George Carlin: Seven Dirty Words You Can Never Say on Television (1978)

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The seven dirty words are seven English-language curse words that American comedian George Carlin first listed in his 1972 "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television" monologue.[1] The words, in the order Carlin listed them, are: "shit", "piss", "fuck", "cunt", "cocksucker", "motherfucker", and "tits".[1][2]

At the time, the words were considered highly inappropriate and unsuitable for broadcast on the public airwaves in the United States, whether radio or television. As such, they were avoided in scripted material and bleep censored in the rare cases in which they were used. Broadcast standards differ in different parts of the world, then and now, although most of the words on Carlin's original list remain taboo on American broadcast television. The list was not an official enumeration of forbidden words, but rather were compiled by Carlin to flow better in a comedy routine. Nonetheless, a radio broadcast featuring these words led to a Supreme Court 5–4 decision in 1978 in FCC v. Pacifica Foundation that the FCC's declaratory ruling did not violate either the First or Fifth Amendments, thus helping define the extent to which the federal government could regulate speech on broadcast television and radio in the United States.
Background

During a performance in 1966, comedian Lenny Bruce said he had been arrested for saying nine words: "ass", "balls", "cocksucker", "cunt", "fuck", "motherfucker", "piss", "shit", and "tits".[3] In 1972, comedian George Carlin released his fourth stand-up album Class Clown. One track on the album, "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television", was a monologue in which he identified these words and expressed amazement that they could not be used regardless of context. In a 2004 NPR interview, he said:

I don't know that there was a "Eureka!" moment or anything like that. [...] On these other things, we get into the field of hypocrisy. Where you really cannot pin down what these rules they want to enforce are. It's just impossible to say "this is a blanket rule". You'll see some newspapers print "f blank blank k". Some print "f asterisk asterisk k". Some put "f blank blank blank". Some put the word "bleep". Some put "expletive deleted". So there's no real consistent standard. It's not a science. It's a notion that they have and it's superstitious. These words have no power. We give them this power by refusing to be free and easy with them. We give them great power over us. They really, in themselves, have no power. It's the thrust of the sentence that makes them either good or bad.[4]

Carlin was arrested for disturbing the peace when he performed the routine at a show at Summerfest in Milwaukee in 1972. On his next album, 1973's Occupation: Foole, he performed a similar routine titled "Filthy Words", dealing with the same list and many of the same themes. Pacifica station WBAI broadcast this version of the routine uncensored on October 30 that year.
Federal Communications Commission v. Pacifica Foundation
Main article: FCC v. Pacifica Foundation

In 1973 John Douglas, an active member of Morality in Media, claimed that he heard the WBAI broadcast while driving with his then 15-year-old son, Dean, and complained to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that the material was inappropriate for the time of day (approximately 2:00 p.m.).[5][6]

Following the lodging of the complaint, the FCC proceeded to ask Pacifica for a response, then issued a declaratory order upholding the complaint. No specific sanctions were included in the order, but WBAI was put on notice that "in the event subsequent complaints are received, the Commission will then decide whether it should utilize any of the available sanctions it has been granted by Congress". WBAI appealed against this declaratory ruling, and the ruling was overturned by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 2–1 decision on the grounds that the FCC's definition of "indecency" was overbroad and vague and thus violated the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech. The FCC in turn appealed to the Supreme Court. As an independent federal agency, the FCC filed the appeal in its own name. The United States Department of Justice intervened in the case, supporting Pacifica's argument that the FCC's declaratory ruling violated the First Amendment and that it also violated the Fifth Amendment in that the FCC's definition of "indecency" was too vague to support criminal penalties.

In 1978, the Supreme Court, in a 5–4 decision, ruled that the FCC's declaratory ruling did not violate either the First or Fifth Amendments, but it limited the scope of its decision to the specific broadcast that caused the declaratory ruling and declined to consider whether the FCC's definition of indecency would survive a First Amendment challenge if applied to the broadcast of other material containing the same or similar words which had been cited in Pacifica's brief (e.g., works of Shakespeare – "pissing conduits", "bawdy hand of the dial on the prick of noon"; the Bible – "he who pisseth against the wall"; the Watergate Tapes). It noted that while the declaratory ruling pertained to the meaning of the term "indecency" as used in a criminal statute (18 USC 1464), since the FCC had not imposed any penalty on Pacifica, the Court did not need to reach the question as to whether the definition was too vague to satisfy the due process requirements of the Fifth Amendment.[7]

This decision formally established indecency regulation in American broadcasting. In follow-up rulings, the Supreme Court established the safe harbor provision that grants broadcasters the right to broadcast indecent (but not obscene) material between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am, when it is presumed few children would be watching.[8][9] The FCC has never maintained a specific list of words prohibited from the airwaves during the time period from 6 am to 10 pm.

