Matt Shares George Carlin with the World

Not many tattoos stop me in my tracks, but that's just what happened when I was walking down 4th Avenue last week and spotted Matt outside of a laundromat with this awesome tattoo:

This fantastic tattoo of the late great comedian George Carlin is by far one of my favorite portraits of a celebrity I've ever seen inked on flash. Perhaps being a huge fan has something to do with it.

Turns out the fan with the tattoo is Matt Huff, tattooer and piercer at Brooklyn Ink, where Joe Mags laid this portrait down. The fact that the image was so immediately recognizable to me speaks volumes of the quality of the work.

Later, in an email, Matt gave me a detailed rundown of his relationship to the tattoo:

"There are several reasons that I decided to get my George Carlin portrait.  I suppose the best place to start is my own personality, and how I will crack a joke about anything, no matter how lighthearted or serious it can be. George Carlin was someone who was a part of my life from when I was a little kid watching Shining Time Station on PBS, to being an adolescent who thought the 7 dirty words skit was edgy and rebellious, through my angst filled teenage years. I've carried the 'bullshit is everywhere' attitude my whole life, and learning the ability to brush it all off and laugh about it have been an integral part of my transition into the person I am today. I figured if there was a person who I quote almost daily, that I should pay homage to, it would be him."

I couldn't agree more - I cut my teeth as a kid in the 70's sneaking peeks at Carlin doing stand-up on HBO specials, an despite never seeing him perform,. I did meet him twice at book-signing. This signed photograph hangs in my bathroom:

Who cares if my name isn't Wayne, it's as funny as hell.

Here's a classic piece of Carlin that I still love:



Thanks to Matt for sharing his George Carlin portrait with us here on Tattoosday. If you hadn't guessed by my gushing, it is truly an honor!

This entry is ©2014 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.