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From the '60s to the '80s,
from Richard Pryor to Sam Kinison, no comedian graduated to the big time
without first studying Lenny Bruce. He shocked audiences with jokes about
sex and religion for two reasons: it got laughs, and people were telling
him not to do it. He was comedy’s bad boy. He wanted to challenge
the word “no,” and he did it by using words people didn’t
usually say on stage. He was admired—at first—for his irreverent
bravado. And he’s still a hero today mostly because his comedy was
honest. The problems he touched on—racial bias, immorality, and
religious hypocrisy—are still with us.
Lenny Bruce Originals Vol.1 and Vol.2, Fantasy
Records, 1991.
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