The seven dirty words have been assumed to be likely to elicit indecency-related action by the FCC if uttered on a TV or radio broadcast, and thus the broadcast networks generally censor themselves with regard to many of the seven dirty words. The FCC regulations regarding "fleeting" use of expletives were ruled unconstitutionally vague by a three-judge panel of the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on July 13, 2010, as they violated the First Amendment due to their possible effects regarding free speech.[10][11][12]
The words

The original seven words named by Carlin are:

shit
piss
fuck
cunt
cocksucker
motherfucker
tits

In subsequent routines, Carlin would frequently deconstruct the list, proposing additions or deletions based on audience feedback, or sometimes on his own whims. For example, a man asked him to remove motherfucker because, as a derivative of fuck, it constituted a duplication: "He says motherfucker is a duplication of the word fuck, technically, because fuck is the root form, motherfucker being derivative; therefore, it constitutes duplication. And I said, 'Hey, motherfucker, how did you get my phone number, anyway?'".[13]

He later added it back, claiming the bit's rhythm does not work without it.[13] In his comedy routine, Carlin would make fun of each word; for example, he would say that tits should not be on the list because it sounds like a nickname ("Hey, Tits, c'mere!") or the name of a snack food ("New Nabisco Tits! ... corn tits, cheese tits, tater tits!").

A follow-up routine, titled "Filthy Words" (featured on his album Occupation: Foole) sees Carlin revisiting the original list and admitting that it is not complete, proceeding to add the words "fart", "turd", and "twat" to the list. He brings this up again in another follow-up routine, "Dirty Words" (featured in George Carlin: Again!), still feeling the list was not yet complete, and assures the audience: "Some of your favorites might make the list this year!".
Availability

Carlin performed the routine many times and included it, in whole or in part, on several of his records and HBO specials. Parts or all of the performance appear on the following releases:

1972 – Class Clown – Audio recording – "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television"
1973 – Occupation: Foole – Audio recording – "Filthy Words"
1977 – George Carlin at USC – HBO special – "Forbidden Words"
1978 – George Carlin: Again! – HBO special – "Dirty Words"
1983 – Carlin at Carnegie – HBO special – "Filthy Words"

The Carlin at Carnegie version can be heard as "An Incomplete List of Impolite Words" on the 1984 album Carlin on Campus (but not in the HBO special, Carlin on Campus). That version of the list features over 300 dirty words and phrases in an effort to stop people telling him that he left something off the list. Four days after Carlin's original Class Clown recording, the routine was performed again for students at the University of California, Los Angeles. This would be months before its first official release. The recording was restored in December, 2013 and uploaded to YouTube by archivists at UCLA and could be accessed free of charge, but is no longer available due to a claim of copyright infringement.[14] The FCC ruling is referenced in "Offensive Language" from the album Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics and HBO special Doin' It Again, both 1990 recordings of the same performance; however, the routine that follows is entirely different.

The Class Clown version can also be heard on the vinyl/cassette only release Indecent Exposure (1978). The Occupation: Foole version can also be heard on Classic Gold (1992). Both versions were re-released again as part of The Little David Years (1971–1977).
H.R. 3687

U2 singer Bono said on live television that his 2003 Golden Globe Award was "really, really fucking brilliant!" Despite complaints, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) did not fine the network. In apparent reaction,[15] on December 8, 2003, Rep. Doug Ose (R-California) introduced H.R. 3687, the "Clean Airwaves Act",[15] in Congress to designate a derivative list of Carlin's offensive words as profane in the U.S. Code. The stated purpose of the bill was "To amend section 1464 of title 18 of the United States Code, to provide for the punishment of certain profane broadcasts." In the text of the bill, the words shit, piss, fuck, cunt, asshole, and the phrases cock sucker, mother fucker, and ass hole are specifically listed.[16] The bill was not enacted.
Subscription services

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CNN could freely discuss Donald Trump's characterization of "shithole countries" because CNN is available only by subscription, not broadcast over open airwaves.

The FCC obscenity guidelines do not apply to non-broadcast media such as cable television, satellite TV, or satellite radio.[17] Whether the FCC or the Department of Justice could be empowered by the Congress to restrict indecent content on cable television without such legislation violating the Constitution has never been settled by a court of law. Since cable television must be subscribed to in order to receive it legally, subscribers who object to the content being delivered may cancel their subscription, an incentive is created for the cable operators to self-regulate (unlike broadcast television, cable television is not legally considered to be "pervasive", nor does it depend on a scarce, government-allocated electromagnetic spectrum; as such, neither of the arguments buttressing the case for broadcast regulation particularly apply to cable television).

Self-regulation by many basic cable networks is undertaken by Standards and Practices (S&P) departments that self-censor their programming because of the pressure put on them by advertisers – also meaning that any basic cable network willing to ignore such pressure could use any of the Seven Dirty Words. All of the words on Carlin's list have come into common usage in many made-for-cable series and film productions.
See also

iconTelevision portalflagUnited States portal

Communications Decency Act
Family Reunion (Blink-182 song), referencing the Seven Dirty Words
Morality in Media
Profanity
The Green Book (BBC)
Watershed (broadcasting)

