in 1973, "the village voice" writer terry guerin said cosby was past his prime. among the reasons, "making spokesman commercials for such established heels as white owl cigars and pan american airlines. he has evolved into a kind of self-parodying sap, the kind of flagrant, perpetual parader sammy davis has always been". "the noble cos," a 1986 satirical editorial by edward sorel for "the nation", was written in cosby's imagined voice. it echoed the comments of other authors that cosby had become out-of-touch with lower-class african americans. in response to this sentiment, cosby said in 1997, "so this buddy says, 'i didn't mind your commercials for jello, del monte, ford cars ... ideal toys, or coca-cola, although coke does do business in south africa ... but, bill, why do commercials for those crooks at e. f. hutton?' my buddy didn't understand my commercials improve race relations. y'see, by showing that a black man can be just as money-hungry as a white man ... i'm proving that all men are brothers."