I’ve had the legendary “sick” comedian Lenny Bruce on my mind because he shows up in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as a character. The fictionalized Lenny bails fellow potty-mouthed comic Midge Maisel out of jail. I’m sure the real Lenny would have done so too. Trivia time: In The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Lenny is played by Luke Kirby who played Daniel Holden’s do-gooder lawyer in Rectify. He knows from bailing out people.
Lenny Bruce was the bad boy of comedy in his day. His frequent obscenity arrests led to his being less funny over time. Who could blame him for obsessing over his legal situation?
These albums date from 1958 and 1959 respectively. They capture Lenny as his glorious politically incorrect peak. I use that term in its pre-Trumper sense. They’ve spoiled a perfectly good phrase just like they’ve spoiled everything else. Thanks, Donald.
Who among us doesn’t want to picnic in a graveyard?
If Lenny were alive today, there would be tiki torches on this cover.
It’s lagniappe time. Frank Zappa and the Mothers were Lenny Bruce’s opening act at the Fillmore West in 1966. Here’s the poster:
Finally, here’s The Sick Humor of Lenny Bruce in its entirety:
Ah, Lenny. Quite enjoyed his autobiography.
The Mothers & Lenny were both managed by Herb Cohen in 1966, explaining that double bill.
In the early 90s a good friend gave me a tape of Bruce’s Berkeley concert…I think I also had an LP (triple LP?) of the Curran Theater show(s). Wow.