References

Carlin, George. Linder, Doug (ed.). "Filthy Words by George Carlin". Exploring Constitutional Conflicts. University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law. Archived from the original on 2011-01-23. Retrieved 2017-03-11. "The following is a verbatim transcript of "Filthy Words" (the George Carlin monologue at issue in the Supreme Court case of FCC v. Pacifica Foundation) prepared by the Federal Communications Commission..."
James Sullivan: Seven Dirty Words: The Life and Crimes of George Carlin. ISBN 9780786745920. p. 4
"The Lenny Bruce Performance Film". IMDb. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
Carlin, George (November 1, 2004). "Comedian and Actor George Carlin". National Public Radio (Interview). Interviewed by Terry Gross.
"Boca Man Forever Linked To George Carlin". WPEC. June 23, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-06-28. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
Samaha, Adam. "The Story of FCC v. Pacifica Foundation (and Its Second Life)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-04-19. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
"First Amendment Library entry on the case". Archived from the original on 2004-05-17. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
"Seven Dirty Words You Can't Say on TV – script". Retrieved 2014-02-18.
"Seven words you can never say on television"... but which are said on the Internet. A lot. – A survey on the prevalence of the Seven Words in political blogs". Archived from the original on 2007-03-03. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
Puzzanghera, Jim. ""FCC indecency rule struck down by appeals court", Los Angeles Times, July 13, 2010". Sltrib.com. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
Puzzanghera, Jim; James, Meg (2010-07-14). "FCC indecency rule struck down by appeals court – Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
Edward Wyatt (July 13, 2010). "F.C.C. Indecency Policy Rejected on Appeal". The New York Times. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
Carlin, George. On Location: George Carlin at Phoenix (DVD). HBO Home Video.
George Carlin at UCLA 5/31/1972 on YouTube
"Congressmen introduces bill to curb profanity in broadcasting". Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. 8 January 2004.
"Text – H.R.3687". Congress.gov. Library of Congress. 15 January 2004. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
"Obscene, Indecent and Profane Broadcasts". Federal Communications Commission. 11 December 2015. "...the same rules for indecency and profanity do not apply to cable, satellite TV and satellite radio because they are subscription services."

George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, author, and social critic. Regarded as one of the most important and influential stand-up comedians of all time, he was dubbed "the dean of counterculture comedians". He was known for his black comedy and reflections on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and taboo subjects. His "seven dirty words" routine was central to the 1978 United States Supreme Court case F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation, in which a 5–4 decision affirmed the government's power to censor indecent material on public airwaves.

The first of Carlin's 14 stand-up comedy specials for HBO was filmed in 1977, broadcast as George Carlin at USC. From the late 1980s onwards, his routines focused on sociocultural criticism of American society. He often commented on American political issues and satirized American culture. He was a frequent performer and guest host on The Tonight Show during the three-decade Johnny Carson era and hosted the first episode of Saturday Night Live in 1975. His final comedy special, It's Bad for Ya, was filmed less than four months before his death from cardiac failure. In 2008, he was posthumously awarded the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. In 2004, he placed second on Comedy Central's list of top 10 American comedians,[1] and in 2017, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him second on its list of the 50 best stand-up comedians of all time, in both cases behind Richard Pryor.[2]

Carlin's film roles included a taxi driver in Car Wash, Frank Madras in Outrageous Fortune, Rufus in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, Eddie Detreville in The Prince of Tides, Cardinal Ignatius Glick in Dogma, Hitchhiker in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Architect in Scary Movie 3, and Bart Trinké in Jersey Girl. He also had voice roles as Zugor in Tarzan II, Fillmore in Cars, and as Mr. Conductor on Shining Time Station, as well as narrating the American dubs for the Thomas & Friends segments.
Early life

George Denis Patrick Carlin[3] was born at New York Hospital in Manhattan on May 12, 1937, the second of two sons born to Mary (née Bearey, 1896–1984) and Patrick John Carlin (1888–1945).[4][5] Carlin had an older brother, Patrick Jr. (1931–2022), who later had a major influence on his comedy.[6] His father was an Irish immigrant from Cloghan, a village in County Donegal in Ulster and his mother was born in New York City to Irish immigrants, leading Carlin to later describe himself as "fully Irish".[7] He wrote in his posthumously published autobiography Last Words that, when his first wife Brenda was alive, "I used to have a fantasy of Ireland, the southeastern parts so that it would be a little warmer, and the two of us there, close enough to Dublin that you could go buy things you needed."[8] His parents separated when he was two months old because of his father's alcoholism, so his mother raised him and his brother on her own.[9] His father died when Carlin was eight years old.[10] Carlin's maternal grandfather, Dennis Bearey, was an NYPD police officer, who wrote out the works of William Shakespeare by hand for fun.[11][12]

Carlin said that he picked up an appreciation for the effective use of the English language from his mother,[13] though they had a difficult relationship and he often ran away from home.[14] He grew up on West 121st Street in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, which he and his friends called "White Harlem" because it "sounded a lot tougher than its real name".[10] He attended Corpus Christi School, a Roman Catholic parish school of the Corpus Christi Church in Morningside Heights.[15][16] One of Carlin's best childhood friends was fellow student Randy Jurgensen who went on to become one of the most decorated homicide detectives in the NYPD's history.[17] His mother owned a television, which was a new technology few people owned at the time, and Carlin became an avid fan of the pioneering late-night talk show Broadway Open House during its short run.[18] He went to the Bronx for high school but, after three semesters, was expelled from Cardinal Hayes High School at age 15. He briefly attended Bishop Dubois High School in Harlem and Salesian High School in Goshen.[19] He spent many summers at Camp Notre Dame in Spofford, New Hampshire, where he regularly won the camp's drama award. Later, at his request, some of his ashes were spread at Spofford Lake upon his death.[20]

