Saying Goodbye Is Very Hard To Do: A George Carlin Tribute

“Most people work just hard enough not to get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit.”
-- George Carlin

“Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.”
-- George Carlin

“The reason they call it the American Dream is because you have to be asleep to believe it.”
-- George Carlin

Fuck is the most beautiful word in the English language. In one of my first creative writing classes in college, I wrote an awful short story called The Nostromo. If you have ever been in a writing workshop, they can be brutal. No one likes anything you write. Poetry workshops are the worst-- Charles Bukowski would have had a field day with these work shops. As I remember, he did write a few poems about the workshop experience. These took up three years of my life, but that is another story. In my first creative writing course, I got my ass handed to me because I used the word fuck so many times. I will not lie to you; I love to use foul language. It is very cathartic, but it can lose its shock value and power. Just look at the Scarface remake-- I do not think I can watch it with a straight face anymore. Fuck is a very powerful word. It is a multi purpose word. You have to love Battlestar Galactica with their “frak” euphemisms. I love to use that word too.

I took George Carlin for granted. Hell, I took Tim Russert, Sydney Pollack, Arthur C. Clarke, Brad Renfro, Heath Ledger, Stan Winston, and everyone else who has died over the last couple of years for granted. Every week I wake up to the sad news of someone’s death. The sad thing is that I am never ready. There is a child like and naïve part of me that takes them for granted-- that they will always be here creating their magic. The truth is that I am never ready to hear that sad news-- whether it is an early death like that of Heath Ledger, John Belushi or Brad Renfro, or suicides like those of Kurt Cobain and Hunter S. Thompson. I am never ready to accept the deaths of anyone like Johnny Carson, Benny Hill, Charles Bukowski, Kurt Vonnegut or George Carlin. I knew that George Carlin had heart problems, but 71 years old seems too young to die. When I told my Mom this morning the sad news, she said he had lived a “hard 71 years.” Any death seems too young to me. I am never ready to let go. It is very immature on my part. I still have never reconciled myself to my Father’s stroke and subsequent illness from almost ten years ago. How can I say goodbye to someone like George Carlin? With him, I always felt like the best was yet to come. After this morning, I know that the best is not coming, but that is not entirely true. He will be the first posthumous recipient of the Mark Twain Prize this year. He is having the last laugh. He has been accepted by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

I am not going to lie and say I worshiped his work. I do not know all of his routines word for word. What I do know is that I always felt at home around him. I was allowed to stay up late to watch Saturday Night Live as a young child. I remember vividly watching the first one he hosted. I do not remember the details except for various cast members and some kind of muppet present. I do remember my brothers laughing their asses off and this made me laugh. It was just novel to stay up so late. I also remember them going ape shit when an ad for a KISS concert came on during one of those Saturday nights as well. My early exposure to the original Saturday Night Live always made me love those first five seasons best. They were magical like SCTV and Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show. Speaking of The Tonight Show, Carlin was always a blast on there as well. I miss good late night television. It has not been the same for many years. As much as I like watching Chelsea Lately, The Daily Show, David Letterman or Conan O’Brien, something special is missing. Carson cannot be replaced.

It is no accident that Kevin Smith used George Carlin in three of his films. Dogma, Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back and Jersey Girl all benefited from Carlin’s presence. It was very fitting that Carlin was in Dogma given all the controversy the film caused at the time. It was always appropriate that Kevin Smith work with the man that gave us those seven beautiful words you cannot say on television. Carlin fought against censorship all his life. Smith had many problems with Dogma, but he also had trouble with Clerks as well. The MPAA never showed Kevin Smith much love and I have never really cared for the MPAA and their stupid ratings system. I always liked George Carlin in Jersey Girl. Because of him, this one still feels like a Kevin Smith film-- even if it does not fit in the traditional parameters of his View Askewiverse. I will be very honest with you, I always appreciated Kevin Smith. He makes no bones about the influence George Carlin had on him. I just got finished reading Smith’s My Boring Ass Life. I was hoping the two of them would work again. I always felt at home watching Clerks. Kevin Smith got it right-- I could relate to his characters and the way they spoke. It was nasty, but incredibly funny and liberating. He and Carlin were kindred spirits. Kevin Smith wrote a loving tribute of him for Newsweek. I wished they had done more together. Kevin Smith speaks to me like no other filmmaker. His films show how people really speak. I could relate to his characters as soon as they came on screen.

I remember in the summer of 1997 when Robert Mitchum passed away a day before James Stewart. It was surreal to lose two titans in so short amount of time. Robert Mitchum is one of my favorite actors. He worked throughout his career. He worked until the very end; George Carlin worked until the end just like him. I think the analogy is fair and deserving. Mitchum was still a force to be reckoned in Jim Jarmusch’s Dead Man. George Carlin was still going strong with his concerts and specials. He was the Robert Mitchum of comedians. I always looked forward to his books and appearances on Real Time With Bill Maher. I rarely laugh out loud reading a book, but I could not stop laughing while reading When Will Jesus Bring The Pork Chops? Now I need to get all three of his books on CD. Whenever he had something to say, I listened because I knew it was never going to be politically correct. He always told the truth and more importantly he made us laugh. In this election year, his voice will be missed. It was bad enough that Hunter S. Thompson took his own life a couple of years ago. It is tragic that Kurt Vonnegut is no longer here. Now with George Carlin gone, it just does not feel right. You need individuals like them to call bullshit on everyone on both sides of the aisle. At least we still have Gore Vidal and Henry Rollins; well I hope we still have fucking Gore Vidal.

I will have many lasting memories of George Carlin. As Rufus, he brought a level of coolness to the Bill And Ted’s films that they might not have had. I liked him in Car Wash and obviously in the Kevin Smith films as well. I enjoyed those films because they are funny, but it may be just his short lived sitcom on Fox television, The George Carlin Show that I really enjoyed. I used to watch that show with my friend, Dave, every Sunday night. Not the greatest show in the world, but it was great to see Carlin get his own show. It was easy to watch because he was so inviting. He made me feel at home. His concert specials on HBO were no different. He had a way about him. As much as I liked Tough Crowd With Colin Quinn, they would have been nowhere without the influence of George Carlin. The first time George Carlin saw Lenny Bruce perform must have been one of those out of body experiences. We were the recipients of that experience. George Carlin gave us the gift of laughter for many decades. I will not forget that gift. The best way to honor his memory and legacy is to use those “Seven Dirty Words” as much as possible for the rest of our lives. I know I will. Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker, and Tits should be said with more pride than ever.

I was very touched by Quint’s tribute to George Carlin on Ain’t It Cool News. Quint remembered the first time he interviewed him and how nervous he was to be talking to him on the telephone. Quint told him he was nervous and Carlin gave him classic words to live by answer:
“Forget it. Let me tell you something. One thing I learned is if you go through life and don’t give a fuck you’ll find yourself a happier person.”
Fuck, I do not know about you, but coming from him that must have felt like the greatest advice ever. I wished that I had that kind of advice before I took the SAT’s or during the college admissions process in general. I just wished there was someone like Carlin around during all those stressful moments. George Carlin was a great stress buster. I do regret never seeing him in concert. I can honestly say I truly missed out. Now I really do have to complete my CD collection with the rest of his classic albums. His comedy was the best kind of release. I have a feeling it will always be the greatest release. I am thankful for the gifts he gave us.