When news broke earlier today that Malcolm-Jamal Warner died, I'll admit it upset me a little. It's not like he's someone I've thought about in ages, but as a kid, he was a major part of my life, and I feel like some of my fellow millennials and Gen-Xers can relate.
I was born in the 1980s, and "The Cosby Show" was one of the first non-animated TV shows that my mom allowed me to watch. It was a staple in our house (we actually re-watched it years later from start to finish, shortly before the whole Bill Cosby situation hung a dark cloud over it). I grew up alongside Sondra, Denise, Theo, Vanessa, and Rudy, or so, that's how it felt to me. I always thought I was the cool girl like Denise, but as it turns out, I was much closer in age to Keshia Knight Pulliam (who played little Rudy) than I was to Lisa Bonet.
Either way, Theo, played by Warner, was my favorite of the siblings. He was cute, kind, cool, and hilarious to little elementary school-aged me, and I'll admit that it led to a little bit of a crush on the actor. I sort of followed his career later in life, but not very closely. He was just sort of there in the peripheral, but I always had tremendous respect for him. Few child stars grow up to maintain an active and successful career in the entertainment industry without succumbing to some sort of controversy. For the most part, Warner seemed low-key and professional. By all accounts, he was a family man who adored his wife and daughter and kept them out of the spotlight.
"The Cosby Show" came to an end in 1992, but it was clear that Warner had talent. During his time on the show, he was nominated for an Emmy for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series" and won several Young Artist Awards.
He'd go on to appear on numerous other television shows over the next few decades, sometimes as the star, sometimes as a guest, but always as one of America's most beloved TV stars. Some of his more noteworthy roles were on shows like "Malcolm & Eddie," "Jeremiah," "Sons of Anarchy," "Community," "The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime," "American Horror Story: Freak Show," "Sherri," and "The Resident." He also worked a great deal as a director on numerous TV shows and made various music videos, plus he appeared in several movies and plays.
Warner also had a music and poetry career that earned him some recognition. He's released four albums over the years, and in 2015, he won a Grammy for "Best Traditional R&B Performance" for his work on the song "Jesus Children." In 2022, he was nominated for "Best Spoken Word Poetry Album" for "Hiding In Plain View."
TMZ reported Warner's death earlier today. The actor was vacationing in Costa Rica with his family and swimming in the ocean when he most likely got caught up in a current. According to local authorities, he died from asphyxia on Sunday at Playa Cocles in the Limón province on the country's Caribbean coast.
When I heard the news, I was shocked and saddened, but I hadn't planned on writing about it. I texted a few friends, including our editor here, Chris Queen, and ironically, he was on the phone with another colleague of ours talking about that very topic. Truth be told, behind the scenes, I think a lot of us here who grew up watching "The Cosby Show" were sad to hear the news. For so many of us, he was the friend, brother, or boyfriend we longed to have. As our Matt Margolis put it, Theo was the "epitome of cool." Indeed, he was. And we have Malcolm-Jamal Warner to thank for that.
I'll admit that I wasn't planning on writing about it initially, as I'm working on some other stories, but something in my heart told me to do so, especially when I heard he died in Costa Rica in an area where I've spent many days over the last couple of years. And then when I read some of the mainstream media news stories about Warner's death, I really knew I had to. They were cold and impersonal and not even factually correct. You could tell that they were written by young folks who probably never saw an episode of "The Cosby Show" in their lives and probably never will. I felt like Warner deserved a bit more than that.
Thanks for the years of laughs, Malcolm.
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