George Carlin, 1937-2008
D.A. Ridgely on Jun 23rd 2008
It is said of a man that you cannot know how far he has come unless you know where he began. Perhaps on the occasion of George Carlin’s death this might be said as well about American comedy in the last half century and so also of America, itself.
Carlin’s 1972 Class Clown was the first comedy album I ever bought. It was dedicated “to Leonard Schneider for taking all the risks.” But like Schneider, aka Lenny Bruce, Carlin was himself arrested for obscenity, ironically for doing his best known bit from that album, “Seven Words You Can Never Say On Television.” (As far as I can tell, at least when it comes to broadcast television, the list is still valid.)
I remember earlier appearances of Carlin, clean-shaven, dressed in suit and tie and more wacky than cutting-edge, doing guest appearances on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, his Al Sleet, the hippy-dippy weatherman, cracking Johnny up rattling off a meteorological jargon packed weather report only to end with “But our radar has also just picked up hundreds of ICBMs heading our way, so I wouldn’t sweat the cold front.”
Carlin changed with the times over the course of the sixties and early seventies and, it could also be said, helped in his own small way to change them. The sort of comedy we tolerate, let alone laugh at, says something about us. Carlin was funnier than Bruce, his “observational” eye for the absurd or the merely comical, especially in matters of language, was much sharper than Seinfeld’s and his “transgressiveness” was far more authentic than 99% of the comics that came along after him.
I don’t think it would be too unfair to describe Carlin’s politics as left-libertarian, though the leftist bent often got the better of his libertarian inclinations whenever the two came into conflict. But it is probably more fair to say that Carlin’s comedy was a study in equal opportunity misanthropy, notwithstanding the fact that some targets are just richer than others. Regardless, his was a unique talent. In any ranking of 20th century comedy genius, a pantheon that would include, for example, Groucho Marx and Richard Pryor, George Carlin would almost certainly make the Top Ten.
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Carlin at his libertarian-skeptical best:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eScDfYzMEEw
And I think you are absolutely correct about two things DA:
1. When Carlin’s leftism conflicted with his libertarian instincts, the former won out.
2. He is one of the top 10 ever.
Carlin’s work on euphemisms was not only funny (both to hear and read), but it was seriously insightful social commentary.
D.A., I agree with virtually everything you write about Carlin (e.g., “equal opportunity misanthropy” — that’s a Carlinism), save for one thing: In the pantheon of comedians, he should be No. 1.
He lasted far longer and was far more prolific than any comedian I can think of. Most good comedians have one bit or schtick that you can remember. A handful of legends produced a handful of good bits. This guy had dozens of riffs that were insightful, funny, and memorable.
My favorite Carlin quote (and I use it all the time): “I leave symbols to the symbol-minded.”
I’ve heard a great deal of his recorded work since 1980. I always looked forward to the next installment.
I will miss him.
At some point (maybe at every point), ranking comedians is simply an exercise in subjective value. I merely made the fairly safe claim that Carlin deserves to be included among the very best. Groucho certainly lasted longer, although he was never a stand-up comic and, in any case, just living longer is key to winning those sorts of contests, but you’d be hard pressed to argue that Groucho isn’t among the comedy gods. I think Pryor at his funniest was the funniest there has ever been and I might add that many professional comedians have said roughly the same thing. His self-destruction was a terrible thing to witness. Both Mel Brooks and Woody Allen, who by the way did some terrific stand-up early in his career, are enormously talented and have, in their various ways, lasted longer, too. (No, Allen hasn’t been funny for a long time but he was funny for a long time.) And I could go on. Benny’s timing, Carson’s ability to get laughs from weak material and play straight man to others, Jonathan Winters’ (and then Robin Williams’) maniacal improvisation, etc., etc. But I agree Carlin was among the best even if I’d be far more hesitant to give him the posthumous crown.
Don’t forget Sam Kinison. And I know you guys — well, at least Brayton — will kill me for saying this, but Eddie Murphy in his prime could go toe to toe with any of these legends.
Whatever happened to Eddie Murphy though? His early work definitely promised a bright future, but he hasn’t made a decent movie for more than a decade now (if you’re feeling generous we could say Bowfinger 9 years ago, but that might be a stretch.)
Since we’re throwing out names I’ve got to bring up Bill Hicks, whose career ended far too soon, as well as another comedy-album-era veteran, Bob Newhart, and just to keep from being dated too far back I’ve got to throw in contemporaries Eddie Izzard, Steven Wright and Dave Chappelle who might someday belong in this upper echelon.
Without a doubt George Carlin matches up with any and all of these, and the world is a much less funny place without him… At least we know the afterlife just got a whole lot more entertaining…
What happened to Eddie Murphy is what very often happens to artists, actors and musicians, especially of the “popular” bent: They run out of good material. It’s not just him, look at Dan Aykroyd (I’m sure we could name a whole slew of SNL cohorts).
I see a parallel in music, at least when it comes to good songwriting. A lot of songwriters — Paul McCartney for instance — only have so many brilliant songs in them (though they can milk it while touring and playing their classics).
That’s why I have the highest respect for someone like Neil Young, who can more consistently produce great material over the years. But not everything he has done is great.
Young apropos of the point famously said it’s better to burn out than to fade away. At least with Hendrix, Morrison, Joplin, Cobain, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, they died (or in the Beatles’ case quit) before they faded away. Likewise with Lennon who was writing strong material until he died at 40.
Imagine John Belushi doing his 4th failed sitcom.
Murphy has made some bad movie choices back when he had far more star power, but he’s hardly fallen off the radar. Few comics want to keep doing stand-up, after all, and it isn’t as though he’s not earning good money from the Shrek franchise.
The fact is that even among those who successfully make the transition to movies, which is where the big money is, film careers are fleeting things. I’ll return to Groucho, as an example. The Marx Bros. made 13 movies but none of them after A Day At The Races was worth a damn. Groucho’s “You Bet Your Life” was essentially a second career, but that was over in the 60s, too.
BTW, not to pick a fight, but I never got Sam Kinison and thought he was pretty much a one-trick-pony. Many people still feel that Dennis Leary owes his career to the fact that Bill Hicks died. Personally, I think Mitch Hedberg’s death is the greater loss. Steven Wright is probably doing the most intellectual stand-up today, but he seems stuck there. And Dave Chappelle is this decade’s heir to the Pryor - Murphy - Rock black comedian tradition, but with few exceptions I’ve found him only modestly funny. My son, however, thinks he’s hilarious. Go figure. Maybe it’s just age.
I think Chappelle is hilarious too. I think a lot of folks fail to appreciate the sophistication in Kinison’s humor; it wasn’t all just screams as he was stereotyped. My favorite “dirty” comedian is Bob Schimmel. I think he’s riot.
D.A.: Absolutely right, I can’t believe I forgot Mitch Hedberg. I agree with you on Steven Wright too, and Chappelle is probably a generational thing, so I’ll let it slide without a fight. I expect great things from Dave in the future though.
Hey, we forgot one big name: Jackie the Jokeman Martling. Lol. I’m just kidding. I think Stern brilliantly funny. Martling is an averagely funny stand up comic; but they way they incorporated him as a foil of Stern’s show illustrates Stern’s comedic talent.