He mentions anti-integrationists Ross Barnet and General Edwin A. Walker and wonders what Christ would think about them. In the '90's things were changed from comedy to music. Only two years after his Snot act on the Steve Allen show. Ginsberg recorded the conversation. The Purple Onion is a nightclub in San Francisco, opened in 1952. Lenny Bruce - The Legendary Lenny Bruce The Famous 1961 Performance Live From The Curran Theater In San Francisco More images Tracklist Notes Originally issues by Fantasy Records (Fantasy 34201) as "Lenny Bruce Live At The Curran Theatre" Murray Hill re-issue produced by arrangement with Fantasy Records. At the time of recording the episode, he was restricted by the authorities for using obscene language during his acts. Leonard Alfred Schneider (October 13, 1925 - August 3, 1966), better known by his stage name Lenny Bruce, was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, satirist, and actor. By Philip Eil He does the bit Divorce & Motels. The trio's approach to standards is a bit unusual. He makes the first of several comments on a woman in the audiences meshuggener laugh. He does Transvestites Posing as Policemen. The primary goal of the meeting was for Ginsberg to hear Bruces experience with being arrested for giving performances that contained obscene material, and his views on what legal steps can be taken to fight those charges. Ultimately, its more of a spiritual and philosophical outlook approach that would be required to try and understand within yourself and truly trying to understand the perspective of the person using offending word(s)- Why did I find this offensive? He does his bit The Christian God Has a Face, the Jewish God Doesnt. He calls Gene Norman, owner of The Crescendo in Los Angeles, insane. Dec. 23, 2003. The set is in progress. ), Bruce was introduced at this famous appearance as the most shocking comedian of our time, a man who is skyrocketing to fame. He began his routine with a wry smile and the line, Will Elizabeth Taylor become bar mitzvahd?, The Marine Corps is goyish. He does the bit The Christian God Has a Face, the Jewish God Doesnt. As comedy relief, Bruce tells an anecdote, using a W.C. Fields voice, about the judge. A new set begins. (3) Phone letter by Lenny Bruce to Ralph J. Gleason. He does his bit on blind pianist George Shearing. Most of his acts took place in the underground scenes; jazz bars, strip clubs etc. There is an unknown third man present who makes a comment and asks some questions. Conspiracy to interfere with the fourth amendment const Lenny Bruce. He discusses how he develops material for his act, and how spontaneity figures in. He died of an accidental drug overdose. He goes on to talk about prejudices about British accents vs. Southern accents, and does his bit on obscenity law. A bravura performance of wordplay and innuendo. Bendich called Bruces biting political and sexual humor the latest in a long line of social satire, going back to literary greats such as Jonathan Swift. He does Goldwater Talks to Negroes, talks about prejudice and Lee Harvey Oswald. Towards the end of his life, Lenny was constantly caught up in bust ups with the authorities. The singer tells a joke between songs, and for an instant it is 1961. Bruce talks about undetected perverts, generational differences in sexual practice, and does his bit Chick Singer With a Gimmick. Bruce performs various bits and speaks of: J.J. Johnson, the magazine Downbeat, Copacabana owner Jules Podell, Mafia-connected club owners, his manager Jack Sobel, Jackie Paris, Mort Sahl, Burt Boyar, How to Relax Your Colored Friends at Parties, Sophie Tucker, Ted Shapiro, Bill Stern, the Paramount in Brooklyn, Miles Davis, Leopold and Loeb, Don Winslow, scenario of a Jewish boy visiting home from military school, George Washington interviewed by Mike Wallace. He comments on audience members walking out. This show is known as The Bust Show. He does his bits Custody/Get Even, and Stag Film vs. King of Kings. Squalor has never guaranteed success; chain smoking at the Purple Onion never guaranteed creativity and ingenuity. Allen explained to the viewers that Lenny Bruce was going to use a four letter word on television that will shock the viewers to their very core. He explained that Bruce is not a comedian who just told dirty and foul jokes, but instead; He deals with [the] subject matter which many people consider off limits. He mentions the comic Bill Dana and the San Francisco club the hungry i. Bruce talks about the mixed reaction he got during the first show. He performs the bit How Negroes and Jews Became Entertainers, then talks about Hugh Hefner's strategy in putting out Playboy. Here are a few clips that show the range, depth, and volatility of a man Complex magazine calls the most controversial comedian of all time. He had been featured nationally on the Steve Allen Show. The recording continues with the beginning of the second set. The prosecution used the testimony and notes of the city license inspector, as well as from police officers who attended some of Bruces other performances. Opened in 1952, the Purple Onion ran for roughly 60 years before closing its doors in 2012. He tells a story about having run into bandleader Les Elgart in Detroit. He gave zero fucks. But at that time of recording, Lenny Bruce was under litigation for obscenity by New Yorks [then] District Attorney (D.A. Race. The