I went into my room, and he went into his room.”
Even though he is married, and was at the time of the attempted kiss, Gifford said that Cosby’s behavior wasn’t particularly strange — but it was the last time she saw him, although it’s unclear if she meant on the tour or in general.
“A lot of married men come on to single women. But once I said, ‘No, absolutely not,’ he respected it,” added the “Today” co-host, who is married to football great Frank Gifford.
While Kathie still rocks a cape for the Cos’, she can’t ignore the parts of these women’s stories that she identifies with…
Reiterating that she never saw Cosby abuse anyone with her “own two eyes,” she did admit that the allegations, including those made by supermodel Beverly Johnson last week, disturbed her.
“I do know that I got a chill [reading Johnson’s story], because every night when we’d come off stage and Bill would be going on stage, he would have made cappuccinos for all three of us,” she said. “And I always thought it was such a kindness and it was so sweet, and now you see Beverly Johnson saying that he made a cappuccino for her, and I just don’t want it to be true, but I’m not saying that the women are liars.”
No one WANTS it to be true, but there certainly is a whole lot of smoke for there to be no fire.
Images via WENN NDN