Carlin joined the U.S. Air Force and trained as a radar technician. He was stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City, Louisiana, and began working as a disc jockey at radio station KJOE in nearby Shreveport. Labeled an "unproductive airman" by his superiors, he received a general discharge on July 29, 1957. During his time in the Air Force, he had been court-martialed three times and received many nonjudicial punishments and reprimands.[21]
Career
1960s to 1970s
Carlin (standing) with singer Buddy Greco in 1967

In 1959, Carlin met Jack Burns, a fellow DJ at radio station KXOL in Fort Worth, Texas.[22] They formed a comedy team and after successful performances at Fort Worth's beat coffeehouse called The Cellar, Burns and Carlin headed for California in February 1960.[3]

Within weeks of arriving in California, Burns and Carlin put together an audition tape and created The Wright Brothers, a morning show on KDAY in Hollywood. During their tenure at KDAY, they honed their material in beatnik coffeehouses at night.[23] Years later when he was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Carlin requested that it be placed in front of the KDAY studios near the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street.[24] Burns and Carlin recorded their only album, Burns and Carlin at the Playboy Club Tonight, in May 1960 at Cosmo Alley in Hollywood.[23] After two years together as a team, they parted to pursue individual careers, but "remain[ed] the best of friends".[25]
Carlin performing on This Is Tom Jones in 1969

In the 1960s, Carlin began appearing on television variety shows, where he played various characters including a Native American sergeant, a stupid radio disc jockey, and a hippie weatherman.[26] Variations on these routines appear on Carlin's 1967 debut album, Take-Offs and Put-Ons, which was recorded live in 1966 at The Roostertail in Detroit, Michigan and issued by RCA Victor in 1967.[26] During this period, Carlin became a frequent performer and guest host on The Tonight Show, initially with Jack Paar as host, and then with Johnny Carson. Carlin became one of Carson's most frequent substitutes during the host's three-decade reign. Carlin was also cast in Away We Go, a 1967 comedy show that aired on CBS.[27] His material during his early career and his appearance, which consisted of suits and short-cropped hair, had been seen as "conventional", particularly when contrasted with his later anti-establishment material.[28]

Carlin was present at Lenny Bruce's arrest for obscenity. As the police began attempting to detain members of the audience for questioning, they asked Carlin for his identification. Telling the police he did not believe in government-issued IDs, he was arrested and taken to jail with Bruce in the same vehicle.[29] In the late 1960s, Carlin was making about $250,000 annually.[30] Over time, Carlin changed his routines and his appearance; he grew his hair long, sported a beard and earrings, and typically dressed in T-shirts and blue jeans. He lost some TV bookings by dressing strangely for a comedian at a time when clean-cut, well-dressed comedians were the norm. He hired talent managers Jeff Wald and Ron De Blasio to help him change his image, making him look more "hip" for a younger audience. Wald put Carlin into much smaller clubs such as The Troubadour in West Hollywood and The Bitter End in New York City, and later said that Carlin's income was thus reduced by 90% but his later career arc was greatly improved.[30] In 1970, record producer Monte Kay formed the Little David Records subsidiary of Atlantic Records, with comedian Flip Wilson as co-owner.[31] Kay and Wilson signed Carlin away from RCA Records and recorded a Carlin performance at Washington, D.C.'s Cellar Door in May 1971, which was released as FM & AM in January 1972. De Blasio was busy managing the fast-paced career of Freddie Prinze and was about to sign Richard Pryor, so he released Carlin to Little David general manager Jack Lewis, who, like Carlin, was somewhat wild and rebellious.[32] Using his own persona as a springboard for his new comedy, he was presented by Ed Sullivan in a performance of "The Hair Piece" and quickly regained his popularity as the public caught on to his sense of style.[33]

Starting in 1972, singer-songwriter Kenny Rankin was Carlin's label mate on Little David Records, and Rankin served many times as Carlin's musical guest or opening act during the early 1970s. The two flew together in Carlin's private jet; Carlin says that Rankin relapsed into using cocaine while on tour since Carlin had so much of the drug available.[34] The album FM & AM proved very popular. It marked Carlin's change from mainstream to counterculture comedy. The "AM" side was an extension of Carlin's previous style, with zany but relatively clean routines parodying aspects of American life. The "FM" side introduced Carlin's new style, with references to marijuana and birth control pills, and a playful examination of the word "shit". In this manner, Carlin renewed a style of radical social commentary comedy that Lenny Bruce had pioneered in the late 1950s.[30]
Carlin in the 1970s

