The football son who thanks Mom
Carlos Mencia , compared with Bill Cosby
A father pours years into training his son for football glory, and on camera the son only gives a shout-out to his mother.
“I love you, Mom!”
No Strings Attached (Comedy Central), 2006quote source ↗▶ watch ↗
Cosby's parenting set includes the dad who invests everything in his athlete son, who then greets Mom on TV; he also touched on it in his book Fatherhood. (paraphrase)
Bill Cosby: Himself, 1983find on YouTube ↗
Same dad, same years of sacrifice, same snub when the son thanks only Mom on TV; only the exact wording differs.
- Premise 37/40
- Structure 25/30
- Punchline 24/30
- Premise37/40Same scenario: a sacrificing dad trains his athlete son, who thanks only Mom on camera.
- Structure25/30Same build from the father's years of investment to the televised moment and the snub.
- Punchline24/30Both land on the son greeting Mom; Cosby's exact wording is not on record.
Setup
Dad sacrifices for years drilling his son for football glory.
Setup
Dad invests everything in his athlete son.
Turn
The son reaches his moment of victory on camera.
Turn
The son finally gets his moment on TV.
Punchline
Son tells Mom he loves her, ignoring Dad entirely.
Punchline
Son greets Mom on TV; exact wording not on record.
Scores and beats are our editorial reading of the public record, not a ruling.
Context
When and where
Cosby performed the bit in Bill Cosby: Himself (filmed 1981 in Hamilton, Ontario, released 1983) and wrote about it in his 1986 book Fatherhood. Mencia's version is in his Comedy Central special No Strings Attached (2006).
What followed
Joe Rogan's 2007 compilation cited it as evidence of theft. Mencia told the Los Angeles Times he had never seen Himself but regretted the similarity, and in 2024 conceded it was the one accusation he could not explain.
Receipts
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Carlos Mencia by Sara Csurilla, U.S. Air Force, Public domain; Bill Cosby by The World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, CC BY 2.0