Bill Hicks died 20 years ago today. In this obituary,published in the Guardian in 1994, John Lahr reflects on the US comedian's brand of intellectual anarchyBill Hicks, or one of the most daring American stand-up comedians of his generation,liked to inquire for the non-smokers in the audience to identify themselves, then puff absent at them while inspecting his cigarette pack. "What's frosty is that every pack has a Surgeon General's Warning, and isn't that much? Mine says Warning - Smoking May Cause Foetal Injury Or Premature Birth. Found my brand! Just don't get the ones that say Lung Cancer – Shop around. Gimme a carton of Low Birth Weight!"Last October,Hicks became the first performer since Elvis Presley to be banned from CBS's Ed Sullivan Theatre where the David Letterman prove is in residence and where Hicks had made his 11th appearance. In an outraged 32-page letter Hicks wrote to me, he quoted Noam Chomsky:Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com