In this period, Carlin perfected his well-known "seven dirty words" routine, which most notably appears on Class Clown as follows: "'Shit', 'piss', 'fuck', 'cunt', 'cocksucker', 'motherfucker', and 'tits'. Those are the heavy seven. Those are the ones that'll infect your soul, curve your spine and keep the country from winning the war." On July 21, 1972, Carlin was arrested after performing this routine at Milwaukee's Summerfest and charged with violating obscenity laws.[35] The case, which prompted Carlin to refer to the words for a time as the "Milwaukee Seven", was dismissed in December when the judge declared that the language was indecent but that Carlin had the freedom to say it as long as he caused no disturbance.[36] In 1973, a man complained to the FCC after listening with his son to a similar routine, "Filthy Words" from Carlin's Occupation: Foole, which was broadcast one afternoon over radio station WBAI. Pacifica received a citation from the FCC for violating regulations that prohibit broadcasting "obscene" material. The Supreme Court upheld the FCC action by a vote of 5 to 4, ruling that the routine was "indecent but not obscene" and that the FCC had authority to prohibit such broadcasts during hours when children were likely to be among the audience.[37][38]

The controversy increased Carlin's fame. He eventually expanded the "dirty words" theme with a seemingly interminable end to a performance, finishing with his voice fading out in one HBO version and accompanying the credits in the Carlin at Carnegie special for the 1982–83 season, and a set of 49 web pages organized by subject and embracing his "Incomplete List of Impolite Words".[39] On stage, during a rendition of this routine, Carlin learned that his previous comedy album FM & AM had won a Grammy. Midway through the performance on the album Occupation: Foole, he can be heard thanking someone for handing him a piece of paper. He then exclaimed "shit!" and proudly announced his win to the audience.[40]

George Carlin was arrested seven times for reciting the "Seven Dirty Words" routine.[41]

Carlin hosted the premiere broadcast of NBC's Saturday Night Live on October 11, 1975. Per his request, he did not appear in its sketches.[42] The following season, 1976–1977, he appeared regularly on CBS Television's Tony Orlando & Dawn variety series.[43]

Carlin unexpectedly stopped performing regularly in 1976, when his career appeared to be at its height. For the next five years, he rarely performed stand-up, although it was at this time that he began doing specials for HBO as part of its On Location series; he did 14 specials, including 2008's It's Bad For Ya![44] He later revealed that he had suffered the first of three heart attacks during this layoff period.[45] His first two HBO specials aired in 1977 and 1978.[46][47]
1980s

In 1981, Carlin returned to the stage, releasing A Place for My Stuff and returning to HBO and New York City with the Carlin at Carnegie TV special, videotaped at Carnegie Hall and airing during the 1982–83 season. Carlin continued doing HBO specials every year or two over the following decade and a half. All of Carlin's albums from this time forward are from the HBO specials.[48][49]

He hosted SNL for the second time on November 10, 1984, this time appearing in several sketches.[50]

Carlin began to achieve prominence as a film actor with a major supporting role in the 1987 comedy hit Outrageous Fortune, starring Bette Midler and Shelley Long; it was his first notable screen role after a handful of previous guest roles on television series. Playing drifter Frank Madras, he poked fun at the lingering effect of the 1960s counterculture. In 1989, he gained popularity with a new generation of teens when he was cast as Rufus, the time-traveling mentor of the title characters in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, and reprised his role in the film sequel Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey as well as the first season of the cartoon series.
1990s
Carlin at a book signing for Brain Droppings in 2004

In 1991, Carlin had a major supporting role in the film The Prince of Tides, which starred Nick Nolte and Barbra Streisand, portraying the gay neighbor of the main character's suicidal sister.[51]

He also played the role of "Mr Conductor" on the PBS show Shining Time Station and also narrated the show's sequences of the United States, Canada, and New Zealand version of the children's television series Thomas & Friends from 1991 to 1996, replacing Ringo Starr. Carlin had narrated the first four seasons of what would later become known as Thomas & Friends for use on Shining Time Station. According to Britt Allcroft, who developed both shows, on the first day of the assignment, Carlin was nervous about recording his narration without an audience, so the producers put a stuffed teddy bear in the booth.[52]

In 1993, Carlin began a weekly Fox sitcom, The George Carlin Show, playing New York City taxicab driver George O'Grady. The show, created and written by The Simpsons co-creator Sam Simon, ran 27 episodes through December 1995.[53] In his final book, the posthumously published Last Words, Carlin said about The George Carlin Show, "I had a great time. I never laughed so much, so often, so hard as I did with cast members Alex Rocco, Chris Rich, Tony Starke. There was a very strange, very good sense of humor on that stage ... [but] I was incredibly happy when the show was canceled. I was frustrated that it had taken me away from my true work."[54][page needed]

Carlin was honored at the 1997 Aspen Comedy Festival with a retrospective, George Carlin: 40 Years of Comedy, hosted by Jon Stewart. His first hardcover book, Brain Droppings (1997), sold nearly 900,000 copies and spent 40 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list.[55]
2000s