tape ends during an exchange between Bruce and Gate of Horn owner Alan Ribback about Jackie Mason having just criticized censorship (this was witnessed by Ribback, but its unknown whether it was live or on television or radio). (1) Bruce continues the bit Flashers, then does Midgets, wonders whether Pygmies are midgets, and imagines Gov. Bruce tells Gleason about his arrest the previous night, at his home, for having given obscene performances at the Trolley Ho nightclub in Los Angeles (under California Penal Code 311.6). If you make it a taboo to use that word, itll give that word a powerful meaning. He performs the bits Las Vegas Tits & Ass, I Picked on the Wrong God, Would You Sell Out Your Country (Francis Gary Powers), The Clap, Balloons, Never Cop Out, We Did It to Their Mothers for Chocolate Bars, Dykes, Southern Accents, Christ and Moses, Adolf Eichmann (based on the Thomas Merton poem Chant to Be Used in Processions Around a Site with a Furnace) and Ten Thousand Asses (Tigers & Lions). who was involved with narcotics. He does The Origin of Bestiality Laws. Bruce performs bits How Negroes and Jews Became Entertainers, Barry Goldwater, Lyndon Johnson, Bobby Kennedy, Jack Ruby & Lee Harvey Oswald, Jackie Kennedy Hauled Ass, Would You Sell Out Your Country (Francis Gary Powers) and I Picked on the Wrong God. With the bit We Killed Christ he explains how his arrests are really for talking about Christianity. He does The Romans Segregated Christians with Lions and Black Black Woman White White Woman. The prosecution countered with their own academic and medical figures that claimed Bruces comedy had no redeeming value other than to outrage and arouse the audience. He was renowned for his open, free-style and critical form of comedy which integrated satire, politics, religion, sex, and vulgarity. The photographs document not only his professional career but also his personal life with family and friends. Looking at the camera, Bruce talks very briefly about his reputation and the first amendment, the freedom of speech and how a law abiding citizen gets offended by his freedom of speech, but the irony is that he is within his own constitutional right to say whatever he likes, and that there is no law saying that he can not do so. The recording ends during this bit. Bruce starts to do Christ & Moses, then veers into I Picked on the Wrong God. For example, the word nigger, represents a time of slavery, extreme racism and social injustice at a basic human rights level. He lists his favorite painters, says he writes columns for Rogue magazine and The Realist, and lists magazines he reads and books hes read recently. The New York arrest brought some noted intellectuals to Bruces defense. He refers to Tab Hunter's arrest for allegedly beating his dog. In May 2003, the governor of New York issued Lenny Bruce a posthumous pardon, based on what he called the State of New Yorks commitment to upholding the First Amendment. When he first appeared on the show in 1959, Allen described him as the most shocking comedian of our time, a young man who is skyrocketing to fame. "She was the most diverse and tolerant woman I've ever . The ninth and tenth clips are variations on Airplane Glue, with the kid who sniffs glue appearing on Paul Coates tabloid TV show. He discusses New York sportscaster Bill Stern, and talks about a jazz show he went to. Some of Bruces routines feel dated. "I go away back with Rosie and that's not the Rosie I know," Allen, 65, told reporters Thursday at the Television Critics Association's press tour when asked about Roseanne's firing from ABC in May over her racist tweet comparing Valerie Jarrett to an ape. Bars and theatres were either cancelling his gigs or not booking him at all, out of fear that the police will storm in, arrest Lenny and close the location down indefinitelyhe had no income, and whatever money he did have, was spent towards his legal fees obsessively defending his basic right to freedom of speech. Bruce talks about his obscenity trial and the police. Bruce says "It's the first time they've made a bust right in an audience" and imagines he's "Superjew" who can fly out the back way. On that day, Lenny Bruce was making his debut appearance at Carnegie Hall, a sold out performance. He cautions that jazz is getting too much of a snob appeal. This file constitutes part four of four quarters (although without a definitive ending to the show). Years before, Bruce who was a civil rights activist, said in a performance You have a choice of spending 15 years being married to a woman, a black woman or white woman, a simplified skit that showed how ridiculous any anti-miscegenation argument was, and flattened it in just 30 seconds. George Wallaces reaction to Pygmies. He does his bits Shelley Berman & Chicago Shtarkers and Barney & the Hecklers, then talks about homosexuals on trial in Miami. Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site. The secondary goal is for Spector and Bruce to discuss Bruces upcoming engagement, financially backed by Spector, at the Music Box theater in Los Angeles. The set is in progress. Bruce does Christ & Moses before being arrested, as was audience member George Carlin, who refused to show police his ID. