Here are some things I'm afraid of:1) encountering a school of flying fish that jump over my boat and get caught in my hair
2) water snakes
3) stand-up comedy
No. Really. I would very literally rather go to work/clean my apartment/wrestle your gaseous dog than attend stand-up comedy. Because what if they're not funny?! And what if no one laughs?! I will quietly die a thousand deaths and fall out of my chair with second hand embarrassment. Either that or I'll be that person laughing politely and golf-clapping while everyone else rolls their eyes.
So imagine my surprise when a friend introduced me to the wonderful, inane hilarity of Mitch Hedberg. Sadly, our fellow Minnesotan passed away a few years ago, but that hasn't stopped me from watching youtube clip after youtube clip of his bizarre one-liners, delivered sans emotion or eye contact. That's my kind of funny! A sampling of his jokes, you say?
I hope the next time I move I get a real easy phone number, something that's real easy to remember. Something like two two two two two two two two. I would say "Sweet." And then people would say, "Mitch, how do I get a hold of you?" I'd say, "Just press two for a while. And when I answer, you will know you have pressed two enough."
My roommate said to me, 'I'm gonna go shave and use the shower; does anyone need to use the bathroom?' It's like some weird ass quiz where he reveals the answer first.
I was walking down the street with my friend and he said, "I hear music", as if there is any other way you can take it in. You're not special, that's how I receive it too. I tried to taste it but it did not work.
Sometimes I wave to people I don't know. It's very dangerous to wave to someone you don't know because, what if they don't have a hand? They'll think you're cocky. "Look what I got! This thing is useful. I'm gonna go pick something up!"
My apartment is infested with koala bears. It's the cutest infestation ever. Much better than cockroaches. I turn the lights on and a bunch of koala bears scatter. I'm like, 'Come back! I want to hold one of you, and feed you a leaf.'
I was at the airport a while back and some guy said, "Hey man, I saw you on TV last night." But he did not say whether or not he thought I was good, he was just confirming that he saw me on television. So I turned my head away for about a minute, and looked back at him and said, "Dude! I saw you at the airport...about a minute ago... and you were good."
How do you feel about stand up comedy? Any funny people you particularly love?
So imagine my surprise when a friend introduced me to the wonderful, inane hilarity of Mitch Hedberg. Sadly, our fellow Minnesotan passed away a few years ago, but that hasn't stopped me from watching youtube clip after youtube clip of his bizarre one-liners, delivered sans emotion or eye contact. That's my kind of funny! A sampling of his jokes, you say?
I hope the next time I move I get a real easy phone number, something that's real easy to remember. Something like two two two two two two two two. I would say "Sweet." And then people would say, "Mitch, how do I get a hold of you?" I'd say, "Just press two for a while. And when I answer, you will know you have pressed two enough."
My roommate said to me, 'I'm gonna go shave and use the shower; does anyone need to use the bathroom?' It's like some weird ass quiz where he reveals the answer first.
I was walking down the street with my friend and he said, "I hear music", as if there is any other way you can take it in. You're not special, that's how I receive it too. I tried to taste it but it did not work.
Sometimes I wave to people I don't know. It's very dangerous to wave to someone you don't know because, what if they don't have a hand? They'll think you're cocky. "Look what I got! This thing is useful. I'm gonna go pick something up!"
My apartment is infested with koala bears. It's the cutest infestation ever. Much better than cockroaches. I turn the lights on and a bunch of koala bears scatter. I'm like, 'Come back! I want to hold one of you, and feed you a leaf.'
I was at the airport a while back and some guy said, "Hey man, I saw you on TV last night." But he did not say whether or not he thought I was good, he was just confirming that he saw me on television. So I turned my head away for about a minute, and looked back at him and said, "Dude! I saw you at the airport...about a minute ago... and you were good."
How do you feel about stand up comedy? Any funny people you particularly love?
44 comments:
I love his humour, but as a typical Australian, what I find funny is the use of the term "koala bears". Koalas aren't bears, and you could definitely not make one scatter unless it was in a tree.
Haha I love him!
I also love Demetri Martin - his jokes are sooo clever =)
I adore stand-up comedy! I had a few friends for a while who were stand-up comedians and they were pretty good - I found that it was less risky to go to a comedy show than a music/poetry open mic. Oh man, I have had some *bad* poet friends whose work I've had to pretend to like, and that's even *worse* than a comedian who has an off night.
My favorites: Eddie Izzard (my secret husband, oh man, I love him so much!), Bill Hicks, and Margaret Cho.
I am TERRIFIED to go to any comedy event. The thought that they might decide to single you out in the crowd and make a joke at your expense.. it's such an awful thing to imagine!
As for comedians.. ohhhh I love Mitch. I'm also a huge Emo Philips fan. His jokes are hilarious but his style and presence can take some getting used to. Someone else mentioned Demetri Martin, and I did enjoy "These Are Jokes" (Person... not so much, though). He can be really clever. ("Every fight is a food fight when you're a cannibal!")
