Another woman who claims she was raped by Bill Cosby has spoken out about her encounter with the embattled comedian.
The accusation is just the latest of numerous allegations of sexual abuse by Cosby, and follows the claims of another alleged victim who spoke out earlier this week.
In an essay on Hollywood Elsewhere, music industry publicist and journalist Joan Tarshis claims that Cosby sexually assaulted her twice in 1969 when she was 19. The former actress and Cosby were both working at Universal Studios, and she said he took an interest in her.
Cosby often pushed alcohol on her, Tarshis said, and on one instance when the two had been working on material together, she fell unconscious at his bungalow after having a cocktail he made for her.
"The next thing I remember was coming to on his couch while being undressed," Tarshis wrote. "I thought I was being clever when I told him I had an infection and he would catch it and his wife would know he had sex with someone. But he just found another orifice to use. I was sickened by what was happening to me and shocked that this man I had idolized was now raping me. Of course I told no one."
The second time Cosby allegedly attacked her, Tarshis claims that she had been drinking with Cosby while attending a performance at a music theater. She started to feel shaky, and "the next thing I remember was waking up in his bed back at the Sherry, naked," Tarshis wrote.
Tarshis was prompted to share her experiences after seeing others go public with their allegations, saying "as more and more of his rape victims have come forward, all telling similar stories, the time is right to join them."
Cosby has been dogged by accusations of sexual assault for years, and the controversy returned to the public eye after comedian Hannibal Buress called Cosby a rapist during one of his routines. Following Buress' charge, one of Cosby's alleged victims, Barbara Bowman, published an essay in The Washington Post, titled "Bill Cosby raped me. Why did it take 30 years for people to believe my story?"
When pressed by NPR's Scott Simon during Saturday's "Weekend Edition" to address the allegations, Cosby refused to discuss the matter. On Sunday, John P. Schmitt, Cosby's lawyer, said his client would not respond to the claims against him.
"Over the last several weeks, decade-old, discredited allegations against Mr. Cosby have resurfaced. The fact that they are being repeated does not make them true," Schmitt said in a statement.
It was not clear if Schmitt's statement was also referring to the accusation made by Tarshis.
Cosby's scheduled Nov. 19 appearance on "The Late Show With David Letterman" was canceled after the Washington Post essay was published. A representative for CBS declined to comment when contacted by The Huffington Post.
Cosby has never been charged with any of the alleged crimes. He settled a civil suit with another alleged victim in 2006.
Another rape allegation has surfaced against famed comedian and actor, Bill Cosby. This time it is from a familiar face which speculates that there may be some truth to Cosby's sketchy past.
Actress and singer Raven-Symone, who rose to fame with Cosby in the hit television sitcom "The Cosby Show", revealed to the TMZ offices that she too had been raped and drugged years ago following the shows last episode.
There are whispers that Cosby wouldn't allow Raven-Symone in the production of the last season of his show, but abruptly changed his mind. It was never revealed what changed his original intentions.
Her lawyer gave an announcement to the press, here is an excerpt:
"...we among so many others are tired of the media worshipping and praising a man that has a past so terrible that it is unbelievable. My client (Raven-Symone) is also ready to tell her side of the story. A side that was kept quiet because of threats from being blackballed. There was no monetary compensation that made my client keep quiet, but more so the respect for Mr. Cosby. Well that respect has come to an end. And what we thought was a mistake or anomaly has surfaced to become a lifestyle. We will be pursuing damages that are not going to be disclosed at this time."
On Sunday, Cosby’s attorney issued a statement saying the accusers are rehashing “decade-old, discredited” allegations.
Lawyer John Schmitt said the fact that the allegations are being repeated “does not make them true.” But this particular accusation is interesting. We have a very successful star in Raven-Symone who doesn't look to need any press or financial reward. Which makes us think that Cosby has a really shady past.
Cosby went silent when asked about the new allegations in an interview on NPR on Saturday In the interview, reporter Scott Simon asked Cosby about the claims, but the legendary comic just silently shook his head. To emphasize Cosby’s silence, Simon said, “You’re shaking your head no.”
Cosby has never been criminally charged with sexual assault, but he did settle a civil case in 2006 brought by Temple University employee Andrea Constand who claimed he drugged and groped her at his suburban Philadelphia mansion.
Differences between the two were "resolved to the mutual satisfaction" of both Cosby and Constand, according to a new statement issued Monday by their lawyers.
The media has since found some interesting clips from Cosby's past. Now, the Village Voice unearthed audio clips from the comedian’s ninth comedy album, “It’s True! It’s True,” which was released in 1969. An unfortunately titled compilation given the current headlines, the album includes a disturbing track of Cosby describing his long-standing desire to drug women and take advantage of them.
In the routine, Cosby describes his childhood fascination with a drug, “Spanish fly,” that supposedly makes women go crazy (or renders them incapacitated) if slipped into a drink. He says his fascination continued into adulthood, when he and “I Spy” co-star Robert Culp had the opportunity to go to Spain — and he became hopeful he might finally get his hands on some Spanish fly. Cosby describes how Culp, too, wanted to get his hands on the drug.
The latest round of bad press for Cosby started in October when comedian Hannibal Buress called him a “rapist” while performing a standup routine in Philadelphia.
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