MrRant 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2004 (CNN) -- Entertainer George Carlin said Monday he is going into rehab because he has an alcohol and drug problem. In a statement, Carlin, 67, said, "I'm going into rehab because I use too much wine and Vicodin. No one told me I needed this; I recognized the problem and took the step myself. "My levels of use are nowhere near the worst you hear about these days; I could easily have continued functioning at a good level ... for awhile. But my use would have progressed, I would have been in deeper trouble, and I didn't want to tolerate that. I've never been in rehab before and I know it isn't easy, but I'm highly motivated, and will do what ever's needed. "When I get out, I will take a little time for myself before resuming my schedule," the comedian added. Carlin's current book, "When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?", is currently on best-seller lists. Vicodin is a pain killer that is potentially habit forming. Carlin's statement did not say where he go into rehab or when. According to Reuters, Carlin's spokesman, Jeff Abraham, said the comedian went into treatment Monday. Three weeks ago, he ended a four-year run at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, with a "dark set," in the words of the New York Post's "Page Six" column, and told his audience, "People who go to Las Vegas, you've got to question their [bleeping] intellect," according to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He is scheduled to appear in a show at Las Vegas' Stardust Hotel in February. http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/books/12/2...rlin/index.html Doesn't appear to be really anything as bad as his earlier years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2004 At least he's going in there voluntarily and doesn't seem to be as bad off as some people who need help, but don't seek it. He's always seemed like the kind who's got things under control and knows what to do if anything gets out of control. How will this affect his touring, though? My best friend got floor seats to a show he's doing some time in January. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mole 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2004 How bad was he in the past? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jobber of the Week 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 As much as I like him as a comedian, I have to say that his Vegas act is awful. When I was there, he admitted that he was basically using us as a focus group for jokes he was thinking of using for his next HBO special, and then made a whole bunch of jokes about air travel security. I don't remember whether this before or after 9/11, to Carlin it probably wouldn't matter either way (which is part of what I like about him), but he basically decided to tell a bunch of hijacking jokes to a room full of tourists who flew into town. I'd even forgive that if it weren't for the whole "you guys are a warm-up act for my HBO show, ok?" thing. Still, I don't know why he moved from MGM (which is a big name on the Strip) to Stardust (an older, non-fancy hotel in the near-dead part of the Strip.) Considering that the other act that MGM runs in that theater is Carrot Top, well, Carlin's gotta be better than that, right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrRant 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 More than likely the Stardust outbid the MGM for Carlin's services to attract more people to the casino. God I miss living in Vegas... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jobber of the Week 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 I'm likely moving there next year. I was getting kind of concerned because until you said that I haven't encountered anyone who's had anything nice to say about the experience. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrRant 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 I enjoy Sin City. It takes a certain type of person to put up with it though. It's actually somewhat conservative yet liberal about sex, drinking and such. Drugs though they throw the fucking book at you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest JMA Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Hopefully Carlin gets better soon. He's probably my favorite comedian ever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mole 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Drugs though they throw the fucking book at you. They're really that scrict? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 All of Carlin's shows are like that, Jobber. I went to one in April and he told us from the outset that he was working on material for his next HBO special. He opened and closed with two very long and complex bits, which he had to read from a notebook just because he didn't have it all down yet. I guess that's the point of such shows, though. Gotta try out new stuff and see what floats and what doesn't. That way, only the best makes the big show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest SideFXs Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Carlon sucks and always did. He will never kick the drugs and booz, cause you need to believe in God and give up control. Damn liberal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Art Sandusky 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Precious Roy 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 He moved to the Stardust due to a rant he unleashed on an MGM crowd about how much he hated Vegas tourists and how they made him want to commit suicide. Apparently the audience that night was quite distured As a lover of vicodin, I hope George can share his connections with me before he checks in Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vitamin X Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Valium and Xanax> Vicodin. Carlon sucks and always did. He will never kick the drugs and booz, cause you need to believe in God and give up control. Damn liberal. ..