Seven dirty words

American comedian George Carlin (1937 – 2008) first made a list of seven obscene English language words during a 1972 monologue ("The Seven Words You Can't Say on Television"). The seven words were motherfucker, tits, shit, piss, fuck, cunt and cocksucker.

In the 1970s, these words were called inappropriate, obscene, and indecent on the United States' public airwaves. The terms were almost never used in scripted material. The broadcast standards in many parts of the world are different. Across the United States, a lot of the words on Carlin's original list are still not allowed in broadcast television or radio.

Background of the seven dirty words
In a concert in 1966, the comedian Lenny Bruce said he was arrested when he said nine words in his sketch: "ass", "balls", "cocksucker", "cunt", "fuck", "motherfucker", "piss", "shit" and "tits".

Right after performing the routines at Summerfest in Milwaukee in 1972, Carlin was charged with disturbance of the peace and was arrested. The following year, on his album Occupation: Toole, Carlin had a similar routine called "Filthy Words". The New York City radio station WBAI broadcast uncensored versions of the routine on October 30, 1973.

Related pages
Profanity
Obscenity
Federal Communications Commission

References

Category:Obscenity
Category:Profanity
Category:Communication