Don’t forget “fart,” “turd” and “twat.”

I dare you to watch this and not laugh your ass off. It’s not just the words. It’s the delivery. Listen to the cadence of his voice. Look at the expressiveness of his face and hands.

When I was young, I was obsessed with stand up comedy. I’d devour as much as I could access. Comedy was important to me. I appreciated the craft like you might appreciate classical music. The process, the work behind the jokes fascinated me. George Carlin was a master of the craft. He managed to stay relevant until the day he died and left a legacy of laughs that generations to come will enjoy and find personal meaning in.

My favorite George Carlin moment was during one of his hour long specials (HBO or Showtime) during the early 90’s. I was 11 or 12 and living in a small refinery town called Beaumont, TX. I certainly wasn’t supposed to be watching late night foul mouthed comedy, but that is neither here nor there. Carlin starts setting up a joke (of which I have forgotten both the set up and the punchline), about the worst titty bar he ever played in. It was a dive. A shithole. And it was in the most miserable little refinery town he’d ever seen. A stain on America called… Beaumont, TX.

I felt so validated at that moment. A few days later I told my Mom that a comedian had mentioned Beaumont on TV. I don’t know how I’d planned to follow that up since I obviously couldn’t repeat the joke.

“What did he say?”

“Oh, it was just a joke. I don’t remember it.”

If you know the joke in question, please share it (or any other favorite Carlin moments) in the comments or this thread in the Forum.

Godspeed, George Carlin. Godspeed, you fancy bastard.