Carlin’s mugshot after a 1972 arrest for violating obscenity laws by performing the routine “Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television.” Image from theSmokingGun.com

Hey may have been rude. You could call him irreverent. He admitted to being perversely happy when the supreme court forever labeled him indecent. But whatever you call him, the truth is George Carlin was never afraid to call them like he saw ’em. And June 25th at 8pm, HBO-2 will be rebroadcasting his very first HBO special, “George Carlin at USC”. The special was taped at the University of Southern California during the summer of 1977, and if you can’t catch it on TV just follow this link to youtube where most of his stand up comedy is available.

Carlin died Sunday, June 22nd in Santa Monica, California. I’ll leave you with some pearls of wisdom from the wise comic legend.

“My grandfather would say: “I’m going upstairs to f*&k your grandmother.’ He was an honest man, and he wasn’t going to bullsh!t a four-year-old. ”

Follow the jump for a couple more George Carlin greats.

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-If God had intended us not to masturbate he would’ve made our arms shorter.

-The very existence of flame throwers proves that some time, somewhere, someone said to themselves, ‘You know, I want to set those people over there on fire, but I’m just not close enough to get the job done.’

-Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity.

And finally, the golden rule,

-I think it’s the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately.

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