Lenny Bruce speaking at UCLA 2/9/1966

[@MSYNGWIE12]

Lenny's take on the Catholic Church and Vietnam is very interesting- thank you creators of The Marvelous Mrs Maisel for bringing this brilliant comic to the forefront again- now I dig why George Carlin admired him so much...Peace Everybody...Namaste from Canada 😊

[@midnightodellewest1999]

So interesting how listening to this simultaneously shows how much and how little things have changed in 55 years.

[@rosepereira4152]

Things changed a lot.Peoplo is much more stupid.

[@rosemadder5547]

They hide that fact from us so well 😂

[@GrandGobboBarb]

Probably the most important comedian of the 20th century.

[@dancewomyn1]

+Kit42 ....Most definitely! ;)

[@rabbieburns2501]

Agreed.

[@EricScottBloom]

I became enraptured at age 6!!!!!!!~E

[@ozymandiasnullifidian5590]

I agree that he was important, seminal, but...to call him comedian.. He was more like social, political satirist... People laugh way more to other comedians, but those are shallow, and their jokes are just jokes, while Lenny was always, almost always with deeper meaning in his, I would say speeches...

[@nonenoneonenonenone]

@@ozymandiasnullifidian5590 Exactly. Comedians today all try to be like him, but they can hardly tell a joke or a story.

[@plotnonyo]

I can't get enough of this guy. He was a great.

[@DailyBrusher]

In reading the comments below, about some people finding Lenny "boring" near the end, because he discussed legal points, rather than just doing bits; about Lenny's coherence or incoherence: You have to understand that this was not an ordinary performance. It was part of a speaker series at UCLA, an academic setting. That is why he is discussing various points, and he does the bits really only for reference. He was not doing his normal act, and besides his health issues, you have to consider that he was "riffing," intellectually, but not really trying to get laughs... His losing his place makes more sense, in this context.

[@zamaraththoth3582]

Stand up philosophy. Like Leary...too much pressure. Necessary. Epic

[@bobwaidelich6757]

This is not comedy. Reality is funny. Wake up and laugh!

[@stephenzevetchin]

The legal stuff is a goldmine. People don't know half the references he used.

[@steveochs1865]

Actually, though this is officially a lecture, his later "shows" were also lectures on his legal troubles and what they meant to our freedoms. Bascially, he would read form the court transcript that bastardized his act, then perform the bit as "written" (he improvised a lot, so "written" may not be the appropriate term). See the Berkeley Concert film (you can listen to it here; www.nytimes.com/1971/06/27/archives/what-lenny-bruce-was-all-about-what-lenny-bruce-what-lenny-bruce.html).

[@wgaule]

@@stephenzevetchin No, but I know the other half

[@therealDac10012]

Lenny's legacy is SPEAKING TRUTH TO POWER

[@chadmunsey]

Lenny, Thank you for everything.

[@EricScottBloom]

he brought me up

[@Ledgeview]

Harrumph

[@thegooodmachine]

Thank you for this upload (along with the subtitles/sound quality)

[@charlesomeara9918]

one of the great minds of the 20th century - because he saw through the bullshit. another great talk in this vein is jack kerouac's 'is there a beat generation?'

[@chestermarcol3831]

Amazing insight that is even MORE apropos today.

[@satyammishra2090]

Some of the comics/actors Lenny influenced - Bill Cosby, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, David Cross, Jerry Seinfeld, Paul Krassner, Lewis Black, Jon Stewart, Peter Cook, Abbie Hoffman, Joan Rivers, Nick Di Paolo, Sam Kinison, Eddie Izzard, Howard Stern, Bill Hicks, John Belushi, Rich Vos, Jerry Sadowitz, Cardell Willis, Denis Leary, Louis C.K., Andrew Dice Clay, Rick Shapiro, Dave Chappelle, Tommy Chong, Stewart Lee, Emery Emery, Lou Reed, Joe Rogan.

[@EricScottBloom]

hundreds more

[@carloparcelli9212]

And Doug Stanhope.

[@davidoberlin4186]

@@carloparcelli9212 there we are.

[@ozymandiasnullifidian5590]

And Jerry Lewis...or not???

[@sheilamacdougal4874]

Robert Klein

[@trombonecoach]

“Remember to keep comments respectful and to follow our Community Guidelines”…how little difference there is between Silicon Valley technocracy and the court system and censorship that was driving Lenny crazy 60 years ago.

