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This was supposed to be Milwaukee's week to be as nasty as it wants to be.
Monday night, brutish comedian Andrew Dice Clay reigns at the Riverside Theater. Clay projects a half Elvis, half "Lords of Flatbush" tough-guy persona, but without the talent of the former or the humanity of the latter.
Until their cancellation last week, the equally obnoxious rap group 2 Live Crew had been scheduled to follow the Diceman to the Riverside Wednesday.
Lately, the Crew have been packing more courtrooms than theaters; the group's cancellation here was attributed to poor ticket sales.
The scheduling of two such controversial acts within a couple of days is a dramatic demonstration of how much definitions of obscenity have changed.
Way back in July of 1972, George Carlin was arrested after a Summerfest performance for using language that was almost demure by Diceman standards.
What Carlin did was raise the issue of the "seven words you can't use on TV" (this was obviously before cable). Eventually the city dropped its charges of disorderly conduct, and Carlin has played here many times since.
Today, local authorities agree we have moved well beyond the seven dirty words standard of obscenity.
However, at the time, the Summerfest executive director, the late Henry Jordan, described Carlin's act as "definitely in bad taste." Perhaps. But Carlin didn't say anything...