Probably most famous for his "seven dirty words" routine, George Carlin was an American stand-up comedian.

George Denis Patrick Carlin was born May 12, 1937 in New York City. His mother raised him after she and his father separated when Carlin was an infant.

He joined the Air Force after he dropped out of high school, but his military career was short-lived. Carlin was an "unproductive Airman", according to his supervisors. While in the Air Force, Carlin worked as a disc jockey. After the discharge he worked in Boston, Mass. and Fort Worth, TX as a radio announcer and disc jockey, respectively.

In 1960, he and Jack Burns worked together in Fort Worth and eventually Los Angeles, Calif. Burns and Carlin performed in small venues in L.A and recorded their only album together, Burns and Carlin at the Playboy Club Tonight. The duo made an appearance on "The Tonight Show".

Shortly after, Carlin decided to go solo. He appeared on "The Tonight Show" and "The Ed Sullivan Show"and "The Merv Griffin Show" in the 1960's. His career began to take off after the release of his debut album "Take Offs and Put Ons" in 1967.

In 1970, Carlin's clean-cut image flew out the window as he was transformed into the person he is most recognized as today. He let his hair grow, his suits were replaced with faded jeans and T-shirts. His "Seven Words You Can't Say on Television" routine surfaced at this time, much to the chagrin of the FCC. The controversy only fueled the fire and made Carlin more popular than ever.

Carlin acted as the first host of "Saturday Night Live" on October 11, 1975. He appeared in several movies and television shows in the 1980's, including "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" and "Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends", where he starred as Mr. Conductor for two years. Carlin wrote several books, including "When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?". In 1994, his own show, "The George Carlin Show" survived for one season.

At the age of 71, he died June 22, 2008 at his Santa Monica, Calif. home.