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Precious Roy 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Fuck Valium, and fuck Xanax, they're only good if you drink to top them off. Vicodin can give you an amazing high on it's own. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jobber of the Week 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 he had to read from a notebook just because he didn't have it all down yet. See, that just blew me away. Maybe all big comedians do that and I just don't see enough of them, but it seems to me that it's a two step process, learning how to say the joke without studying your notes in the middle of a crowd and then seeing how funny it is. Not only is the joke made less funny by virtue of a guy reading from a notepad on the stage (counterproductive,) but it makes them feel like they're not really getting their money's worth if you have to consult your pad. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Precious Roy 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Whatever, Carlin is a proven funny motherfucker, it's not like you're seeing some reject from last comic standing. He's 67 years old, he's earned the right to read from notes if that's what works for him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nl5xsk1 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Am I the only one that thinks this entire 'rehab' is just to: a) get his name out there in time for his next gig opening in Vegas? and b) CYA for the spiel he did when he left the MGM gig? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest LooneyTune Report post Posted December 28, 2004 The guy has been doing SUCCESSFUL stand up for several decades... I think he's earned the right to have to read off a notepad to test new material. He's not a two-bit hack on Last Comic Standing or someone who hasn't had a special in 10 years. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Betty Houle 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Am I the only one that thinks this entire 'rehab' is just to: a) get his name out there in time for his next gig opening in Vegas? and b) CYA for the spiel he did when he left the MGM gig? Yes, you are. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bruiser Chong 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Actually, considering what the bits involved, I had no problem with him reading from a notebook. It was so complex that I was surprised he was able to get through it cohesively with a notebook. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BX 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Carlon sucks and always did. He will never kick the drugs and booz, cause you need to believe in God and give up control. Damn liberal. I'm tempted to report this post to a moderator, if only for the purpose of making them laugh hard. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jobber of the Week 0 Report post Posted December 28, 2004 Whatever, Carlin is a proven funny motherfucker, it's not like you're seeing some reject from last comic standing. He's 67 years old, he's earned the right to read from notes if that's what works for him. Oh, of course. I don't hold it against him because it's Carlin and he could just be standing onstage silent while the words go by on a screen behind him and I'd still laugh. Also, this is not a gig to get him publicity in Vegas. Anyone who says that probably hasn't been to Vegas and doesn't understand. Although the big shows like Cirque Du Soleil can sell months in advance, comedians are often a limited headliner event. When you check into a hotel in Vegas, there's almost always some magazine on the table with a name like Showbiz or What's On that tells you everything that's playing in town along with restaurant and attraction info, and all the ads are nothing but ads for the various casino shows, or nightime flights over town, or whatever. These magazines + The existance of small-time comedians nobody's heard of before doing well = Carlin will have no problem drawing a crowd in a reasonable-sized theater. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Czech Republic 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2004 Carlon sucks and always did. Damn liberal. Wow. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BUTT 0 Report post Posted December 29, 2004 Carlon sucks and always did. He will never kick the drugs and booz, cause you need to believe in God and give up control. Damn liberal. I like this post a whole lot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Betty Houle 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2004 I'm still disappointed he was only #2 on Comedy Central's top stand-ups of all-time. Not that Pryor being #1 is such a bad thing...! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
River City Rocker 0 Report post Posted December 30, 2004 How bad was he in the past? Carlin did have a pretty bad cocaine habit during the 1970s and early '80s. He usually made it a point to ease off the drugs whenever he was writing and recording a new record. He quit coke cold turkey about twenty years ago. -Ben Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest SP-1 Report post Posted December 30, 2004 If he pulled off quitting coke cold turkey, then willful rehab should work fine for his current habits. Hope it works for him. I really liked him when I was younger. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Vitamin X Report post Posted December 31, 2004 What, you watched Thomas the Tank Engine or something? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BUTT 0 Report post Posted December 31, 2004 It's so strange that he was on that show. Even stranger when you consider he replaced Ringo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