[@marilyncatalano6478]

At home, 10/23/19, listening to and learning about Lenny. And now, I can see how Carlin came to be, Williams came to be. I think Lenny was the REAL genius and I now think Carlin was also and heavily influenced by Lenny. I was ten almost when he died and how I came to know the name Lenny Bruce WAS through Carlin, Williams and something called U-Tube. Thank the Lord (I'm no longer a religious person) for U-TUBE. I FKG LOVE Lenny and U-TUBE. His material is all new to me at 62 y.o. but still, when I listen closely, I feel like I've heard it before, sort of. Yep, it was Lenny's voice coming out of Mr. George Carlin. Now, all three are gone and so, I searched more about Dave Chappelle and he is the best LIVING comedian alive on this planet. Phew, thanks Lord, for a minute I thought you forgot about laughter.😪💔😣☹️🤫🤫p.s., I love his NY accent. Sounds exactly like my Brooklyn accent. Sounds great to me!!!! 😅😂🤣😟

[@zamaraththoth3582]

Brilliant.. Social engineer Naturally. Unreal Funny on the edge. Pushing envelopes. Great Artist. GIANT

[@sportshistorybuff]

The 1974 movie "Lenny" with Dustin Hoffman had scenes suggesting Bruce was playing in front of bored crowds near the end because he would only talk about his legal battles, and crowds wanted his comedic act.

[@EricScottBloom]

i could listen to him read the phone book

[@leica0000]

I wonder if that really happened or if Fosse did that for dramatic affect?

[@thegooodmachine]

..there's a video of it on youtube. and its actually still very funny, and insightful not only to the tragedy in his life, but about the problems of the legal system/obscenity etc..just search Lenny Bruce Final Film, I think, and you should find it) and the Fosse movie was terrible. I honestly do not think I saw Hoffman snap his fingers ONCE! Really???? And hey how many tit shots can we fit into a movie about a legend? It's in black and white and its ABOUT "obscenity," so its ART! yeah ok..It still sucks IMO i tried to give it a THIRD chance today and couldn't get past the halfway mark. Hoffman "sounds" a little like Bruce at some parts but his demeanor....it all just felt so OFF. He didn't snap his fingers once! If you think I'm crazy for saying that just watch or listen to any lenny bruce performance. The man had impeccable comedic timing and snapped to it seemingly unconsciously (like a musician tapping his foot)

[@shannonm.townsend1232]

@@EricScottBloom me too, me too.

[@michaelh5416]

Brilliant guy with messages that are timely. John Stewart needs to come back now to point out the evil that is present today.

[@jackstraw262]

Sadly John Stewart’s new show uses a laugh track

[@brendaprice409]

And that's the way our world is today as we know it!!!

[@modelprisoner]

Oct 13 HAPPY BIRTHDAY LENNY!

[@giovannifeldman6965]

Thought I had all his works, but I didn't have this. Not his best stuff (from this era the Berkeley concert is cleaner), but well worth having.

[@seamusjones5516]

First Amendment Day aka Lenny Bruce Day, a National Holiday. You can say anything you want and not get in trouble. I propose April 1st. 🙉🙊🙈 🍀

[@doctorzaius4084]

Wow, can't believe he smoked DMT... that's crazy

[@seanspruck]

Smoked DMT WHILE HE WAS ON LSD!!

[@burmansmith3944]

When you cackle and and nod in convulsive agreement to Jon Stewart or Maher , it's Lenny's holy spirit looking over their shoulders right at you. Someone had to break the ground and pay dearly for it.

[@TheMrDan-ys4to]

+winstoneism Well just assholes that need to stay out of politics and stick to television programs

[@EricScottBloom]

both mediocre wanna b's...pathetic

[@terrywitzu3795]

Lenny was about truth, unlike your bullshit examples.

[@ModMokkaMatti]

@ they themselves are the jokes, and neither is particularly humorous.

[@FreakinRican6969]

@@ModMokkaMatti Mehhhh they are both funny and intelligent just not on the level of Lenny Bruce. Just because you don't find them funny does not mean they aren't 🤯

[@sportshistorybuff319]

A comedian with no sacred cows as Bruce is a visionary worth listening to, as long as they don't hold themselves above criticism. Did he ever include self-reflection in his act? In his personal life? If he did, one must respect his ideas, even if you don't agree with him. Without the humility of self-analysis, a comedian is stroking their own ego at the expense of everyone else.

