Comedian George Carlin’s old trademark routine is “The Seven Dirty Words You Can’t Say on TV,” a classic bit from the ’70s that has him rattling off a string of unprintable obscenities.
But this summer, bizarro comic Bobcat Goldthwait is hosting a new game show on the cable network FX that includes one of Carlin’s once-forbidden phrases in its title. And, no, we still can’t print it.
Despite chronic complaints about the lack of “family-friendly” programs and the adoption of a content ratings system intended to alert viewers to potentially offensive material, Taboo TV is upon us.
From the profanity-laced ‘toons on Comedy Central’s “South Park” to the syndicated slugfests on “Jerry Springer,” the rigidly enforced television mores many adults grew up with have been replaced by a new rule: Forget the rules.
As the fall season approaches, the broadcast and cable television schedule is liberally sprinkled with pedophilia, drug use, hard-core violence, foul language, nudity and other topics viewers rarely discussed 20 years ago, much less watched on the family television set.
There are still plenty of safe havens for viewers who prefer shows that are more like a warm glass of milk than a shot of battery acid. Later this month, PaxNET (touted as a wholesome alternative with reruns of old shows) and Fox’s revamped Family Channel will join Nickelodeon, TV Land and the Trinity Broadcasting Network in programming shows exclusively for small children, teens and impressionable grown-ups.
Increasingly, however, television is no place for the faint of heart.
Exhibit A is “Lolita,” a film version of Vladimir Nabokov’s novel about a tortured love affair between a middle-aged college professor and a young girl (she’s 12 in the book, 14 in the movie).
Oscar winner Jeremy Irons stars as the lovesick Humbert Humbert pathetically obsessed with teenager Dominique Swain in the title role.
Completed two years ago, the movie was orphaned by its studio and barred from U.S. theatrical release because the subject matter was considered too risque for moviegoers.
Maybe, but Sunday’s debut of “Lolita” on the premium channel Showtime was one of the splashiest movie events of the fledgling TV season.
HBO, which fancies itself the gold standard of pay cable networks, is known for high-quality movies and high-minded programs that consistently win industry awards and critical acclaim. A quick look at its Nielsen ratings reveals that HBO viewers are fond of documentaries, especially when they’re about sex.
The top-rated show on HBO for the period ending in June was the documentary series “Real Sex 19,” followed by “Real Sex 20.” A documentary about prostitution, “Pimps Up, Ho’s Down,” was a not-so-distant third.
And they’re not just seeing Taboo TV on pay cable. Even on commercial television, which relies on skittish advertisers for revenue, subjects that were considered scandalous just a year ago are being greeted with ho-hum acceptance.
ABC sitcom star Ellen DeGeneres’ decision to reveal her homosexuality on national television created a media frenzy and a brief ratings spike before the show was canceled, as she put it, for being “too gay.”
This season, “Ellen” might not have been gay enough. NBC is introducing “Will and Grace,” a sitcom about a male-female friendship that raises the stakes with suggestive banter and multiple gay characters.
At TNT, which last year refused to broadcast Anjelica Huston’s “Bastard Out of Carolina,” a television movie that showed brutal scenes of child sexual abuse, is having second thoughts about professional wrestling shows such as “Monday Nitro,” which are among the most violent, and popular shows on cable.
“We are looking into the question right now about whether it’s too violent,” said Teri Tingle, TNT’s vice president for standards and practices.
But TNT’s rude-and-crude wrestlers are no match for the profanity-spewing 3rd-graders on “South Park,” a show ostensibly for adults (it’s rated TV-MA) that has attracted a huge following of viewers under 18.
The show features wrestling matches between Jesus Christ and Santa Claus, the ritualistic killing of a main character in every episode, and more swear words than comedian Carlin ever bothered to count.