Carlin later explained that there were other, more pragmatic reasons for abandoning his acting career in favor of standup. In an interview for Esquire magazine in 2001, he said, "Because of my abuse of drugs, I neglected my business affairs and had large arrears with the IRS, and that took me eighteen to twenty years to dig out of. I did it honorably, and I don't begrudge them. I don't hate paying taxes, and I'm not angry at anyone, because I was complicit in it. But I'll tell you what it did for me: it made me a way better comedian. Because I had to stay out on the road and I couldn't pursue that movie career, which would have gone nowhere, and I became a really good comic and a really good writer."[56]

In 2001, Carlin was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 15th Annual American Comedy Awards. In December 2003, Representative Doug Ose (R-California) introduced a bill (H.R. 3687) to outlaw the broadcast of Carlin's "seven dirty words",[57] including "compound use (including hyphenated compounds) of such words and phrases with each other or with other words or phrases, and other grammatical forms of such words and phrases (including verb, adjective, gerund, participle, and infinitive forms)". The bill omitted "tits", but included "asshole", which was not one of Carlin's original seven words. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution in January 2004, where it was tabled.[57]
Carlin in April 2008

Carlin performed regularly as a headliner in Las Vegas, but in 2004 his run at the MGM Grand Las Vegas was terminated after an altercation with his audience. After a poorly received set, filled with dark references to suicide bombings and beheadings, Carlin complained that he could not wait to get out of "this fucking hotel" and Las Vegas; he wanted to go back east, he said, "where the real people are". He continued: "People who go to Las Vegas, you've got to question their fucking intellect to start with. Traveling hundreds and thousands of miles to essentially give your money to a large corporation is kind of fucking moronic. That's what I'm always getting here is these kind of fucking people with very limited intellects." When an audience member shouted, "Stop degrading us!" Carlin responded, "Thank you very much, whatever that was. I hope it was positive; if not, well, blow me." He was immediately fired, and soon thereafter his representative announced that he would begin treatment for alcohol and prescription painkiller addiction on his own initiative.[58][59]

Following his thirteenth HBO special on November 5, 2005, Life Is Worth Losing,[60] which aired live from the Beacon Theatre in New York City – during which he mentioned, "I've got 341 days sober" – Carlin toured his new material through the first half of 2006. Topics included suicide, natural disasters, cannibalism, genocide, human sacrifice, threats to civil liberties in the U.S., and the case for his theory that humans are inferior to other animals. At the first tour stop in February at the Tachi Palace Casino in Lemoore, California, Carlin mentioned that the appearance was his "first show back" after a six-week hospitalization for heart failure and pneumonia.[citation needed]

In the 2006 Disney/Pixar animated feature Cars, Carlin voiced Fillmore, an anti-establishment hippie VW Microbus with a psychedelic paint job and the license plate "51237" – Carlin's birthday. In 2007, Carlin voiced the wizard in Happily N'Ever After, his last film. Carlin's last HBO stand-up special, It's Bad for Ya, aired live on March 1, 2008, from the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa, California.[61] Themes included "American bullshit", rights, death, old age, and child rearing. He repeated the theme to his audience several times throughout the show: "It's all bullshit, and it's bad for ya."[62] When asked on Inside the Actors Studio what turned him on, he responded, "Reading about language." When asked what made him proudest of his career, he said the number of his books that have been sold, close to a million copies.[citation needed]
Personal life

In August 1960, while touring with comedy partner Jack Burns in Dayton, Ohio, Carlin met Brenda Hosbrook. They were married at her parents' home in Dayton on June 3, 1961.[63] The couple's only child, Kelly Marie Carlin, was born on June 15, 1963. The two renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas in 1971. Hosbrook died of liver cancer on May 11, 1997, the day before Carlin's 60th birthday.[64] Six months later, he met comedy writer Sally Wade, and later described it as "love at first sight" but admitted that he was hesitant to act on his feelings so soon after his wife's death.[65] He eventually married Wade in a private and unregistered ceremony on June 24, 1998. The marriage lasted until Carlin's death in 2008.[66][67]

In a 2008 interview, Carlin stated that using cannabis, LSD, and mescaline had helped him cope with events in his personal life.[10] He also stated several times that he had battled addictions to alcohol, Vicodin, and cocaine,[68] and spent some time in a rehab facility in late 2004.[69]

Although born into a Catholic family, he vocally rejected religion in all of its forms, and frequently criticized and mocked it in his comedy routines.[70] When asked if he believed in God, he responded, "No. No, there's no God, but there might be some sort of an organizing intelligence, and I think to understand it is way beyond our ability."[71]
Health problems and death

Carlin had a history of heart problems spanning three decades.[72][73] This included heart attacks in 1978, 1982, and 1991; an arrhythmia requiring an ablation procedure in 2003; a significant episode of heart failure in 2005; and two angioplasties on undisclosed dates.[74] On June 22, 2008, at the age of 71, he died due to heart failure at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California.[75][76] His death occurred one week after his last performance at The Orleans Hotel and Casino. In accordance with his wishes, his body was cremated and his ashes were scattered in front of various New York City nightclubs and over Spofford Lake in New Hampshire, where he had attended summer camp as an adolescent.[77]
Tributes
George Carlin Way in Manhattan, New York

