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The world of comedy got hit upside the head this morning with the sudden death of George Carlin at the age of 71. Carlin had a history of heart problems, having had a heart attack in 80’s and two open heart surgeries in that decade as well. Yesterday he checked himself into the hospital complaining of chest pains, this morning he died.

For decades George Carlin entertained us with his scathing critiques on politics, religion and the fun little nuances of society. Throughout his very long and extremely successful career, he was able to shed light on so many of life’s absurdities while being hysterical and sometimes even touching.

You would be hard pressed to find comedians who work in the field of political and social comedy and satire who have not been at least somewhat inspired by Carlin. How could you not? The man started his comedic career in the 1950’s, was the first host of Saturday Night Live in 1975 and was still working successfully up until he died.

This clip from some of his latest work is not his funniest, but in typical Carlin fashion it’s very poignant for the times. Some criticized parts of Carlin’s later work for being especially combative and pessimistic, to which Carlin replied “Scratch any cynic and you’ll find a disappointed idealist.”

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