Customer Reviews

The George Carlin Collection [VHS]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My family first got cable, and HBO, in 1982 when I was still in school. New Years Eve of '82/'83, I watched George Carlin as part of an HBO stand-up comedy marathon. It was the funniest show I had ever seen in my life. I actually had my little audio tape recorder next to the TV, taping the audio!
When HBO did a George Carlin tribute week a couple of years back, I was overjoyed that I would finally get to videotape the show I had seen in '82. Sure enough, it was NOT part of the week-long marathon. And it seems to be the only one of his shows they never re-ran again.
Now, finally, disc 2 of this box set contains "George Carlin Again!". It is still just as funny to me as it was nearly 20 years ago.And this is not to slight the other shows on this box, they are all essential viewing to George's faithful.
I just read an interview with George where he said he owns all the rights to these shows. So, to George, THANK YOU for finally releasing "Again" on dvd .

I was excited by the promise of this set - hell who would not at the prospect of 4 -5 hours of Carlin?

Carlin has wonderful timing and a wicked and wacky grin that precedes anyone of his reflections on the absurdity of the human condition that he delivers with a complete mastery of American idiom.

This is a collection that is hard to ignore for a die-hard fan like me - but suffers from repetition of many of his classic pieces - like "Words they won"t let you say on TV" to "Stuff" especially since his delivery of his masterworks does not vary greatly from one performance to the other. The editors must have been sleeping.

But if you have the cash, splurge.

Comedy will never see another George Carlin. Today's comics seem to be focused on tired old Jerry Seinfeld themes(what's up with vcr's?, what's up with count chocula?). George can take everything from political issues to bodily functions and make it all hillarious. This boxed set has a whole bunch of stand ups, and none are the same. You can laugh at things he said in the 70's and then laugh again at things he said in the 90's. This DVD is 5 star because nothing is similar. All the stand ups are different and they are all great. Buy this if you want a great comedian with a style that will never become tired or boring. He's great.

This is a very interesting set as it shows Carlin's early specials and how he progressed into one of the greatest comics of all time. I would suggest that you buy the other sets too. Some of these shows have a lot of the same material,so it would be wise to watch one from this set and skip to a newer one and mix them up a bit. The collected specials cover 30 years and some are a bit dated now,but his is still a top act!

Although I prefer his more mean-spirited and angry 1990-to-present standup comedy, I found this particular collection of early George Carlin HBO specials rather enjoyable. You see him evolve from a somewhat easy-going observer of those strange little moments in life, into a slightly softer version of his lovable mean-spirited & grumpy self as we know him today. Another great thing about experiencing his comedy in the visual medium: his exaggerated pantomimes and wonderfully goofy facial expressions. Carlin's mastery of the physical aspect of standup comedy is the reason I prefer watching his video acts over the sound-only CD releases. I truly believe one can't really appreciate GC's work until he's both seen AND heard the man! Preferably at the same time of course.

Although there's some repeated material throughout George's series of hour-long specials, most notably his `Seven Dirty Words' and `My Experiences With Dogs' routines (which appear in `On Location', `Carlin Again!', and `Carlin at Carnegie'), each time the acts are a bit different. One gets to see how he adapts and refines his works so they have greater depth and impact. By his third go-round with the `Seven Dirty Words' in `Carnegie', he's got a ten-foot-long scroll of inappropriate verbiage that he reads to the audience as the closing credits roll! A list I've memorized, by the way. You know, for the next time I'm invited to a church social...

Aside from the comedy itself, GC's first HBO special was interesting for having a disclaimer about the controversial nature of his `Seven Dirty Words' routine appear in the middle of the show, right before he gets down to business! Nowadays, such controversial material would be run without any fair warning whatsoever!

`CG Again!' features an unusual incident: George gets a bottle of Visine and a joint thrown on stage in the middle of his spiel! If you've ever wondered how good Carlin is at improv, this little moment is a pretty good indication of his skills at making things up as he goes along!

Although I originally considered `Class Clown' to be his weakest effort, it's grown on me since I took another look at it on disc. Maybe it's seein' George dressed up as a nun at the opening teaser that has altered my opinion about this particular entry in the GC HBO Specials series. Or maybe it's the weird between-routine cartoon breaks featuring his infamous News Stories, and bizarre new Sporting Events. Actually, I may never understand the reason for my new-found appreciation of this particular Carlin comedy outing. Besides, it's not like you care anyway.

I didn't care too much for the `Personal Favorites' compilation disc. This is mainly due to the fact that about half of the material is culled from the other shows contained in this set! The other parts'll likely see release on DVD in the near-future, in their uncut full-hour HBO special formats. But, even though I considered the last disc to be somewhat of a dud, it's still a much better value to buy this set than it is to grab each disc separately.

And now, the physical attributes of this set: the GC Collection is a wonderful space-saver. The collection is made up of four discs (`Carnegie' and `Class Clown' are presented on one platter, unlike their sold-singly counterparts), and are all stored in one large snap case that's about the same width as three single-disc snappers. Which is good, `cause I'll definitely need that extra space for the next wave of Carlin video discs, if & when that happens...

`Late

very funny comedy acts, but flimsy box, bad audio, definately not worth more then 35 dollars

Even if you consider yourself a casual fan of George Carlin (Which is highly unusual, either you hate him, or you love him) you will love this set!

I am finally able to throw out, those old worn out VHS tapes for this wonderful DVD set. Sure the picture is not great, and the sound is 2.0 Dolby, but thats all you need for stand-up. This set also goes well with another DVD "Doin it again/Jammin in New York" which features some of Carlins newer material. And he is one performer who you can't say wheither or not his new stuff is better than his old stuff or vice versa, his material is timeless. It has always been funny, and always will be funny I imagine.

Now we just need to get the rest of his material on DVD(You are all Diseased, Back in Town ect.).

Get this set! You won't be dissapointed, in fact, if you don't laugh at all, consult your local Doctor or Therapist.

Me and my family rented Carlin at Carnegie a long time ago, and since then had a hard time finding it again. It's great that this show, and the others on this set, have been released again. The bonus disc, Personal Favorites, is similar to another anthology that came out a few years ago - Best Stuff, but with different material. The transition from the George of the 70's to the George of the 90's is interesting. It's sometimes hard to believe he's the same person. Very funny, nonetheless.

REPETITIVE FOOTAGE. VERY DRY. I AM A HUGE FAN OF CARLIN, BUT THIS COLLECTION IS NOT WORTH OWNING! SAVE YOUR MONEY.......

A very good show that always hit home for some, as it is racy in parts, good adult entertainment.