Editing George Carlin (section)

== Personal life ==
In August 1960, while touring with comedy partner [[Jack Burns]] in [[Dayton, Ohio]], Carlin stopped at a roadside diner, where he met waitress Brenda Hosbrook.<ref name="Dream2022" /> They began dating and were married at her parents' home in Dayton on June 3, 1961.{{sfn|Carlin|Hendra|2009|pp=[https://archive.org/details/lastwords0000carl/page/89 89–92]}} Their only child, [[Kelly Carlin|Kelly Marie Carlin]] (born June 15, 1963), became a radio host.<ref name="Dream2022" /> Carlin and Hosbrook renewed their wedding vows in [[Las Vegas]] in 1971.<ref name="Dream2022" />

Their marriage was often marred by his [[cocaine]] use and her alcoholism, the latter of which worsened when Carlin's mother came to stay with them and would secretly pour Hosbrook drinks while derogating Carlin.<ref name="Dream2022" /> When Hosbrook was hospitalized due to her drinking, she told Carlin that she would not return home if his mother was there; he immediately went home, booked his mother a flight to New York, and took her to the airport.<ref name="Dream2022" /> The couple soon addressed their addiction issues; the marriage improved so much that Kelly later said it felt like it had been rebooted.<ref name="Dream2022" /> Hosbrook died of [[liver cancer]] on May 11, 1997, just one day before her husband's birthday.<ref name="Dream2022" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/1997/scene/vpage/brenda-carlin-dies-at-57-1117341677/|title=Brenda Carlin dies at 57|date=May 15, 1997|website=Variety}}</ref>

Carlin met comedy writer Sally Wade six months after Brenda's death and said it was "love at first sight", but told her he was hesitant to act on his feelings so soon after being widowed.{{sfn|Carlin|Hendra|2009|pp=[https://archive.org/details/lastwords0000carl/page/272 272]}} He said he needed to be alone, potentially for up to a year, before he would be ready to date again.<ref name="Dream2022" /> They had no contact for eight months and she assumed he had moved on, but then he called her to ask her out.<ref name="Dream2022" /> They wed in a private, unregistered ceremony on June 24, 1998, and remained married until Carlin's death.<ref>{{cite news|title=George Carlin's Loved Ones Speak Out |url=http://www.etonline.com/news/2008/06/62841/index.html |work=Entertainment Tonight|date=June 23, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625032232/http://www.etonline.com/news/2008/06/62841/index.html |archive-date=June 25, 2008 |url-status=dead |access-date=June 10, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/comedian-george-carlin-dead-at-age-71-1/|title=Comedian George Carlin dead at age 71 |date=June 23, 2008|work=Seattle Times}}</ref>

In a 2008 interview, Carlin said that using [[Cannabis (drug)|cannabis]], [[LSD]], and [[mescaline]] had helped him cope with life.<ref name=Dixit2008/> He also said several times that he had battled addiction to alcohol, cocaine, and [[Vicodin]],<ref>Carlin's own audio book ''Last Words'', chapter 19. Also in his own words (at the 46:52 mark on the YouTube video) from a conference he did for the National Press Club on May 13, 1999.</ref> and spent some time in a rehab facility in 2004.<ref>{{Cite news|title=George Carlin enters rehab|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/books/12/27/george.carlin/index.html|work=CNN|date=December 29, 2004|access-date=June 10, 2014|archive-date=October 19, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019171629/http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/books/12/27/george.carlin/index.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> During the taping of his stand-up special ''[[Life Is Worth Losing]]'' on November 5, 2005, he said he had been [[Sobriety|sober]] for 341 days.<ref>''[[Life Is Worth Losing]]'' (2005)</ref>

Although born into a [[Catholic]] family, Carlin outspokenly rejected religion, criticizing and mocking it in his routines.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/top-george-carlin-quotes-on-religion-4072040 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180414040354/https://www.thoughtco.com/top-george-carlin-quotes-on-religion-4072040 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 14, 2018 |title=Top George Carlin Quotes on Religion |last=Cline |first=Austin |date=May 30, 2018 |website=ThoughtCo |access-date=March 5, 2019 }}</ref> When asked if he believed in God, he responded, "No, there's no God{{emdash}}but there might be some sort of an organizing intelligence, and I think to understand it is way beyond our ability."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.avclub.com/is-there-a-god-1798208305|first=Stephen|last=Thompson|title=Is there a God?|newspaper=The A.V. Club|date=September 6, 2000|access-date=January 5, 2021}}</ref>