Last year, Kevin Spacey found himself accused of sexual harassment
on several occasions. The accusers, according to Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Spacey)
were “numerous,” and famously included Rent star Anthony Rapp. In 2014, Bill
Cosby also faced multiple allegations of harassment. If both of these men (among
others) are guilty as charged, then clearly some sort of punishment is
appropriate, but should we deprive ourselves of their artistic accomplishments?
Spacey is a fine actor, writer and director. Cosby is one of the best comedians
of the past fifty years. Can I still listen to and enjoy his work without
feeling guilty?
It’s easy to find cases of people with remarkable and
admirable accomplishments who nonetheless led far from impeccable lives. Richard
Wagner was rabidly anti-semitic. Composer Percy Grainger was into hardcore
bondage. Silent film star Harold Lloyd was obsessed with pornography. Frank
Sinatra, by most accounts, relished his Mafia connections and didn’t hesitate
to use them. Most of our heroes are not as perfect as we would like them to be.
Should we judge their work in tandem with their personalities?
Back in the 1980s, singer Cat Stevens gave an interview in
which he seemed to agree with a fatwa calling for the death of Salmon Rushie,
author of The Satanic Verses. Tower Records, at that time an important music
retailer, pulled all of Stevens’s recordings from their shelves. I remember
supporting Tower’s decision, but I have since wondered if that was the right
decision.
My question is: How much do we let what we know about an
artist affect our enjoyment of that person’s art?
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