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| George Carlin |
Known for his obscenity-laced routines and for pushing the boundaries of what you can and cannot say on television, Tonight Show favorite and Grammy winning comic George Carlin passed away on Sunday of heart failure. He was 71.
Carlin had a history of heart problems, including a heart attack and subsequent bypass surgeries in the ’80s, his publicist Jeff Abraham told the Los Angeles Times. He was admitted to St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica on Sunday after complaining of heart pains.
The comedian made a name for himself in the ’60s as one half of Burns & Carlin, his comic duo with comedian Jack Burns. In 1972, he achieved cult icon status when he was arrested in Milwaukee for using indecent language.
A year later, in a separate suit, a radio listener complained after a station played a portion of his album. That suit went all the way to the Supreme Court where, in 1978, they ruled in favor of the Federal Communications Commission, saying the radio station could not broadcast those words at times when children could be listening.
In the ’80s and ’90s, Carlin remained in the spotlight through a series of talk show appearances, movie roles and cable TV comic specials. Last year, he told reporters that a highlight of his career was the 1992 HBO special titled Jamming in New York.
"There are three ingredients in my comedy," he said in a 1991 interview with the Los Angeles Times. "Those three things which wax and wane in importance are English language and wordplay; secondly, mundane, everyday observational comedy... dogs, cats and all that stuff; and thirdly, sociopolitical attitude comedy."
Carlin’s passing comes just days after the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced he would be awarded the 11th Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Carlin will be honored at a tribute performance by fellow colleagues in November.
Carlin is survived by his wife Sally Wade. His first wife, Brenda, died in 1997.
