The FBI Kept Tabs on Mort Sahl's Jokes About It, and Hoover Thought Sahl Was a 'Sick Man'
The late standup comedian's FBI file says he "ridiculed the FBI, law enforcement, and high public officials, beyond the bounds of good humor."
30 June 2022
reason.com
The late standup comedian's FBI file says he "ridiculed the FBI, law enforcement, and high public officials, beyond the bounds of good humor."
30 June 2022
Government records show that FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover thought standup comedian Mort Sahl was a "very sick man," and that the feds kept close tabs on Sahl's jokes about them, believing that he and like-minded comedian Lenny Bruce were receiving material from "communistic" sources. Sahl, whose barbed political commentary paved the way for generations of anti-establishment comedians, died last October at 94. His FBI files, obtained by Reason through a Freedom of Information Act request, show that the FBI was quite sensitive to Sahl's frequent jabs at it and Hoover. A 1960 memo from the FBI's Los Angeles field ...
The FBI Kept Tabs on Mort Sahl's Jokes About It, and Hoover Thought Sahl Was a 'Sick Man'
Pioneering standup comedian Mort Sahl often joked about the FBI. Sahl's FBI files show that the feds kept tabs on him.
reason.com