Upon his death in 2008, HBO broadcast 11 of his 14 HBO specials from June 25 to 28, including a 12-hour marathon block on their HBO Comedy channel. NBC scheduled a rerun of the premiere episode of Saturday Night Live, which Carlin hosted.[78][79][80] Both Sirius Satellite Radio's "Raw Dog Comedy" and XM Satellite Radio's "XM Comedy" channels ran a memorial marathon of George Carlin recordings the day following his death. Sirius XM Satellite Radio has since devoted an entire channel to Carlin, entitled Carlin's Corner, featuring all of his comedy albums, live concerts, and works from his private archives.[81] Larry King devoted his entire show of June 23 to a tribute to Carlin, featuring interviews with Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Maher, Roseanne Barr and Lewis Black, as well as Carlin's daughter Kelly and his brother, Patrick Jr. On June 24, The New York Times printed an op-ed piece on Carlin by Jerry Seinfeld.[82] Cartoonist Garry Trudeau paid tribute in his Doonesbury comic strip on July 27.[83]
A dedication from the Laugh Factory two days after Carlin died

Four days before Carlin's death, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts had named him its 2008 Mark Twain Prize for American Humor honoree.[84] He became its first posthumous recipient on November 10, 2008, in Washington, D.C.[85] Comedians honoring him at the ceremony included Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, Lily Tomlin (a past Twain Humor Prize winner), Lewis Black, Denis Leary, Joan Rivers, and Margaret Cho. Louis C.K. dedicated his stand-up special Chewed Up to Carlin, and Lewis Black dedicated the second season of Root of All Evil to him.

For a number of years, Carlin had been compiling and writing his autobiography, to be released in conjunction with a one-man Broadway show tentatively titled New York Boy. After Carlin's death, Tony Hendra, his collaborator on both projects, edited the autobiography for release as Last Words. The book, chronicling most of Carlin's life and future plans, including the one-man show, was published in 2009. The abridged audio edition is narrated by Carlin's brother, Patrick Jr.[86]

The George Carlin Letters: The Permanent Courtship of Sally Wade,[87] by Carlin's widow, a collection of previously unpublished writings and artwork by Carlin interwoven with Wade's chronicle of their 10 years together, was published in March 2011. The subtitle is a phrase on a handwritten note that Wade found next to her computer upon returning home from the hospital after her husband's death.[88] In 2008 Carlin's daughter Kelly announced plans to publish an "oral history", a collection of stories from Carlin's friends and family.[89] She later indicated that the project had been shelved in favor of completion of her own project,[90] an autobiographical one-woman show, A Carlin Home Companion: Growing Up with George.[91][92]

On October 22, 2014, a portion of West 121st Street, in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan where Carlin spent his childhood, was renamed "George Carlin Way".[93]

Moneyball screenwriter Stan Chervin announced in October 2018 that a biopic of Carlin was in process.[94][95]

Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio's documentary on the comedian, titled George Carlin's American Dream, was released on May 20, 2022, on HBO Max.[96]

In a Netflix stand-up special released in May 2022, The Hall: Honoring the Greats of Stand-Up inducted George Carlin into the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, NY.[97]
Influences and legacy

Carlin's influences included Danny Kaye,[14][98] Jonathan Winters,[14] Lenny Bruce,[45][99][100] Richard Pryor,[45] Nichols and May,[101] Jerry Lewis,[14][45] the Marx Brothers,[14][45] Mort Sahl,[100] Spike Jones,[45] Ernie Kovacs,[45] and the Ritz Brothers.[14]

Comedians who have claimed Carlin as an influence include Adam Ferrara,[102] Bill Burr,[103] Chris Rock,[104] Jerry Seinfeld,[105] Louis C.K.,[106] Lewis Black,[107] Jon Stewart,[108] Stephen Colbert,[109] Bill Maher,[110][111] Liz Miele,[112] Patrice O'Neal,[113] Colin Quinn,[114] Steven Wright,[115] Mitch Hedberg,[116] Russell Peters,[117] Bo Burnham,[118] Jay Leno,[119] Ben Stiller,[119] Kevin Smith,[120] Chris Rush,[121] Rob McElhenney,[122] and Jim Jefferies.[123]
The "Carlin Warning"

After Carlin's seven dirty words routine and subsequent FCC v. Pacifica Foundation Supreme Court ruling in 1978, broadcasters started to use the "Carlin Warning" to remind performers of the words they could not say during a live performance.[124]
Internet hoaxes

Many online quotes have been falsely attributed to Carlin, including various joke lists, rants, and other pieces. The web site Snopes, which debunks urban legends and myths, has addressed these hoaxes. Many of them contain material that runs counter to Carlin's viewpoints; some are especially volatile toward racial groups, gay people, women, the homeless, and other targets. Carlin was aware of these bogus quotes and debunked them on his own website: "Here's a rule of thumb, folks: nothing you see on the Internet is mine unless it comes from one of my albums, books, HBO specials, or appeared on my website. [...] It bothers me that some people might believe that I would be capable of writing some of this stuff." Weird Al Yankovic referenced the hoaxes in his song "Stop Forwarding That Crap to Me" with the line, "And by the way, your quotes from George Carlin aren't really George Carlin."[125]
Works
Discography

