The Trials of Lenny Bruce: The Fall and Rise of an American Icon

Ronald K. L. and David M. Skover

(Soucebooks MediaFusion)

Reading at Powell’s City of Books, Mon Nov 11,

7:30 pm, free

Fuck. Shit. Cock. Cunt. These are among the dread dirty words comedian Lenny Bruce, and later his disciple George Carlin, were arrested for saying on stage. Harassed by the courts and cops, and slipping deeper into addiction, Bruce died of an overdose in August 1966 at the age of 40. His legacy lives on in a handful of records, a play and movie about his life, and some court decisions.

Sadly, if anyone thinks things have improved since Lenny’s day, well… In reality, we live in a time when so-called R-rated movies can exist without any nudity! From the religious right, media executives are pressured to clean up the movie, TV, and record biz, while from the politically correct left there is pressure on The People not to say those words on the job, as they can create a “hostile work environment.” Bill Maher was driven off television by a cluster of protesters and advertisers because he said terrorists are braver than American missile commanders.

Collins and Skover’s engagingly written and detailed book, The Trials of Lenny Bruce, is a healthy reminder of what’s at stake, and how little America has really changed since Bruce’s day. The authors concentrate on the handful of court appearances the comedian made from 1961 to 1966, including a stand-up gig before the Supreme Court.

This is the first significant book about Bruce since Albert Goldman’s bio in 1972. It comes with a CD narrated by Village Voice writer Nat Hentoff, keyed to offer the audio version of Bruce’s comic routines, along with quotes from witnesses and participants. Much of the last part of the volume is about the aftermath of Bruce’s cases, as the two lawyers wrestle with issues of free speech and why people would want to say those words on stage in the first place.

As a satirist, Bruce, who would have been 77 this year, would surely have loved the hippie movement, the Reagan years, the Clinton trials. After all, our culture hasn’t changed all that much. Watch your tongue now! Chick. Darn. Merde. Fudge. D.K. HOLM