27 Facts About Clair Huxtable

Clair Huxtable is a fictional character who appears on the American sitcom The Cosby Show.

At one point, Clair Huxtable had been envisioned as a Dominican housewife who speaks Spanish when frustrated, inspired by Ricky Ricardo from the sitcom I Love Lucy, but this idea was abandoned.

Since The Cosby Shows inception, Cosby had always intended for Clair Huxtable to reflect the ways in which women's roles have evolved in both the home and workplace.

Clair Huxtable is depicted as a hardworking career woman with strong feminist principles, most evident in the character's early confrontations with chauvinistic son-in-law Elvin.

Clair Huxtable occasionally represents her own children in legal disputes, for example helping Theo successfully obtain a refund for several unwearable T-shirts purchased from an untrustworthy salesman.

Similarly, Clair Huxtable defends Sondra when a dishonest mechanic attempts to scam her.

Clair Huxtable was created for The Cosby Show by series creator, comedian Bill Cosby.

When Cosby pitched The Cosby Show to NBC, it revolved around a blue-collar couple; Clair Huxtable was envisioned as a plumber while the character's husband Cliff, portrayed by Cosby himself, was a limousine driver.

The second season explores each character gaining more responsibility, none more-so than Clair Huxtable, who is deliberately provided with more storylines and emotions to experience in terms of her relationship with her husband and children.

Additionally, because Clair Huxtable was still intended to be of Dominican heritage at the time, Rashad's own bilingualism and fluency in Spanish benefited her successful casting.

Clair Huxtable believes that playing a serious mother on television has helped her have more fun in real life, explaining that she realized the bedroom of her own son, Billy, was merely "typical" in comparison to that of Theo's.

Usually depicted as the smartest character in any given room, Clair Huxtable often uses her skills attained as a lawyer to uncover the truth when other characters, particularly her children, are lying, on one occasion getting Theo to admit that he had made cracks about an overweight fast food restaurant employee, which she overheard, resulting in his expulsion from track by the irate coach.

Clair Huxtable generally accepts her children's decisions and ever-changing ambitions, specifically in regards to schooling, marriage and careers.

Clair Huxtable practices disciplining her children without ever punishing them physically, often delivering punishments "with a calm charm", and raises her four daughters to love and respect themselves.

Clair Huxtable promptly corrects Elvin in the form of a rant that explains the equal roles of a married husband and wife; Jason Bailey of Slate compared Clair Huxtable's speech to Gloria Stivic arguing about feminist politics with her father Archie Bunker in the sitcom All in the Family.

However, when Cliff voices his preference for Daryl, a young man competing for Sondra's affection, over Elvin due to the former's more progressive opinions about women, Clair Huxtable defends Elvin, reminding Cliff that he once shared Elvin's views and ideas before Clair Huxtable ultimately changed him for the better.

Additionally, when Clair Huxtable is at work, Cliff willingly assumes traditionally female household responsibilities such as cooking and cleaning.

One of the series' more political moments, Clair refuses to be exploited as "the token black woman" on a morning talk show discussing the Great Depression during the episode "Mrs Huxtable Goes to Kindergarten", a position she accepts under the impression that she would be appreciated for her experience as a lawyer.

Clair Huxtable is widely regarded as one of the greatest mothers in television history by several media publications.

Clair Huxtable was Black, she was a professional, had a working husband, and a boat load of children.

Clair Huxtable was voted "best TV Mom" in a 2004 poll conducted by the Opinion Research Corporation.

In May 2012, Clair Huxtable was one of the 12 moms chosen by users of iVillage on their list of "Mommy Dearest: The TV Moms You Love".

In 2014, The Crunk Feminist Collective famously published an article entitled "Clair Huxtable is Dead: On Slaying the Cosbys" in which the author dismissed the character's progressive gender politics as "a sham", arguing that Clair must be forgotten to allow for a new generation of television heroines.

Club, agreed that "Clair Huxtable's legacy remains intact" despite "the snowballing disgrace of its star has made The Cosby Show less of a wholesome memory than it once was".

Rachel Desantis of the New York Daily News concluded, "No matter the off-screen drama surrounding her on-screen husband, Clair Huxtable remains a vital slice of pop culture history".

Much like Clair Huxtable, Alicia is often forced to defend her decision to work while raising her family.

Pastes Shannon M Houston concluded, "because someone like Clair Huxtable shared her feminism in the home, someone like Alicia Florrick can now share it in the courtrooms".