George Carlin on UFOs, Aliens, Opioids, and Alcohol
Article by Duncan Phenix and George Knapp January 19, 2021 (krqe.com)
• Comedian George Carlin was an avid reader whose often-scathing stand-up monologues skewered human frailties and social trends. Over the course of 20 years, Carlin often performed at venues in Las Vegas – so often that it became his part-time residence. In 2008, a week after one of these Las Vegas shows, Carlin died from heart failure.
• To keep his comedy material fresh and relevant, Carlin would constantly read articles and book on various subjects. On stage, Carlin often delved into the topic of UFOs and aliens as sort of a set-up to comment on the sad state of humanity. While he never took any public positions about extraterrestrials, he had an abiding interest in the topic.
• So it was only natural that Carlin would become acquainted with Las Vegas television personality and UFO researcher George Knapp. When in Vegas, Carlin and Knapp would have several occasions to confer on the topic UFOs. The two of them even exchanged tapes, books, and information about UFOs. Knapp met George Carlin in the mid-1980s when Knapp interviewed him for an evening newscast on KLAS-TV. “I chatted with him after the interview and then we stayed in touch,” says Knapp. “I would occasionally go to see him when he was in Las Vegas to perform. In 1990, I started sending him tapes of the UFO stories and the multi-part series I was producing. In return, he would generously send me stacks of VHS tapes of his comedy specials and performances. Over the years, I also sent him a few (UFO) books, …which he liked.” “When he came to town, I’d go to see him and chat in his dressing room about UFO-related stories. He was deeply interested and it was clear he read a lot about the mystery, though he didn’t really want to be known publicly as a UFO guy, so I kept that to myself.”
• Knapp’s final on-camera interview with Carlin came in 2004 and he spoke about his interest in what might await humans in the cosmos or in other dimensions. “Yeah, I read a lot of articles and I try to read the books and you know,” Carlin said during the 2004 interview at the Stardust Hotel and Casino. “It would surprise me as it would surprise you George. I know that you hold this sort of belief, I’ll call it. If this were the only thing that the universe stumbled into – this life of people we have here – whether it’s a god or whether it’s a some kind of organizing energy. …[T]here’s got to be a lot of stuff. And the ‘bubble’. I’m just wanting to see how that string theory works out in the bubble, the chains and what’s in there. And I mean, there’s no end to things you can imagine, and there’s bound to be some of them.”
• Carlin also talked to Knapp about being fired from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in 2004 where he was a headliner, after an altercation with his audience. After a poorly received set filled with dark references to suicide bombings and beheadings, Carlin complained that he could not wait to get out of this “fucking hotel” and Las Vegas; he wanted to go back east, “where the real people are”. Carlin continued, “People who go to Las Vegas, you’ve got to question their fucking intellect to start with. Traveling hundreds and thousands of miles to essentially give your money to a large corporation is kind of fucking moronic. That’s what I’m always getting here is these kind of fucking people with very limited intellects.” When an audience member shouted, “Stop degrading us!” Carlin responded, “Thank you very much, whatever that was. I hope it was positive; if not, well, blow me.”
• Shortly after this incident Carlin was fired and almost immediately began treatment for alcohol and prescription painkiller addiction. Carlin was open with Knapp about his issues with opioids and alcohol, saying he began abusing opioids following a small surgery and was careful to keep his drinking in the shadows, saying he was a good functioning alcoholic.
MYSTERY WIRE — Iconic comedian George Carlin was an avid reader whose often-scathing stand-up monologues skewered
human frailties and social trends. One topic he sometimes mentioned onstage is alien life.
Carlin passed away in 2008 from heart failure. It happened just one week after performing another show in Las Vegas. Over the course of 20 years, Las Vegas was a town where Carlin lived part time and often performed.
During his time in Las Vegas, Carlin and Mystery Wire’s George Knapp talked several times, often delving into the topic of UFOs and aliens among other things such as politics and political correctness.
George Carlin used extraterrestrials a few times in his stand-up routines, sort of a set-up line to comment on the sad state of humanity, but he never took any public positions about UFOs or aliens.
Behind the scenes though, he had an abiding interest in the topics. The comedian and Knapp exchanged tapes, books, and information about UFOs.
“I met George Carlin in the mid 1980s. He came into KLAS and we interviewed him live in our studio for an evening newscast,” Knapp told Mystery Wire. “I chatted with him after the interview and then we stayed in touch. I would occasionally go to see him when he was in Las Vegas to perform (which was often.) In 1990, I started sending him tapes of the UFO stories and the multi-part series I was producing. In return, he would generously send me stacks of VHS tapes of his comedy specials and performances. Over the years, I also sent him a few books – UFO books and also books about strange and archaic words, which he liked. He would send autographed copies of books he had written. When he came to town, I’d go to see him and chat in his dressing room about UFO-related stories. He was deeply interested and it was clear he read a lot about the mystery, though he didn’t really want to be known publicly as a UFO guy, so I kept that to myself.”
Knapp’s final on-camera interview with Carlin came in 2004 and he spoke about his interest in what might await humans in the cosmos or in other dimensions.
2:36 minute video of George Carlin on Aliens coming to Earth (‘Gábor Hényel’ YouTube)
1:07 minute video of George Carlin on colonizing space (‘Gábor Hényel’ YouTube)
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