[@musicmitchy4296]

They killed this man.. if not by murder and cover up, then by just busting him and being up his ass every step he took until he just lost it. Either way, they killed him, but he opened up the door big time for others to step through and make change. Sooooo I guess in the end Lenny got the last laugh..

[@greatmcluhansghost7134]

he was a threat to ignorance. a few people who spoke out against the Vietnam war didn't make it out of the 1960's alive. saying, the war was a complete sham, was dangerous to people like MLK and RFK.

[@EricScottBloom]

a SLEIGHT New York accent; but SLEIGHT....

[@joe10jo]

❤️

[@randyriches2530]

Sadly Lenny left this world a mere 6 months after this.

[@burmansmith3944]

Jack Ruby was still alive at this time

[@garryberman894]

No, Ruby died two years before this.

[@seanspruck]

​@@garryberman894Ruby died two years AFTER this.

[@valg321]

6 months b4 he died

[@CliffBronson1212]

Evian water ...that's where it's at 😊

[@sportshistorybuff]

The establishment didn't create his drug problem. Lenny Bruce started using heroin in the early 1950's, long before he was ever harassed by the authorities. Heroin addicts drop dead by the dozens every week in America, most of them younger than 41. The blame for his addiction, sadly, belonged with him.

[@gerhardschelbi2302]

Drugs are not bad!

[@christinanichols5542]

Lenny tried to help the cops by turning in the dealers so he could stay clean. Lenny and millions of veterans were also neglected after all these wars. Veterans with PTSD and other post-war problems are extremely susceptible to addiction. The government is partly to blame for all these drug issues.

[@sportshistorybuff]

@@christinanichols5542 I highly doubt Lenny was being a good citizen by ratting out the dealers, more likely he was saving his own skin from prison. Hard to picture Bruce cooperating with police in anything given the hostillity between them. Even greater millions of Americans serving in WWII did not become heroin addicts, or any type of drug addict, and many of them saw way more horrors than Bruce did. The government and mililtary's role in his problems were tiny compared to his holier than thou, too cool for school, hipster, anti-establishment personna.

[@sportshistorybuff319]

But by ratting out his dealers to police, Lenny wasn't taking responsibility for his own flaws/weaknesses, he was passing the consequences on to someone else, which seems curiously mercenary for someone so willing to critique hypocrisy in every corner of society.

[@DateTwoRelate]

He's just all over the place here and maybe it's intentional or maybe it's the heroin talking. He starts. He stops. He shifts gears. The cycle begins anew.

[@ozymandiasnullifidian5590]

No, heroin does not work like that..probably you have never tried heroin, and I hope you never will, but I have, and I know that heroin does not do that...heroin calms, tends people to sleep or at least to be slower...If I have to guess, that is amphetamine.. Amphetamine and Meth do that, you are all over, hypomanic and you think that you have incredible energy...and maybe it is just his ordinary tehnique of stream of consciousness and free association...

[@angelwild9145]

“Just Steve,” that’s quite degrading & judgmental of you to say that about Lenny Bruce, and a substance that you obviously know absolutely nothing about. If your condescending opinion/observance of Lenny is your only analysis/personal conclusion of his talk, then that in itself speaks volumes about your intellectual limitations.👎🏻

[@hackenstring]

16:47. Heroin is a what?

[@pettibonnotginn]

At Berkeley Mario Savio shouted him down.

[@vaughnhenderson1174]

No, he urged the administration to allow Lenny Bruce to speak. books.google.com/books?id=Q-LQCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA470&lpg=PA470&dq=lenny+bruce+mario+savio&source=bl&ots=Gudu6uDXAP&sig=t2pLfX3mNsaEzL1eRemPTYzEKW4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjE3o-jmqXfAhVbJjQIHYZZC_4Q6AEwEHoECAEQAQ#v=onepage&q=lenny%20bruce%20mario%20savio&f=false

[@gina888warhol1]

genius

[@larry1824]

Tell em the truth

[@keithbellew4101]

Poor Lenny was unravelling at this point

[@EricScottBloom]

who WOULDN'T BE?!?!??!?....society was just as moronic at that time as it is now....he channeled his doom and intelligence through laser-guided satire....the best!