Main

1963: Burns and Carlin at the Playboy Club Tonight
1967: Take-Offs and Put-Ons
1972: FM & AM
1972: Class Clown
1973: Occupation: Foole
1974: Toledo Window Box
1975: An Evening with Wally Londo Featuring Bill Slaszo
1977: On the Road
1981: A Place for My Stuff
1984: Carlin on Campus
1986: Playin' with Your Head
1988: What Am I Doing in New Jersey?
1990: Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics
1992: Jammin' in New York
1996: Back in Town
1999: You Are All Diseased
2001: Complaints and Grievances
2006: Life Is Worth Losing
2008: It's Bad for Ya
2016: I Kinda Like It When a Lotta People Die[126]

Compilations

1978: Indecent Exposure: Some of the Best of George Carlin
1984: The George Carlin Collection
1992: Classic Gold
1999: The Little David Years

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1968 With Six You Get Eggroll Herbie Fleck
1976 Car Wash Taxi Driver
1979 Americathon Narrator
1987 Outrageous Fortune Frank Madras
1989 Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure Rufus
1991 Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey Rufus
The Prince of Tides Eddie Detreville
1999 Dogma Cardinal Ignatius Glick
2001 Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back Hitchhiker
2003 Scary Movie 3 Architect
2004 Jersey Girl Bart Trinké
2005 The Aristocrats Himself
Tarzan II Zugor Voice
2006 Cars Fillmore
2007 Happily N'Ever After Wizard
2020 Bill & Ted Face the Music Rufus Posthumous release; archival footage[127]
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1962 The Tonight Show Himself 1 episode
1965 The Merv Griffin Show 1 episode
1966 The Jimmy Dean Show 2 episodes
The Kraft Summer Music Hall — Writer
1966 That Girl George Lester Episode: "Break a Leg"
1967–1971 The Ed Sullivan Show Himself 11 episodes
1968 The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour 1 episode
1969 What's My Line? 1 episode
The Game Game 1 episode
The Carol Burnett Show 1 episode
1971–1973 The Flip Wilson Show 6 episode
Also writer
1972 The Mike Douglas Show 1 episode
1977 Welcome Back, Kotter Wally 'The Wow' Wexler Episode: "Radio Free Freddie"
1975, 1984 Saturday Night Live Host Episodes: 1 and 183
1985 Apt. 2C Fictionalized version of himself, Jesus Christ Pilot episode produced for HBO
1987 Nick at Nite —
1988 Justin Case Justin Case TV movie directed Blake Edwards
1990 Working Tra$h Ralph Sawatzky Television film
1991–1996 Thomas & Friends Narrator Voice, 104 episodes
1991–1993 Shining Time Station Mr. Conductor, Narrator 45 episodes
1995 Shining Time Station: Once Upon a Time Television film
Shining Time Station: Second Chances
Shining Time Station: One of the Family
Streets of Laredo Billy Williams 3 episodes
Shining Time Station: Queen for a Day Mr. Conductor Television film
1994–1995 The George Carlin Show George O'Grady 27 episodes
1996 Mr. Conductor's Thomas Tales Mr. Conductor, Narrator 6 episodes
1999 Storytime with Thomas 2 episodes
1998 The Simpsons Munchie Voice, episode: "D'oh-in' in the Wind"
1999, 2004 The Daily Show Himself 3 episodes
2000 MADtv Mr. Conductor Episodes: 518 & 524
2004 Inside the Actors Studio Himself 1 episode
2008 Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales Fillmore Voice, episode: "Unidentified Flying Mater"; archival recordings
Video games
Year Title Role
2006 Cars Fillmore
HBO specials
Special Year Notes
On Location: George Carlin at USC 1977
George Carlin: Again! 1978
Carlin at Carnegie 1982
Carlin on Campus 1984
Playin' with Your Head 1986
What Am I Doing in New Jersey? 1988
Doin' It Again 1990
Jammin' in New York 1992
Back in Town 1996
George Carlin: 40 Years of Comedy 1997
You Are All Diseased 1999
Complaints and Grievances 2001
Life Is Worth Losing 2005
All My Stuff 2007 A box set of Carlin's first 12 stand-up specials
(excluding George Carlin: 40 Years of Comedy).
It's Bad for Ya 2008
Commemorative Collection 2018
Bibliography
Book Year Notes
Sometimes a Little Brain Damage Can Help 1984 ISBN 0-89471-271-3[128]
Brain Droppings 1997 ISBN 0-7868-8321-9[129]
Napalm and Silly Putty 2001 ISBN 0-7868-8758-3[130]
When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? 2004 ISBN 1-4013-0134-7[131]
Three Times Carlin: An Orgy of George 2006 ISBN 978-1-4013-0243-6[132] A collection of the three previous titles.
Last Words 2009 ISBN 1-4391-7295-1[133] Posthumous release.
Audiobooks

Brain Droppings
Napalm and Silly Putty
More Napalm & Silly Putty
George Carlin Reads to You (Compilation of Brain Droppings, Napalm and Silly Putty, and More Napalm & Silly Putty)
When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?

See also

Counterculture of the 1960s

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