I remember early Carlin and he pushed the legal limits of radio and TV broadcast from the start. AFAIK he was also the first to cross the lines with the "7 words" one can not say on that industry. He was always providing commentary on society but what I noticed was that his views got darker and more jaded with time. He started off using his knowledge of language to be rebellious and edgy, then delving more into self analysis tearing himself apart for self deprecating routines then eventually teasing and tearing society apart.
No one ever seems to remember Lenny Bruce. Lenny Bruce was in the same league as Carlin. Carlin's seven dirty words was straight from one of Bruce's routines.
Hmm. My point is that Carlin did not start with 7 words. That is what he is famous for, but he didn't magically show up that day to recors that line out of the blue.
I am too lazy to dig it up now, but youtube has multiple interviews that go over that stage of his life.
Yeah I am not saying he started with the 7 words either, rather he was always one of the first to push the limits as the limits evolved. There were other taboos crossed prior to him.
"I Love Lucy" was the first TV show to say "Pregnant". "Bewitched" filmed Samantha wearing almost see through evening wear but television was such grainy low resolution analog broadcast that the audience was unaware. The remastered DVD's make that more obvious now. There are many other lines that in hind sight seem odd now. Benny Hill crossed a few lines and managed to get nudity allowed on TV when it was otherwise forbidden.
Not disagreeing, but since society was evolving as well, it seems more like Carlin was pushing whatever the current boundary was at the time. When he pushed and society gave a bit, he pushed more.
Trying to start his career with The Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television would have clearly been a ... non-starter.
