George Carlin's Memoir - Due Out November 17, 2009

[boloboffin]

Just thought you might want to know.

Simon & Schuster's Free Press imprint (http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6670970.html) has acquired George Carlin's memoir, Last Words. Carlin, who died in June 2008, had been working on the book, with writer Tony Hendra, for the last decade. Hendra, a founding editor of National Lampoon magazine and author of his own memoir, Father Joe, got permission to publish the book from Carlin's family.

Unlike Carlin's three previous comedy titles -- When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?, Brain Droppings, and Napalm and Silly Putty -- Last Words will focus on Carlin's own story and the 50 years he spent as a working comic. In a release from S&S, Carlin's manager and close friend, Jerry Hamza, noted that, despite his in-your-face stage persona, Carlin was famously private and "nobody knew much about (his life)." Agent Jonathan Lazear brokered the deal with Free Press v-p and editor-in-chief, Dominick V. Anfuso; the deal was for world rights, audio and first serial. Publication is set for November 17.

[Jungle Jim]

Thanks for the heads up. I, for one, am looking forward to this book.

[Fnord]

I am also looking forward to reading his book. He was my favorite humorist, and likely the greatest unsung philosopher that the modern world ever had (IMHO).

[Yahya Sulaiman]

Thanks for telling me, boloboffin. I'm a big fan of Carlin.

(I'm also a big fan of BOC, fnord, so I love that avatar. "Fire of Unknown Origin" may have been their best album.)

[egodbois]

I was a big fan of his books and his comedy shows. It's pretty unfortunate that I never saw him in person, even though I sort of had the opportunity to once upon a time.

I'm not sure how I'll like the memoir, though. His verbal prowess and his interest in language was what did it for me. I'm less interested in how he became what he was and more interested in his mind and what it produced. But I likely will explore the book if only in passing.

[boloboffin]

I was a big fan of his books and his comedy shows. It's pretty unfortunate that I never saw him in person, even though I sort of had the opportunity to once upon a time.

I was lucky enough to see him on my birthday at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. He did his 10 Commandments routine and almost lost the audience when he threw out the first four because of spooky language. I don't know what they were thinking: my ticket had George Carlin on it. He just looked at them cross-eyed, repeated himself ("Spooky language."), and then continued the routine.

This was right after the 9/11 attacks as well (October 12 is my birthday), so he had written up (but not yet memorized) his speech of support in the coming few years for Governor Bush. I had to go buy a shirt at the end, just because the normal Ryman announcer had such pleasure announcing that the back read, "Simon Says Go :rule10 Yourself".