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search. Bruce performs several bits and discusses topical matters, Including: his arrest for obscenity, Irv Kup Kupcinet, Will Leonard, Jewish vs. Goyishe, Paul Molloy. Then, as is the case today, you had to network, deal with the power-brokers, hold meaningless jobs and share . Leonard Alfred Schneider (October 13, 1925 August 3, 1966), better known as Lenny Bruce, was a comedian, author, and social critic, whose corrosive and transgressive satire as well as his boldness in pushing the envelope of the laws of obscenity have made him an iconic figure in American culture. In 2014, Brandeis University acquired the Lenny Bruce collection from his daughter, Kitty Bruce, with a generous grant from the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation. The recording ends abruptly before the end of the set. The first is a variation on Chicks Are Boss. He does I Picked on the Wrong God. They said it in a light hearted way. Bruce talks about the early years of his career, differences between audiences and regions, and television. He talks about obscenity, Tab Hunter, slang used by black gay men, double-entendres used by comics, the nature of gay relationships. He does some of his bit How to Relax Your Colored Friends at Parties, to prove that Boyar misinterpreted it as racist. The date is not known but most likely took place after Bruces sentencing in June of 1963 for narcotics possession. He talks about Bela Lugosi and his son, does How Negroes and Jews Became Entertainers, talks about his scenario for a movie about Christ and the Good Thief, then continues to Custody/Get Even, Divorce, and Deny It. Bruce is reading from a letter a woman sent him. He says an obscenity circus has been going on around him for the past five years. He does Are There Any Niggers Here Tonight? The last section is a series of commercials, and possibly outtakes from commercials, for the Los Angeles mens clothing store Zeidler and Zeidler. He talks about pornography, masturbation, crime, and Jews. In the fourth section, he does rants as an irate pornographer and as an irate narcotics addict. The Village Purple Onion employed topless female dancers and served as a performance venue for up-and-coming musicians such as Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix. In the end, Lenny Bruce and comedy club owner Howard Solomon were found guilty as charged. He talks about Hugh Hefners intentions with Playboy. Bruce talks about doctors and says hes done a lot of hospital time in the last couple of years. He talks about the fallout from a joke about Cardinal Spellman, then does The Postman. He does We Did It to Their Mothers for Chocolate Bars. It was recorded and said to be one of the greatest performances made in the venues history. He reiterates what Allen stated, that his current litigation was surrounded by a four letter word that started with an S and ended with a T. He does Thank You Masked Man, We Killed Christ and Christ & Moses. He does his bit on Barry Goldwater and his Jewish roots. A lady cant go through a plate-glass window and go to bed with you five seconds later. Bruce does a bit about how his generation of men is terrified of being considered a faggot. He relates his surprise, when at Phil Spectors jamboree rock concert, at seeing 10-year-old kids out without their parents. Home; Biography; Videos; Donate; Shop; Cart; The Shop. Guitarist Lenny Breau, vocalist/comedian Don Francks, and bassist Eon Henstridge were a brand new trio (later calling themselves Three) when they were recorded in 1961 at the Purple Onion, a Toronto nightclub. Guitarist Lenny Breau, vocalist/comedian Don Francks, and bassist Eon Henstridge were a brand new trio (later calling themselves Three) when they were recorded in 1961 at the Purple Onion, a Toronto nightclub. He does The Best Man in the Tribe (St. Paul), Custody/Get Even, Deny It, Are There Any Niggers Here? (2) The recording abruptly switches to a different performance, in progress, (probably 1964, location unknown) with references to Lyndon Johnson and Barry Goldwater. He does Flashers, then Midgets, wonders whether Pygmies are midgets, and imagines Gov. George Wallaces reaction to Pygmies. He mentions a white minister being locked up for his protest in favor of civil rights (the reference is to Bruce W. Klunder). (Bruce was then arrested, as was audience member George Carlin, who refused to show police his ID). The new trial pitted Bruces use of dirty language and suggestive material against his right to free speech. He refers to the sex scandals involving Bill Tilden and Fatty Arbuckle. He does the bit We Killed Christ. 1960s greenwich village city street scene group of young adults walking along past the purple onion a famous go-go bar nyc usa - r20867 har001 hars copy space full-length ladies persons village go united states of america males pedestrians entertainment b&w north america freedom north american wide angle temptation dreams purple leisure onion along choice exterior famous recreation gotham . Its clear that his demographic audience existed, people who wanted to see him and listen to what he had to say. Bruce is in the midst of Shelley Berman & the Chicago Shtarkers. Lenny Bruce died in August of 1966, but you can still hear his voice online. He does Las Vegas Tits & Ass. Bruce does some bits about air travel. Lenny Bruce had already made two previous appearances, so why the need to give him such a dedicated introduction? He does a bit on mothers of different ethnicities. 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