You Can't Say That on Television!

Comedian George Carlin died Sunday of heart failure at age 71. He is most famously known for a monologue in 1972 about the seven dirty words that can't be said on television. The next year, he did a similar routine, but that version was broadcast uncensored on a New York radio station, which eventually lead to a U.S. Supreme Court case that defined acceptable free speech limits on U.S. broadcast television and radio.

Ironically, I had just talked to my class about him and the seven dirty words last week when we talked about what you can and can't say on television and how to handle interview subjects who like to drop a four-letter word in every sentence. There are more than 400,000 words in the English language, but these seven still remain off limits on broadcast television and radio. Cable is a different ball game, but that could be changing.

Regardless of how you feel about these "dirty words," Carlin was an entertaining comedian who joked about many topics other than these words, including children of yuppies, all the "stuff" we collect and don't really need, the uselessness of bottled water and writing his own obituary. If you're interested in watching his original monologue where he says the seven dirty words and variations of them, it's below. Warning: This video might not be suitable for children or those highly offended by profanity to hear.