George Carlin, 1937-2008

[Eohmer]

Comedian George Carlin dies in Los Angeles at 71


LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Comedian George Carlin, a counter-culture hero famed for his routines about drugs and dirty words, died of heart failure at a Los Angeles-area hospital on Sunday, a spokesman said. He was 71.

Carlin, who had a history of heart and drug-dependency problems, died at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica about 6 p.m. PDT (9 p.m. EDT) after being admitted earlier in the afternoon for chest pains, spokesman Jeff Abraham told Reuters.


Known for his edgy, provocative material, Carlin achieved status as an anti-Establishment icon in the 1970s with stand-up bits full of drug references and a routine called "Seven Words You Can Never Say On Television." A regulatory battle over a radio broadcast of the routine ultimately reached the U.S. Supreme Court.


In the 1978 case, Federal Communications Commission vs. Pacifica Foundation, the top U.S. court ruled that the words cited in Carlin's routine were indecent, and that the government's broadcast regulator could ban them from being aired at times when children might be listening.


Carlin's comedic sensibility often came back to a central theme: humanity is doomed.


"I don't have any beliefs or allegiances. I don't believe in this country, I don't believe in religion, or a god, and I don't believe in all these man-made institutional ideas," he told Reuters in a 2001 interview.
Carlin, who wrote several books and performed in many television comedy specials, is survived by his wife Sally Wade, and daughter Kelly Carlin McCall.


Comedian George Carlin dies in Los Angeles at 71 - Yahoo! News

[Taskmage]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Wow, he was 71?

I guess the cookie-cutter way to respond to a cynical comedian's death would be some wry ironic quip, but I've got nothing. I'm pretty sure Carlin would reject anything along the lines of "God bless" or "may he rest in peace" since I don't think he believed in either. All I can come up with is it's too bad he's dead.

[BurningPanther]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Death of a legend, for sure.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

When my studies of Communications and Journalism began in college, George Carlin's "Seven Dirty Words" was Chapter 1. And I mean that literally, it was so controversial to people it forever influenced how people could express themselves on radio as well as television within certain hours. The whole transcript of the comedy bit was in the textbook. Chapter 1.

So one of his biggest legacies was that society actually proved his point about how sensitive and conservative our culture actually is. To an extent, he also proved why we should be ashamed of that, as this one bit of comedy affects how you listen to radio and watch television to this very day. The FCC created these limitations in response to "Seven Dirty Words" being played on the air in the middle of the day. Not even Howard Stern had that kind of impact, though he certainly wishes he did.

While I never quite agreed with Carlin's views on faith, but neither was he really an aggressive person in his disagreement with it. He just didn't believe and he left it at that. I can at least appreciate that and wish many more that disagreed with religion would just stop where he did.

I did smile when he played a catholic priest in Dogma, though.

[Jarre]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Thats very strange, I was watching some of his videos on youtube on Saturday night, Billy Connolly used to rave about him, saying he was a hero of his due to his risque subjects and that he helped Billy make his first dent into America.

RIP GC, I wish I had heard more of your stuff before.

[lionx]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

NOOO!!! ; ; He was one of the most awesome guys i ever seen on comedy...he will be sorely missed...

[Illuen]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

I was really upset when I heard this, until I realized that George Carlin would've laughed his ass off at me for being upset. Instead, I'm taking this as an opportunity to celebrate his life and career. I'm going to listen to him all day, and curse in wildly inappropiate manners =)

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTyzTJTNhNk]YouTube - Seven Words[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLoge6QzcGY]YouTube - George Carlin - A place for my stuff[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBkYi0TVqwM&feature=related]YouTube - George Carlin: People Who Deserve To Be Killed[/ame]


"Thanks to the fear of death in this country I won't have to die--I'll pass away..." -George Carlin

[Kaickul]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

The world lost a genius today.

[ame="http://youtube.com/watch?v=2KgBVKDvK14"]YouTube - George Carlin on Education & the Hidden Rulers of America[/ame]

[Audioma]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Agh, he was an amazing personality that influenced a large part of my life ;_;


When I read the title of this thread (this is the first I've heard of this), I had a sunken feeling in my chest, as if one of my uncles died...

[Andrinor]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

"Thanks to the fear of death in this country I won't have to die--I'll pass away..." -George Carlin

"Or expire like a magazine subscription."

Funny, funny guy, and cut right through the BS to get at the heart of a lot of issues. I enjoyed his work, and it's a shame we won't see any more of it.

[WishMaster3K]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

I remember when I was younger watching him on Thomas the Tank Engine.

Then when I got older I actually listened to his standup, and my world was changed. He wasn't just a brilliant user of profanity; his generation of comedians set the bar for other comedians to be judged against.

Richard Pryor and George Carlin are my favorite comedians, and they've built tough legacies to follow in.

[Callisto]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Wow that really sucks, I always loved his work for the no-bullshit attitude. So many classics out of him...

[TheGrandMom]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

A sad day in the world of comedy. I went to see him several times in the 70's and 80's. I was pregnant at one of his shows and we had a table next to the stage. I laughed so hard I pissed myself. He found out and did a couple minutes on me pissing myself after I came back which damn near made me piss myself again! (We were at a hotel and I changed upstairs.) Just for you today George, I'll swear like a sailor!

[Feba]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

He found out and did a couple minutes on me pissing myself after I came back which damn near made me piss myself again!

Remember details?

[TheGrandMom]

Re: George Carlin, 1937-2008

Good lord no, that was around 25 years ago! I fried a lot of brain cells back then. LOL