The 61st Primetime Emmy Awards

Bill Cosby

After four consecutive Emmy wins in the '60s (three for "I Spy"), Cosby was never even nominated for a prime-time Emmy during the amazing run of "The Cosby Show" in the '80s. Nonetheless, he become an elder statesman on the lecture circuit, motivational speaker ... more for young black Americans, criticized for harsh advice for inner-city youths, but still very much a cultural powerhouse. In October, he'll receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center, with tributes from the likes of Chris Rock, Phylicia Rashad, Carl Reiner, Wynton Marsalis, Willie Nelson and George Lopez. Once asked what the secret to his success was, Cosby answered: "I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is to try to please everyone." Happily, it worked out that way anyway.

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