A Tribute to George Carlin

by Jeffrey Jena | Bio

I am taking a break from my usual ranting to pay tribute to one of my comedy heroes and influences, George Carlin who passed away on Sunday.

When I was in college I could recite two comedy albums word for word, Firesign Theater's How Can You Be in Two Places At Once When You're not Anywhere at All and George Carlin's AM and FM. Besides my father, these two LP's which were my early influences in comedy. Sure, I had heard Lenny and Cosby but I could do Carlin by heart. I could do the voice and the inflections. When I first started doing stand up in the late seventies I was doing my own stuff but still doing George's voice and mannerisms on stage.

In the mid eighties I was living in Chicago and was friends with Jimmy Wiggins. You may know the Wig if you are a fan of Last Comic Standing, he was the older guy who got screwed out of a place in the house in Vegas and caused several of the celebrity judges to walk out. Back in the eighties he opened a comedy room in Palatine, Illinois called Dirty Nellie's. Since Jimmy was a old friend of Carlin's, George had agreed to come in open the club. At the Saturday night late show Wig invited all the local guys to come to the show and we got to hang a little with the man after. I had met and worked with a number of guys who later became huge stars but no one who was already a legend like Carlin. I was truly star struck. He talked comedy for some time and was a gentleman to all.

Several years later I was breaking into the LA scene and doing a little room in West LA called Igby's. George came in with Pat McCormick and their wives. After my set I was in the back of the room when I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Carlin. He said, "Nice set, very funny and a little angry, just like I like my comedy." He turned and went back to his seat. For weeks I annoyed my friends letting them know that I was one of Carlin's favorites!

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