If you know me you know I love Stand Up Comedy and dabble in it myself as a hobby. Many comedians have made me laugh so hard I cried and couldn't breath. Some comedians made me long for the 15 minutes of my life I'll never get back that I lost watching their nightmare of a set. And a very special few not only made me laugh, but think. This weekend we lost one of those comedic greats.George Carlin passed away unexpectedly this weekend from heart failure. I'd like to think that it was Heaven calling him up for a live performance. Heaven just got funnier!
Here are some of his great one liners.
As I'm typing this and remembering some of George's material, I realized a strange connection in recent losses. A connection for me anyway. As I said, George Carlin's material often made me laugh and think. Politics was always a target for George, and not just the "Dubya Bush is a dumbass" comedy (that's too easy). He took the political scene and dissected it, baring it open for laughs, but made you come away thinking "yeah, he's right" (truth is comedy)
So while George Carlin taught me to question the bad side of politics, Tim Russert was someone who taught me a lot about how the political scene works. Tim Russert passed away June 13. While I'm no political animal, and I certainly never watched a politically oriented show (Meet the Press) for more than the length of time it took me to find the TV remote, I did learn from him through his appearances on shows like Today.
Where people like John McLaughlin are too intimidating and it is like learning from your cranky old preacher, Tim Russert seemed like a trusted neighbor who could talk with you, not at you. His smile and laughter that usually accompanied his appearances on the Today show made it seem that he was happy to share his world with you no matter your level of experience or participation level. I think these traits are sorely missing from the political arena.
Thanks to both of these guys for enlightening me in their own way to the real world around me.
3 comments:
Two greats gone in the space of a week and days...it's a sad time in America. And how the *&^% am I supposed to make an informed decision on our next President without Tim Russert to help 'splain it to me?!?!?
great post.Both of those guys were GREAT at what they did. So little of that nowadays.
So Sad! These two two great men in such a short time and now Dodie Goodman!
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