Lenny Bruce was way ahead of his time. Lenny Bruce was a controversial American comedian during the 1950s and 1960s. Bruce reads from documents associated with his February 1962 arrest for obscenity in San Francisco. Ginsberg recorded the conversation. The set is in progress. He does the bit People Dont Talk That Way to Judges. Bruce says "It's the first time they've made a bust right in an audience" and imagines he's "Superjew" who can fly out the back way. The Lenny Bruce collection consists of photographs, writings and transcripts, correspondence, news clippings and articles, audio visual materials, and trial materials, all related to Lenny Bruces performances and life, as well as some materials relating to his family members. However, in 1961 Lenny Bruces career began to unravel, when he was arrested in San Francisco for violating state obscenity laws. Its deep within yourself who is offended by that particular word, not the word itself. Bruce riffs on what he is doing, testing the Sony Dynamic Microphone, speaks in Spanish, does a riff on a radio talk show called Nightline, does rants as an irate pornographer and as an irate narcotics addict, girlfriend Maury Haydn (Lotus Weinstock), beatniks, a used car salesman, a Senate investigating committee, Steve Allen and Phyllis Diller. He had been featured nationally on the Steve Allen Show. Joey Hollingsworth, Tap Dancing & Vocals) 1:43. He says he doesnt do bits anymore and prefers to cook and free-form it. Speaks of the judge in his San Francisco obscenity trial. A series of short clips follows, date and venue unknown. According to The JC, his body was found in his bathroom with a syringe in his arm. Talks about segregation, Perry Como. Another bit described men as oversexed beings willing to have sex with anything that moved, including a chicken. The recording ends abruptly. Twice after shows in Los Angeles, Bruce was charged with obscenity violations. He does his bit about Jack Ruby and Melvin Belli. (3) Phone letter by Lenny Bruce to Ralph J. Gleason. Upload, livestream, and create your own videos, all in HD. Lenny had proven his point words are only offensive because society allows that particular word to be offensive. Bruce does Christ & Moses before being arrested, as was audience member George Carlin, who refused to show police his ID. Lenny Bruce - How To Relax Your Colored Friends At Parties (1961) Reelblack One 1.17M subscribers Subscribe 1.5K Share 165K views 4 years ago Classic comedy bit from controversial satirist. He riffs on the TV series The Millionaire. He speaks fondly of an Atwater-Kent radio he had, and sings the theme song from the Uncle Don show from Detroit. Bruce does The Act Is Hugging & Kissing. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. The recording ends in the midst of his bit White Collar Drunk. He went on to influence future comedians such as; Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Jon Stewart, Marc Maron, Louis C.K, Richard Pryor, the list goes on. Bruce himself became ill during the trial, which was forced to adjourn while he recovered in hospital. who was involved with narcotics. He calls Gene Norman, owner of The Crescendo in Los Angeles, insane. He performs the bits Las Vegas Tits & Ass, I Picked on the Wrong God, Would You Sell Out Your Country (Francis Gary Powers), The Clap, Balloons, Never Cop Out, We Did It to Their Mothers for Chocolate Bars, Dykes, Southern Accents, Christ and Moses, Adolf Eichmann (based on the Thomas Merton poem Chant to Be Used in Processions Around a Site with a Furnace) and Ten Thousand Asses (Tigers & Lions). He ends the call with some jokes. Lenny Bruce - Carnegie Hall (excerpt) (1961) Phil Pebcak 660 subscribers 2.1K views 10 years ago An excerpt from Lenny Bruce's Carnegie Hall performance, February 2, 1961. The show is known as The Berkeley Concert. Bruces bit People Dont Talk That Way to Judges is in progress. Only two years after his Snot act on the Steve Allen show. He does Thank You Masked Man, We Killed Christ and Christ & Moses. Throughout his career Lenny Bruce said whatever he wanted on stage. A bravura performance of wordplay and innuendo. (2) Bruce is in the midst of the bit We Killed Christ. The show is in progress. For example, the word nigger, represents a time of slavery, extreme racism and social injustice at a basic human rights level. He does Are There Any Niggers Here Tonight? Bruce notes the set is being recorded by Max Weiss of Fantasy Records, and starts repeating a phrase so that the tape editor will be confused. Home; Biography; Videos; Donate; Shop; Cart; The Shop. The truth is, New York was almost as impossible then as it is now. Bruce performs bits How Negroes and Jews Became Entertainers, Barry Goldwater, Lyndon Johnson, Bobby Kennedy, Jack Ruby & Lee Harvey Oswald, Jackie Kennedy Hauled Ass, Would You Sell Out Your Country (Francis Gary Powers) and I Picked on the Wrong God. Once again Bruce was hauled off and arrested. He does his bit on Southern accents and Lyndon Johnson. His performance at Carnegie Hall took place two years before his 3rd appearance