Carlin Interview

Just read a well-done interview with George Carlin at The Onion A.V. Club. This part in particular touches on something that still gnaws at me:


AVC: What's bothersome about the Katrina and "I Am A Bad American" e-mails is that they sound kind of bullying, which raises a tricky question: Do you think it's possible to be truly funny from a position of power? For instance, Dennis Miller, who's always been a smart, funny comedian, has undergone a political conversion over the past decade, and now his comedy is rooted in his support of the Bush administration. And he seems less funny.

GC: For some reason, there aren't as many right-wing comedians as there are left or center or non-political. I read something about this recently that made sense, and I've forgotten what it said, of course. I have great respect for Dennis Miller's mind and ability as a comedian, but I agree that I am not as personally entertained [by] his new material, which you describe as "coming from a position of power." Of course, he always did come from a position of presumed superiority, and I don't necessarily say that pejoratively. He did come from what appeared to be a smartass, superior platform. That's part of what made him work, as a stand-up.

I think your premise is correct, that it's harder to be funny from the position of power. That's a good description for it. Might be a couple other ways of describing it that I can't think of.

I think of it this way. Dennis Miller's pose of pissy narcissism was tolerable in part because he made it clear it was a pose--a pose that did not escape his mockery in his act. In one moment where he kidded his image, he said, "There's nothing wrong with being shallow as long as you're insightful about it." What also made it work was that his irreverance was total. He demonstrated a unversal skepticism which made everyone a target, powerful and powerless alike.

What's made Miller's act less attractive is his hero worship of George W. Bush and his transformation into Bush's on-stage toady. It reminds me of Mort Sahl's totemizing Reagan in the 1980s. It's never fun to see someone who used to hassle The Man become his shill. I'll bet Renfield, for example, was a much livelier conversationalist before he became blindly loyal to Dracula. Afterwards it was all "Dracula this" and "Dracula that" and "I hate the breathing". Tedious.

I also have to say that with Miller I feel rejected. His most recent act says to me, "Get out of here, lefty punk. You don't belong in my audience anymore." While it doesn't depress me, I do feel a little sad about it. Yeah, I've got new friends in David Cross and Patten Oswalt, and I remember the good times. Still, the whole thing leaves a bitter residue.

Of course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.