American comedy and the first amendment to the United States Constitution

In the 1960s, patrons of Chicago’s Rush Street Gate of Horn nightclub often attended not just to enjoy Lenny Bruce’s provocative humor but also to witness his frequent arrests by the Chicago Police Department’s vice control division. Dubbed the “father of dirty jokes,” Bruce’s performances were notorious for his dropping F-bombs and always being greeted with handcuffs. Audiences would pay their cover charges, order drinks, anticipating watching his arrest go down and the club’s closure for the evening

Today, Lenny Bruce in reality would seem like an altar boy compared to comedians like Nikki Glaser. Glaser is renowned for her candid and humorous discussions of the most intimate human sexual experiences, fearlessly addressing topics that many shy away from. Fortunately, in the current era, such openness doesn’t result in a police action. Reflecting on this, one might question how discussing sex—a fundamental aspect of human existence—was ever criminalized.

It’s remarkable that it took nearly two centuries for the courts to fully embrace the freedoms promised by the First Amendment.