Lenny Bruce Pardoned by State of New York

I feel better knowing he was pardoned. It's a shame the ones hounding him never paid.

I am glad, but it's too little, too late, for poor Lenny!

The article mentions that the conviction may have been a factor in his early death...

That's what I meant. After the trial, Lenny was a broken man.

A lotta good it does him now.

I think edgar has gotten to the nub of the matter. This is just a feel good ploy unless the prosecutors who hounded Bruce are also censured for the misuse of their powers and their publicity seeking actions.

For you younger folks who were not around when Lenny was in his heyday, here is a good site. It has events in Lenny's life, and audio clips of his act. It has a copy of the tape that was used in his obscenity trial.

You are going to wonder what the fuss was about!!!

http://www.freenetpages.co.uk/hp/lennybruce/

It's about CENSORED time.

I guess I'm surprised they did it after so long, because it will remind us of how unjustly he was treated at the time. In that sense, whoever made the call here deserves some credit...

I just heard this on NPR. Correcting a miscarriage of justice posthumosly is, as has been said, just a feel-good gesture. It is also a valuable political ploy. When is Pataki running for re-election?

Lenny Bruce, in his time, was absolutely the most incisive, most refreshing new voice in stand-up comedy. Only Mort Sahl came even remotely close to matching Bruce's razor wit.

It wasn't Pataki's idea. He was handed a huge petition. And it was more than about time.

There's more on the story in today's NY Times (see link below). Good explanation of why it happened in the first place; offending Cardinal Spellman back then wasn't a good idea. He practically ran NYC, and, with all due respect, was a political neanderthal...

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/24/nyregion/24BRUC.html

Even from the grave Lenny still pokes the monkeys with a stick.

Go ahead Lenny!!!

on the original charges brought in NY was (I believe the 7th or 8th listed charge) his reference to "pissin' in the sink" (no doubt a felony)

The villains in this tradgedy are RC cardinal Spellman, NY DA at the time Frank Hogan, and a non entity named Richard Kuh who was the assistant DA who prosecuted the court case after every other assistant DA in the office refused. Kuh apparently thought this was his ticket of public fame and fortune as he ran for the DA position ten years latter. He was swamped in a landslide by Robert Morgantheau who was highly critical of the prosecution. For a more complete account see the NYT article.

Indeed. And now Kuh is forgotten, while we mourn Lenny Bruce...