I've also recently gotten into Steven Wright, but I haven't listened to too much yet.
I heart Mitch Hedberg. I had a roommate in college that was obsessed with him. Good stuff.
Ahh these are so funny! One of my favourite comedians is Danny Bhoy, I went to see him last year and it was SO funny, I definitely recommend him. And afterwards when he was signing stuff I asked if I could hug him and it was kind of awkward but mostly amazing. (Hopefully that doesn't sound tooo creepy haha)
You must check out Jim Gaffigan! The man can talk about food forever.
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=jim+gaffigan&search_type=&aq=0&oq=jim+g
Favorite food rants include bacon, hot pockets, and holidays.
aaahaha Mitch was the best. I'm glad I got to see him live before he died. "I like rice. It's perfect for when you feel like eating 1,000 of something."
Right now I'm really into Nick Swardson and Daniel Tosh (who I think is basically the new Dane Cook so I'm hoping he doesn't get as annoying as Dane got, haha).
RIP Mitch. That man was a genius. Second only to Eddie Izzard, if you ask me.
So good! I give another vote to Demetri Martin - love him! Eddie Izzard is also a classic.
I love those quotes! I've never heard of "Mitch" but I must go look him up, pronto!
I love stand up comedy, and go anytime that I get a chance!
Jeff Dunham
Dane Cook
Etta May
Mike Armstrong
Oh I could keep going...
I only like stand-up if the person has a strong reputation of being good by a resource I trust. Otherwise it's super painful.
I like:
Dave Chappelle
John Caparulo
Dane Cook
Brian Posehn
I did it once. Won a contest in Waikiki. I was terrified but had a blast.
George Carlin is in my top five. EARLY George was better for me. Steven Wright, Orny Adams, Richard Jeni...Daniel Tosh... I like 'em dry and smart.
Great post!
I was meh until I got to the Koala one, dude--I now want an infestation of Koalas! :)
http://lawschoolfashionista.blogspot.com/
There's actually a lot of Demetri Martin that could pass as Mitch Hedberg, if you say it in his off-kilter timing!
My other favorites (aside from the aforementioned Izzard, Gaffigan, Cho) are Mike Birbiglia and Gabriel Iglesias.
I saw Mitch Hedberg about eight years ago at the Improv in Pittsburgh. He was awesome... and drunk. :D
I recommend to you Mr. James P. Connolly. Listen to him first before looking at his picture. Tell me he doesn't sound like Johnny Bravo, the cartoon character.
Mitch is phenom; I also love the aforementioned Demetri and Eddie (yes, I'm on a first name basis with popular comedians) and Tosh. Most of today's popular comics are awful if you ask me, but those boys are brilliant.
I did stand-up this fall...loved it. Need to get back up there again!
I love Hedberg. One of my faves:
"I saw a wino...he was eating grapes. I was like 'Dude, you have to wait!'"
Pure...genius. And I can't watch him and then go one speaking normally. I take on Hedberg speech and irritate the hell out of my friends. :)
Great post.
(btw, I am terrified of bats)
My favorite Mitch: "An escalator can never break: it can only become stairs. You would never see an Escalator Temporarily Out Of Order sign, just Escalator Temporarily Stairs. Sorry for the convenience.”
There's a dry erase board at my gym where someone always writes really cheesy inspiration quotes. Whenever I find myself in that hallway with no one else around, I change it. This week? Mitch Hedburg's
"I would imagine that if you could understand Morse code, a tap dancer would drive you crazy. " We'll see how long it lasts before someone changes it back.
Mike Birbiglia definitely...also, Maria Bamford is pretty funny. However, Mitch is a classic. I love his bit about ducks and Subway...it's too long to post here, but it's HILARIOUS!
I am a HUGE fan of stand-up comedy and here are just some of my favorites - off the top of my head:
Bill Hicks
Louie C.K. (seen live)
Doug Stanhope
Kathy Griffin (seen live)
Kathleen Madigan
Lewis Black (seen twice)
Chris Rock
George Lopez
John Pinette
Craig Ferguson
Lisa Lampanelli
My boyfriend is a stand up comic actually. Haha. He's a local one here in Salt Lake City, though he's performed all over Utah. He's my favorite. My second favorite is Dave Ackerman. He's out of Salt Lake too, but has performed all over the country. He is absolutely hilarious. I've seen him perform probably 50 times and I still laugh so hard i cry every time. So ya, I see about 5 comedy shows a month. Haha.
He sounds pretty hilarious!
I think my favourite american comedian is Bill Hicks, I guess I tend to favour British comedians. I don't know who my favourite would be though!
I knew nothing about stand-up until I moved to England. now I'm obsessed.
Off the top of my head, I love Sean Lock, Jimmy Carr, and Dylan Moran.
If you get the chance, YouTube the panel show '8 out of 10 cats'. I am seriously, irrevocably addicted.
