Last Words (Abridged)

As one of America's most pre-eminent comedians, with 50 years worth of material and appearances on the international comedy circuit, George Carlin saw it all and made fun of most of it. Blending his signature acerbic humor with never before told stories from his own life, Last Words is part comedy routine, part reflection, and all original. Written with bestselling author Tony Hendra, Last Words is the story of the man behind some of the most seminal comedy and commentary of the last century.

Carlin's journey to stardom began in the rough and tumble neighborhoods of New York in the 1940s and '50s, where class and culture wars planted the seeds for some of his earliest material. Carlin describes his major influences as an up and coming comic, talking about the origins of some of his most famous stand up routines including the notorious Seven Words You Can Never Say On Television. Sparing no detail, Carlin describes his life and career, discussing his own battle with substance abuse, his turbulent relationships with his family, and the unique worldview that informed so much of his stand up. From the high points on stage to the low points few knew about, read by his brother Patrick Carlin, Last Words is George Carlin's life told with the same unblinking honesty that defined his comedy and made him one of the best loved comedians in American history.

The autobiography that George Carlin had nearly completed before he died.

With fourteen HBO specials, five Grammys, a critical Supreme Court battle over censorship, and countless appearances on the international comedy circuit, George Carlin saw it all and made fun of most of it.

 

Carlins journey to stardom began in the rough-and-tumble neighborhoods of New York in the 1950s, where class and culture wars planted the seeds for some of his earliest material including the infamous Seven Dirty Words routine. Carlin describes his major influences as an up-and-coming comic, talking about the origins of some of his most famous stand-up routines. The people he encountered on his rise to stardom reads like a Whos Who of 1970s celebrity, from Lenny Bruce who took him under his wing to Hugh Hefner who gave him his first big shot.

 

Carlin spares no details as he describes his life and career. He discusses his own battle with substance abuse, his often turbulent relationships with the women in his life, and the politics that informed so much of his stand-up. From the high points on stage to low points in the hospital, Last Words is George Carlins life told with the same brash, unblinking honesty that defined his comedy.

 

Born in New York City in 1937, George Dennis Patrick Carlin was one of the greatest and most influential stand-up comedians of all time.  He appeared on “The Tonight Show” more than 130 times, starred in  an unprecedented 14 HBO Specials, hosted the first “Saturday Night Live” and penned three New York Times bestselling books.  Of the 23 solo albums recorded by Mr. Carlin, 11 were Grammy nominated and he took home the coveted statue five times including a 2001 Grammy win for Best Spoken Comedy Album for his reading of his best seller Brain Droppings.   In 2002, Carlin was awarded the “Freedom of Speech Award” by the First Amendment Center in cooperation with the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado, and he  was the named 11th recipient of The Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in June of 2008.  George Carlin passed away at age 71 on June 22, 2008 in Santa Monica, California.

  Tony Hendra was recently described by The Independent of London as “one of the most brilliant comic talents of the post-war period” He began his comedic career with Graham Chapman of Monty Python, appeared six times on the Ed Sullivan Show, was one of the original editors of National Lampoon, edited the classic parody Not The New York Times, starred in This Is Spinal Tap, and co-created and co-produced the long-running British satirical series Spitting Image for which he was nominated for a British Academy Award. He has written or edited dozens of books, most of them satirical, with the exception of two New York Times bestsellers: Brotherhood (2001) and Father Joe (2004). He is a senior member of the Board of the nation-wide story-telling community, The Moth.