SPOFFORD, N.H. (AP) -- In death, comedian George Carlin returned to New Hampshire, where some of his earliest routines were heard. The famed funnyman died of heart failure in June. Last week, following his last wishes, some of his ashes were spread in Spofford Lake, where he prompted laughter while at summer camp six decades ago.
A small group that included his daughter, Kelly Carlin-McCall, and his older brother, Patrick, scattered some ashes in front of nightclubs he played in New York City. Then, they traveled to Spofford Lake, where Carlin attended the now-defunct Camp Notre Dame.
"Every year that he was there, he won their drama award," Carlin-McCall told The Keene Sentinel from her home in Los Angeles. "And one year, it was a little necklace with the comedy and tragedy masks on it. He wore that a lot. He started wearing it a lot lately, and he actually died with it on."
She said Carlin always talked to her about how important his childhood in general and his time at the camp were to him.
"It meant a lot to him to be able to get out of the city, and also to win this award, which for him was like the first affirmation he was doing something right," Carlin-McCall said.
Carlin made a career out of comedy, hosting the first episode of "Saturday Night Live," starring in more than a dozen HBO specials, and being named this year's recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor before his death.
Carlin-McCall said they spread his ashes over the water.
"It was beautiful and touching. I really felt like my dad was smiling very large at the moment," she said. "I knew I was doing him right."
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