Bill Cosby to perform in Dayton

One of America’s favorite TV dads will perform locally on Father’s Day.

Comedian, actor, activist and bestselling “Fatherhood” author Bill Cosby will present a 7 p.m. show Sunday, June 15, at the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center, 1 West Second St. in Dayton.

Tickets start at $39.25 and go on sale 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 14.

They can be purchased at Ticket Center Stage Box Office, 138 North Main St. in Dayton; by phone at (937) 228-3630, or at www.ticketcenterstage.com.

Victoria Theatre Association spokeswoman Diane Schoeffler-Warren didn’t know if Cosby’s performance would touch on Father’s Day. Organizers might add holiday related components related to the event, she said.

Warren, who grew up watching Cosby play Cliff Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” said multiple generations appreciate his showmanship.

“He is a man who has evolved through time,” she said.

Cosby has worn many hats and crossed many boundaries. As Alexander Scott on “I Spy,” Cosby was the first black to co-star in a television series. Cosby created the Emmy-winning animated series Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids and led the cast of the Cosby Show.

The 76-year-old Philadelphia native has made several movies and groundbreaking comedy albums.

In addition to 1986’s “Fatherhood,” Cosby’s books include “Time Flies” and his current bestseller “I Didn’t Ask to Be Born (But I’m Glad I Was.)”

He has a special connection to the region through his bond with Central State University in Wilberforce.

In 2009, Cosby helped the historically black public university raise more than $2 million as part of a challenge.

“We’re trying to lock in and get some more money for the academics, the kids who won’t be able to stay on,” Cosby said April 18, 2009, before his benefit concert for the college at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus.

He had already donated $2 million to the university over several years.

In 2004, Cosby performed the Schuster Center after he issued a $750,000 challenge to Central State. The university raised $1.4 million in response.

Central State’s Camille and William Cosby Mass Communication Central State was named for Cosby and his wife in recognition of gifts that included $325,000 for the Cosby Endowed Scholarship, $235,000 for the track renovation at McPherson Stadium and $100,000 to establish the John Brower Endowed Scholarship.

Warren said Cosby’s June 15 show is not related t0 a fundraiser.

It is part of his Comedy Central "Far From Finished" live tour.

Contact this columnist at arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com or Twitter.com/DDNSmartMouth

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