Comedic legend George Carlin died (he loathed the term “passed away” so I’ll refrain from using it here) of heart failure on Sunday; he was 71 years old. I’m sure some of you old-timers out there have fond memories of Carlin from his earlier comedy stuff (”7 words you can’t say on television” comes to mind) but I was first introduced to this legend when he portrayed futuristic time traveler and rock n’ roll aficionado Rufus in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure. This was one of my favorite films growing up and for some reason, in spite of his vast career repertoire, I still associate Carlin as an integral piece that makes this film. Obviously I have heard/seen large portions of his stand-up as well as his multitude of other TV and movie appearances so I can attest to his versatility as an actor and his rightful position as a true comedic legend but for some reason it all comes back to Carlin as Rufus, telling Keanu and Alex Winter (what happened to this dude?) to “be excellent to each other.” Sometimes angry and aggressive, other times gentle and inviting, always good for a laugh: George Carlin, you will be truly missed.
I was lucky enough to catch Inside The Actors Studio last night with George, it was one of the more intimate Actors Studio’s Ive ever seen.