Cosby show off at Packard Music Hall

By GUY D’ASTOLFO

dastolfo@vindy.com

WARREN

The March 13 performance by comedian Bill Cosby at W.D. Packard Music Hall has been dropped.

The show promoter informed venue operator JAC Management on Tuesday the show had been “postponed” but no new date has been set.

The action comes as no surprise to anyone following the news and was widely expected.

Cosby faces sexual-assault accusations from more than 15 women, dating back decades. The 77-year-old entertainer denies the allegations and has never been charged with a crime.

Patrons who already have bought a ticket can get a full refund at their point of purchase, said Kelsey Rupert, marketing director of JAC.

Rupert would not reveal the number of tickets that had been sold. Before the show was removed from the Ticketmaster website, however, sales maps indicated only a fraction of the roughly 2,000 seats in the hall had been sold.

Rupert said JAC would have no statement of reaction on the show’s postponement, and no specific reason was given by promoter National Artists.

Also Tuesday, Cosby’s Feb. 21 performance at Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh was called off. A petition drive had been underway in that city to get the show canceled.

Earlier this week, two performances in Massachusetts were canceled, although the promoter claimed it was because of a coming snow storm.

Some performances that had been staged in other cities this year were met by protests and occasional hecklers.

The most-recent accusation against Cosby came Sunday by a former fashion model and actress who appeared on one episode of “The Cosby Show” in 1988.

Helen Gumpel, formerly known as Helen Selby, said the comedy legend made sexual advances and lewd gestures toward her while she was on the show’s set.

She said she was called to the set for what she thought was another audition shortly after filming the one episode in 1987. She said she was brought to Cosby’s dressing room and Cosby had her sit on a couch and handed her a drink. She said Cosby then stood in front of her with his crotch in her face.

“I never thought of myself as a victim because I refused his advances,” Gumpel said. “But my career was a victim.”

Contributor: Associated Press