Grammy-award winning comedian George Carlin, best known for his Seven Words You Can Never Say On TV routine, has died of heart failure aged 71. The star was admitted to a hospital in Los Angeles on Sunday with chest pains and died later that day. Jack Burns, Carlin’s comedy partner in the early 1960s, told the Associated Press agency: “He was a genius and I will miss him dearly.”
Carlin performed as recently as last weekend in Las Vegas.
Anti-Establishment icon
The star, who had a history of heart problems, was scheduled to receive the John F Kennedy Center’s prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humour in November.
Carlin became known for his unpredictable performances and for pushing boundaries during his 50-year career.
He achieved status as an anti-Establishment icon in the 1970s with his provocative and controversial acts.
His Seven Words routine led to his arrest in 1972 for disturbing the peace after he performed the act at a show in Milwaukee.
Carlin became known for his edgy and provocative performances
The same routine, which was played on a New York radio station, resulted in a Supreme Court ruling in 1978 upholding the government’s authority to sanction stations for broadcasting offensive language.
Carlin produced 23 comedy albums, 14 HBO specials, three books, a couple of TV shows and appeared in several movies.
He also hosted the first broadcast of Saturday Night Live, won four Grammy Awards – each for best spoken comedy album – and was nominated for five Emmys. — http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7468681.stm
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Wow…just on the heels of Tim Russert and similarly, he died of heart related disease. Another great icon who was relevant even at 71. We’ll miss you George…
