One of his most famous routines, 'Seven words you can never say on television' even got him arrested on stage while performing at a festival in Milwaukee. The raw, racy and rebellious tone of the material on both albums helped cement the image of George Carlin as a counter-culture icon. In 1972 he released two groundbreaking albums, 'FM & AM' and 'Class Clown'. Shedding the suit and adopting a scruffy hippy dress sense, complete with beard and long hair, Carlin discovered his true identity. He was making a comfortable living with this persona, but he knew deep down it was just not who he was. Eventually going it alone, Carlin broke onto the stand-up scene in the mid-60s, performing 'safe' comedy routines, portraying the image of the clean cut conventional comedian of the day, wearing a tidy suit with his hair short and combed. The pair named themselves 'Burns and Carlin' and enjoyed moderate success, playing venues across the country and releasing an album, but Carlin always wanted to be 'a single'. After a bout in the air force followed by numerous disk jokey jobs, his career in show business started in the early 60s as part of a double act with his friend, Jack Burns. He was raised a Roman Catholic, something that he could not help but rebel against - as later takes on religion in his act show plainly. Born on May 12th, 1937, in Manhattan, Carlin was brought up by his mother alone, after his father left when George and his brother were still young. A precursor of modern day stand-up, Carlin never stopped grafting away at his craft, producing twenty albums, fourteen HBO specials, writing three best selling books and touring across America with over a hundred live dates a year. He was a lover of the English language and possessed wicked memorising skills, constructing routines such as 'Modern man', hardly taking a breath as he rolled from word to word. His brand of comedy shocked, stimulated, educated and ultimately amused his audience.
As one of America's greatest ever stand-up comedians, George Carlin spent five decades shining the light on social and political issues, delving into unknown territory and always telling the truth.
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