[@Tsumami__]

Keith Bellew but still somehow so together with it, too

[@thegooodmachine]

ill just say i feel qualified to consider your opinion right OP...and it is sad but still beautiful that he did come out to the people and almost just want to confess. I wonder if he had planned it or not I can't help hearing this in some ways and hearing that he sort of already had made up his mind--its just kind of 'junkie dialect' for lack of a better term. you kind of know you could die any hit..it really is so sad and terrible how he was lost, but at least not to history..Bill Hicks (who in some ways I feel was like the vengeful ghost of Lenny, reincarnate but I like to dream) also talked about how its always the good guys who for soooome reason get taken out early (and was an example himself :( ) The tragedy behind the greatest comedy in my eyes is, for lack of a better word, poetic. Vonnegut would quickly be my first example.. anyway sorry Keither Bellew from 1 year ago..i feel bad "thumbs-upping" the comment just because I do think I can hear it and it makes me sad.... : (

[@leica0000]

He definitely doesn't sound too healthy there. :-(

[@timpage54]

BIG time. Barely coherent.

[@Dippedwithsweet]

He wasn’t afraid of the bomb

[@thomassmith6644]

bar stools and bus stops. the revolution is cheap.

[@ozymandiasnullifidian5590]

Revolution, REAL revolution is not cheap...You need people, influence and a lot of guns... There was no succesfull cheap revolution..

[@jimsmith660]

Is this the lecture that was recorded by Frank Zappa?

[@UCLADrasninArchive]

Ah, I think you're thinking of the Berkeley Concert (at the Fillmore Auditorium), where Zappa was part of Lenny Bruce's opening act?

[@cameronwritt3820]

22:03 WOW. THAT is a bit Bill Burr did early 2000s. I don't think theft. Great minds, but wow.

[@dancewomyn1]

+Cameron Writt ...Bill Burr most probably lifted it directly from Lenny's material!

[@dancewomyn1]

+Sean Ongley ...Exactly!

[@echolove6815]

It was too similar. I call theft

[@janorhypercleats]

This kind of incoherant. The drugs and the legal battles were taking their toll on him.

[@EricScottBloom]

his mind is just working too fast for the general listener....speed-of-light......no bullshit.....INSIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@thecreativeprocess-pureima3389]

David Chappelle ripped off his whole way of storytelling. Tempo, pace, delivery. The lot.

[@crankydragon]

yeah, guess I should be happy the, KKK is spending money on "good times instead of rope". Such a messed up context but a context none-the-less .

[@bobwaidelich6757]

This is not comedy. Reality is funny. Wake up and laugh!

[@davidoberlin4186]

You know.

[@kevinthomas4074]

It is an early comedic act.

[@timpage54]

And the poor students had to sit through this. They were polite in those days.

[@druha10304]

george carlin ripped him off hahahha

[@malic1950]

.....dear, time difference is a factor

[@DailyBrusher]

I'm glad, though, that while he was still alive, Carlin acknowledged Bruce in several ways.

[@obfuscated3090]

No, Carlin ACKNOWLEDGED him. Carlin quote: "“Lenny Bruce opened the doors for all the guys like me; he prefigured the free-speech movement and helped push the culture forward into the light of open and honest expression,”

[@stephenzevetchin]

@@DailyBrusher Carlin picked him up in a taxi he was driving.

[@dantean]

They sure as hell wouldn't let him speak today. They'd compare him to the Chancellor of 1930s Germany and threaten him to prevent him appearing.

[@timpage54]

Oh nonsense. We've had many more daring comics in the years since. He's something of a bore here. Listen to the early records.

[@teeniebeenie8774]

loved him' but why him so dum to destroy his talents with drugs????

[@GreenEnvy.]

Didn't laugh once.

[@dennisgilesjnr3538]

Because your already dead. This man was a comedic genius !!! Period.

[@Odawg292002]

Green Envy, this is well beyond you then.

[@pontificateus]

I presume everybody knows that this is not the voice of Lenny Bruce - it's a black guy doing a cover

[@chrisw7034]

This is Lenny Bruce . .

[@scottgeshen]

what drugs are you on, dude?

[@niceguymick9780]

you dumb ass.