George Carlin on HBO

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Many of who who appreciated the comedy of George Carlin who passed away this week may be interested to know that HBO will be playing all of his concerts in a marathon starting Wednesday night.

Here's the schedule: http://www.hbo.com/events/george-carlin ... main_image

To me, Carlin was in the triumverate of great comedians with Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor. While I didn't care for his later "angry" stand-up it being too bitter for my taste, he always remained topical and philosophical and especially in the early years, extra silly which I enjoy quite a lot. He was a brilliant man, regardless of whether I agreed with his politics or religion and now is a good chance to acquaint yourself with his work if you have somehow missed it over the years. And if he's a favorite of yours too, now's the chance to remember exactly why.
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Re: George Carlin on HBO

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Glad you posted this, DH. I was saddened by his death as I thought he was a completely unique comic and my personal favorite. Ironically, his later hyper-acerbic comedy was what attracted me most. I often vehemently disagreed with his conclusions about this or that but couldn't help but acknowledge how much truth and wisdom he wove into his own opinion. I could listen to him (indirectly) insult me and my lifestyle and find it entirely endearing. That's a unique talent.:icon_wink:
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Re: George Carlin on HBO

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Yes, he really was one of the Greats! Especially at the peak time of his career. Years ago we listened to him on a radio or talk show of some sort, and I remember laughing so hard i could hardly talk! i had lost track of him lately, and was really surprised at the news. He wasn't very old. Seems like all these top comedians die so young...:icon_sad:

Re: George Carlin on HBO

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He died the day of my bachelor party. I wanted to cancel it.

I still remember when my father let me listen to "Class Clown", "AM & FM" and "Occupation: Foole" when I was about ten years old. It was unlike anything I had heard before and I loved every word of it. Even as he got older and more vicious, I saw that more of a result of his being on this planet, and specifically this country, for more than half a century and he was just tired of all the bullshit. Being an atheist (I'm not trying to offend anyone, just bringing it up due to the subject) and a cynic (My wife would say asshole, but she also loves Carlin. And she married me, what does that tell you?) I felt he spoke to me more than others. I know my father was more of a fan of his pre-90s stuff, he went with us to a show of Carlin's in '04 when he was doing his "Life is Worth Losing" material and he felt he was far too nasty. To each is own, I just need a little brutal honesty in my comedy from time to time.

If anyone is interested, the Netflix streaming service now has every single stand-up special Carlin ever did, as well as the first and tenth seasons of Saturday Night Live, which were the only two times he hosted, including the very first episode.

Also, while all four of his books are excellent, the final one, his autobiography "Last Words" is amazing, I highly recommend it for anyone even slightly interested in the man.
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