Today, beards are commonplace, unremarkable bits of facial shrubbery. Even as conservative a figure as Sen. Ted Cruz sports one.
But 50 years ago, a man choosing to wear a beard sent a political message. It signaled participation in the counter-culture, a spurning of orthodoxy. George Carlin captured the threatening act of going bearded in a routine included on his 1972 comedy album FM & Am.
“Here’s my beard. Ain’t it weird? Don’t be skeered, it’s just a beard,” he riffed, continuing, “That’s the thing. The word ‘beard’ shook up a lot of people. Beard! It’s not American sounding. Beard! Lenin had a Beard!”
Carlin told his audience he had sprouted a beard and grown his hair long around 1971. It was a transgressive act that marked a turning point in his life and career, moving from clean-cut comic to culture-defining, acerbic observer. Without him making that fundamental shift,...
But 50 years ago, a man choosing to wear a beard sent a political message. It signaled participation in the counter-culture, a spurning of orthodoxy. George Carlin captured the threatening act of going bearded in a routine included on his 1972 comedy album FM & Am.
“Here’s my beard. Ain’t it weird? Don’t be skeered, it’s just a beard,” he riffed, continuing, “That’s the thing. The word ‘beard’ shook up a lot of people. Beard! It’s not American sounding. Beard! Lenin had a Beard!”
Carlin told his audience he had sprouted a beard and grown his hair long around 1971. It was a transgressive act that marked a turning point in his life and career, moving from clean-cut comic to culture-defining, acerbic observer. Without him making that fundamental shift,...
- 6/11/2022
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
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