Carlin & Language
Archive Highlights
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2m 50s
From an early age, George Carlin was attentive to the rhythms and meanings of words. This lifelong fascination with language became a cornerstone of his work, which assumed a cadenced, melodious form that was not unlike spoken word poetry. To achieve this effect, Carlin meticulously took notes; gathering interesting words, bits of slang, euphemisms, rhymes, oxymorons, and grammatical oddities on tiny slips of paper that he referenced when crafting his routines. Carlin’s treatment of language ranged from silliness to high intellectualism, and introduced a new type of rigor and precision into the realm of stand-up comedy performance.
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