George Carlin
best comedian of all time?
George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an iconic American stand-up comedian. He was also an actor and author, and won four Grammy Awards for his comedy albums.
Carlin was noted for his black humor as well as insights on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and various taboo subjects. Carlin and his “Seven Dirty Words” comedy routine were central to the 1978 U.S. Supreme Court case F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation, in which a narrow 5–4 decision by the justices affirmed the government’s power to regulate indecent material on the public airwaves.
The first of his 14 stand-up comedy specials for HBO was filmed in 1977. In the 1990s and 2000s, Carlin’s routines focused on the flaws in modern-day America. He often took on contemporary political issues in the United States and satirized the excesses of American culture. His final HBO special, It’s Bad For Ya, was filmed less than four months before his death.
Carlin was placed second on the Comedy Central cable television network list of the 100 greatest stand-up comedians, ahead of Lenny Bruce and behind Richard Pryor. He was a frequent performer and guest host on The Tonight Show during the three-decade Johnny Carson era, and was also the first person to host Saturday Night Live.
Although raised in the Roman Catholic faith (which he describes anecdotally on the albums FM & AM and Class Clown), Carlin often denounced the idea of God in interviews and performances, notably with his “Religion” and “There Is No God” routines as heard in You Are All Diseased.
Carlin also joked in his second book Napalm and Silly Putty that he worshiped the Sun, one reason being that he could actually see it. This was earlier mentioned in You Are All Diseased, along with the statement that he prayed to Joe Pesci (a good friend of his in real life) because “he’s a good actor”, and “looks like a guy who can get things done!”
In his HBO special Complaints and Grievances, Carlin introduced the “Two Commandments”, a revised “pocket-sized” list of the Ten Commandments ending with the additional commandment of “Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself.”
However he also explained:
“The planet will be here for a long, long, LONG time after we’re gone, and it will heal itself, it will cleanse itself… I think, to be fair, the planet sees us as a mild threat. Something to be dealt with. The planet will think of something. What would you do if you were the planet? How would you defend yourself against this troublesome, pesky species? Let’s see… Viruses. Viruses might be good.
Preceding text, shamelessly stolen from wikipedia.
