Thank you, George Carlin. Say "hi" to Dick Martin and Harvey Korman.
The last month has seen some of my comedy heroes permanently exit the stage.
Every time I saw George Carlin (TV appearances, HBO specials, and movies) the last few years, I wondered how much longer he would be alive and how I would feel when he dies.
And now I know the answers because 1) George Carlin died today, and 2) that makes me feel like shoot (no, that's not a typo).
When I was in fifth grade, I was introduced to George Carlin by my friend Clarke Snell, who had Carlin's "FM & AM" album. As soon as I heard the routine entitled "Shoot," I was hooked. By the way, regarding the use of "shoot," Carlin's line was "They can't fool me, man. 'Shoot' is 'shit' with two o's."
Carlin was a brilliant comedian, but he was an even better social critic and modern-day philosopher. For many, he will always be best known for "The Seven Words You Can Never Say on TV." However, that bit was tame compared to some of his later material, and yet he was always able to talk about controversial topics in a very direct, no-compromise way AND make you think AND make you laugh.
I cannot adequately express my gratitude for what he brought to and added to my life. And while I am sad that Carlin is no longer part of this plane of existence, I am happy for him that in the afterlife there is no FCC.
In addition to Carlin, my sense of humor was shaped by two other people who also recently passed away. Our neighborhood was full of kids, but one night a week all playing outside and in would end right before "Rowan & Martin's Laugh In" came on. That was one show that no one would miss. On May 24, Dick Martin went to meet his co-host Dan Rowan in the great hereafter. Another show that we all watched every week was "The Carol Burnett Show"--undoubtedly one of the best sketch comedy shows in the history of ever. The cast was absolute magic, and that cast included Harvey Korman, who passed away on May 29. But in spite of the his brilliance on "The Carol Burnett Show," my favorite Korman role will always be Hedley Lamarr in "Blazing Saddles."
And to quote Hedley, I say to Carlin, Martin, and Korman that I hope you are all free to forever "do that voodoo that you do so well!"
Every time I saw George Carlin (TV appearances, HBO specials, and movies) the last few years, I wondered how much longer he would be alive and how I would feel when he dies.
And now I know the answers because 1) George Carlin died today, and 2) that makes me feel like shoot (no, that's not a typo).
When I was in fifth grade, I was introduced to George Carlin by my friend Clarke Snell, who had Carlin's "FM & AM" album. As soon as I heard the routine entitled "Shoot," I was hooked. By the way, regarding the use of "shoot," Carlin's line was "They can't fool me, man. 'Shoot' is 'shit' with two o's."
Carlin was a brilliant comedian, but he was an even better social critic and modern-day philosopher. For many, he will always be best known for "The Seven Words You Can Never Say on TV." However, that bit was tame compared to some of his later material, and yet he was always able to talk about controversial topics in a very direct, no-compromise way AND make you think AND make you laugh.
I cannot adequately express my gratitude for what he brought to and added to my life. And while I am sad that Carlin is no longer part of this plane of existence, I am happy for him that in the afterlife there is no FCC.
In addition to Carlin, my sense of humor was shaped by two other people who also recently passed away. Our neighborhood was full of kids, but one night a week all playing outside and in would end right before "Rowan & Martin's Laugh In" came on. That was one show that no one would miss. On May 24, Dick Martin went to meet his co-host Dan Rowan in the great hereafter. Another show that we all watched every week was "The Carol Burnett Show"--undoubtedly one of the best sketch comedy shows in the history of ever. The cast was absolute magic, and that cast included Harvey Korman, who passed away on May 29. But in spite of the his brilliance on "The Carol Burnett Show," my favorite Korman role will always be Hedley Lamarr in "Blazing Saddles."
And to quote Hedley, I say to Carlin, Martin, and Korman that I hope you are all free to forever "do that voodoo that you do so well!"
posted by WCharles @ 6/23/2008 11:37:00 PM
3 Comments:
Allo. I am not the Ray who has posted on some of your other entries, but a fellow attorney/ Democrat/ Methodist/ baseball fan (albeit of ones not on your list, as the link will reveal).
Be sure to stop by and say hi when you get blogging again. I've enjoyed what I just discovered from June and will look for more.
Welcome, Ray, and thanks for the kind words.
I will start blogging again at some point. Life its ownself has been hectic, and I am still recovering from big time blogging burnout. If you come back to visit, we might need to make some way to differentiate between you and the Ray that is one of the (few) regular participants here because you two have so much in common. LOL
You and Ray share a passion for NY baseball, but he is a Yankees fan. However, your team of choice still causes me consternation, as I recall 1986 as a very painful season thanks to your Mets. The NLCS was bad enough, and then the WS just added insult to injury.
At the time I was in law school and living in a buliding with four apartments. I was downstairs, and one of my upstairs neighbors was a fellow 3L--and a Mets fan. We did not watch the games together, but you could hear both of us yelling during the games. It was really funny. The Astros would do something good, and I would cheer while he cussed. And then the Mets would do something good, and he would cheer while I cussed. :-) I couldn't be mad at him, though. He was a great guy, and he helped me out big time in a class we took together that semester.
As for blogging, I am working on a post about the Olympics. More specifically, the post will be about Derek Redmond.
I think I'm insulted, I'm not a Democrat, nor a Methodist and most especially I am not an ambulance chaser. But hey, in my little corner of NY we do have a AA Mets farm team, but I am a Yankees fan. So, I'm trying to figure out what I have in common with Ray2. At least his parents gave him a noble name.
Post a Comment
<< Home