Last night I went to see Comedian George Carlin in Santa Rosa performing for his HBO special "And it's Bad For Ya". It's the first time I've seen Carlin live and the first time in a while I've seen him in general. In the 70's, I was a fan of his "dirty words you can't say on TV" bit (which I think you can say all but one of now) and in the 80's he often played the aging hippie in TV and Movies (such as Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure). I hadn't seen his name around in a while so it was cool to go see him perform.
Now 70, Carlin had aged considerably since the last time I saw him on TV. Dressed in all black, Carlin hit a stage dressed up like an old clutered study with pictures of Richard Pryor and random art to represent the amount of time that has passed during his career. Opening with a rant against popular celebrities he launched into a long stretch about Death. It seemed natural at this stage in his life that Death would be on his mind, yet it was great to hear Carlin tackle the subject matter with his intellectually confrontational sarcasm.
Carlin was in good form throughout his set as he railed against modern child rearing, nationalisitic pride and organized religion with fervor. He went on for a little over an hour and kept his energy up throughout. His humor is as sharp and irreverent as ever, a fine return for a comedy legend. An' it's not bad for ya.
2 comments:
I confess to suffering a severe bout of "entertainment envy", Mr. Mike. I love George Carlin, always have. Was exposed to him early in life because I was a tag-along with my two older sisters who were allowed to do more grown-up things than I was. Officially, that is.
I'm glad that you and Mrs. Mr. Mike were able to go see him. Really I am. Sounds like a good time was had by all.
BTW, enjoy your vacation. I guess I'll survive a week without reading your blog. Just kidding, you guys have a great time.
Thanks Some Kinda Wonderful!
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