on The Steve Allen Show. "A Gentile Sings the Blues" is a gag that runs a bit too long at 21 minutes, though the instrumental interlude gives the listener a better chance to hear Breau and Henstridge in something other than a background role. The recording ends in the midst of the bit George Shearing. (1) Bruce does the bit Flashers, then Snot. One of the charges against him was saying "shmuck." (3) Bruce does his bit on Barry Goldwater and his Jewish roots, People Dont Talk That Way to Judges. As comedy relief, Bruce tells an anecdote, using a W.C. Fields voice, about the judge. He lists his favorite painters, says he writes columns for Rogue magazine and The Realist, and lists magazines he reads and books hes read recently. The chemistry between Breau and Francks is dynamic to say the least. He flips through a magazine with stories about celebrities and lady-kinda ads. He reads the ad for the Mark Eden Method Bust Developer. He does his bit The Christian God Has a Face, the Jewish God Doesnt, Ive Never Been Inside a Negros House and his bit on Barry Goldwater and his Jewish roots. Lenny Bruce was a controversial American comedian during the 1950s and 1960s. He mentions Judge Clayton Horn from his second San Francisco obscenity trial and Judge John Murtagh from his current New York trial (the Caf Au Go Go trial). Bruce performs various bits and speaks of: J.J. Johnson, the magazine Downbeat, Copacabana owner Jules Podell, Mafia-connected club owners, his manager Jack Sobel, Jackie Paris, Mort Sahl, Burt Boyar, How to Relax Your Colored Friends at Parties, Sophie Tucker, Ted Shapiro, Bill Stern, the Paramount in Brooklyn, Miles Davis, Leopold and Loeb, Don Winslow, scenario of a Jewish boy visiting home from military school, George Washington interviewed by Mike Wallace. To set up an appointment, please contact us here: ascdepartment@brandeis.edu. The first is a variation on Chicks Are Boss. The man brought a civil suit against him. I Picked the Wrong God, speaks of Leopold and Loeb. He claims hes Ralph J. Gleason (the San Francisco Chronicle writer who was a friend and supporter). He points out that the California statute 288a calls criminal many sex acts that he assumes the audience has practiced, and that the law made Caryl Chessman a pervert. The third section is another show, in progress. The skit can also be seen in the movie Lenny, performed by Dustin Hoffman who portrays Bruce. Race. It begins while the show is in progress. He mentions the club owner Benny (Ben I. Shapiro) and does Santa Claus interviewed by Edward R. Murrow. Bruce wonders whether it is the usual practice to confront performers before their shows. But at that time of recording, Lenny Bruce was under litigation for obscenity by New Yorks [then] District Attorney (D.A. He does the bits The Romans Segregated the Christians with Lions and We Did It to Their Mothers for Chocolate Bars. On Capitol Hill, there are 20,000 mostly young men and women who have tremendous influence but are rarely seen, they work in the background, without recognition and often for long hours with low pay. He does a bit on the history of obscenity law, his bit Tits & Ass, he interacts with audience members and with accompanying musicians. (1) Bruce continues the bit Flashers, then does Midgets, wonders whether Pygmies are midgets, and imagines Gov. Bruce starts by joking that hes living on a boat thats outside the three-mile limit. He then tells Gleason about his arrest the previous night, at his home, for having given obscene performances at the Trolley Ho nightclub in Los Angeles (under California Penal Code 311.6). Bruce mentions his bit Religions Inc. from four years earlier. He discusses how he develops material for his act, and how spontaneity figures in. Lenny Bruce was going to do his performance and say that four letter word, no matter what! He comments on the three people who just walked out, mentions Tab Hunters arrest, does We Killed Christ, and ends the set with Ben Hurs Mother & Sister. He was 40 years old. The recording ends abruptly. Recorded by Lenny Bruce in the days before his death on August 3, 1966, plus a song written and performed by Tim Hardin after Bruces death. Also available in the iTunes Store. Why was Allen making such a big deal about this? He says he was hip to the Bay of Pigs before most people. Bruce does his bit Christ & Moses. He talks about Hugh Hefners intentions with Playboy. George Wallaces reaction to Pygmies. Bruce is fed up with people saying hes too concerned about integration, in the Shakespearean vein of you protest too much. He says non-Southerners are bigoted regarding people who talk Southern, like Lyndon Johnson. He praises Hugh Hefner, who is making it so that the nude female body is no longer filthy. He does The Best Man in the Tribe (St. Paul). Could he really be that bad?! Speaks of daughter Kitty, James Joyces Ulysses, Judge Murtagh. Bruce starts to do Christ & Moses, then veers into I Picked on the Wrong God. Joey's Solo (Feat. After deliberation, the jury acquitted Bruce. 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