Mitch Hedberg makes me happy. His deadpan delivery is the best part. There is a kind of innocence about him. It is sad that he is no longer around, but he lives on in the giggles.
I highly recommend the Now Show from BBC Radio 4! It's a comedic take on the news, generally with a heavy UK bias but there should be stuff that everyone can appreciate. The core cast are amazing and they rotate in lesser-known stand-ups as well if someone's unavailable.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qgt7
you & mitch just cheered me up sooo hard <3
Yes! I absolutely love Mitch Hedberg, a friend introduced me to his comedy about 5 years ago and he's been my favorite comedian ever since...I only wish he were still around to give us more greatness. I quoted him for about 10 days straight when a friend and I road tripped from Melbourne to Sydney, and we never got tired of his jokes. One of my favorites: "I want to see a forklift lift a crate of forks; it'd be so damn LITERAL." Ahh I'm so glad you like him too!
Oh I love Mitch!
I *love* stand up. Some of my favorites are Brian Regan, Mike Birbiglia (if you like Mitch you will like Mike!), Kathleen Madigan, and Josh Blue. The amazing Jonathan is good too! There are too many to list - comedy is my life.
I do improv comedy as a career, so naturally I'm pretty much under contract to love stand-up ;) I love, love, love Jo Brand -- she has a fantastically dry delivery (and voice) that I wish I could emulate.
And I know not many people find him funny, but Russell Brand (unrelated to Jo) was the first stand-up I saw live and he's so charismatic and self-aware that even his less successful jokes end up charming.
:O thankyou for introducing me to Mitch!! I love his delivery... not every comic could make those jokes that funny, it's all in the mannerisms and delivery! :) RIP dude! x
Oh, I LOVE being picked out of the crowd and made fun of! That's half the fun of going to comedy shows!!
I love stand up comedy so much.
Arj Barker (who in inexplicably more popular in Australia than in the states) is great
Sam Simmons is absolutely mental and therefore is hilarious
Ross Noble <3
Flight of the Conchords
David Cross
And one bajillion more. I'm going to have to check out all the people everyone here is suggesting..!
Mitch Hedberg was funny, for reals. As with most things, I tend to eschew the comedy mainstream and try to stay away from traditional stand up. Some of my favorite funny people right now are...
Amy Sedaris
Tina Fey
Amy Poehler
Sarah Silverman
Janeane Garofalo
Zach Galifianakis
Maria Bamford
Tim & Eric
Stephen Colbert
Tracy Morgan
Laura Kightlinger
Michael Ian Black
Michael Showalter
David Wain
I'm tired of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask where they're going, and hook up with them later. - Mitch Hedberg
Arj Barker (and yes, I saw him in Australia! We love him here!)
Chris Rock
Early Eddie Murphy (see Delirious)
I've seen stand up where you suffer from 2nd hand embaressment, but mostly when things aren't going well, the comedians, who have to have big egos to even get up there in the first place, start getting angry and walk off pissed off! I also refuse to sit in the front row in fear of getting singled out. I've seen people in tears! But when the comedian is good, you can just sit there and laugh non stop. So good for the soul! In funny movies you only get laughs here and there but with funny comedians you can be lauging for 2 whole hours! Thats a whole lot of good endorphins pumping through you!
LMAO! I have never heard of this guy but he sounds great! I've gone to a couple Brian Regan shows and LMAO'ed. I went to open mic night on vacation back in the fall down in Florida... some were good, some were silence-inducing awful. Also went to the Improv Asylum in Boston way back in college, also a good time (and a great first date night!). I enjoy stand-up comedy, and I'll always jump on the chance to check out a show.
i love brian regan!! I think he's sort of similar. this guy is funny!
Oh this post is right up my alley! When my husband and I first got together her wooed me with Hedberg jokes. He had me at "I saw a wino he was eating a grape, and I was like dude, you have to wait".
Then my husband who has always loved comedy and admired guys like Doug Stanhope, Andy Andrist, Bill Hicks and co started his own stand up career. He did exceedingly well and has now "retired" from the stage to do comedy writing.
He's an intelligent, funny ass man and my definite favourite.
And I always get a kick out of making him laugh.
LOL! That guy is funny. I also worry about going to stand-up shows and it not being funny. So I just watch it on TV. And then if the comedian is sucking, I change the channel. Some of my favorites are Demetri Martin, Ellen Degeneres (her stand-up is hilarious!), and Dane Cook.
How nice. She's so gorgeous. I like her when she laughs.
Oh Mitch! How I miss him!! :(
My fave comedians these days are:
-Jim Gaffigan (Hoooot Pockets!)
-Nick Swardson (You may recognize him as Gay Terry from Reno 911 :)
-Aziz Ansari
-Patton Oswalt
-Daniel Tosh
-Mike Birbiglia
-Zach Galifianakis
-and Lisa Lampanelli...if I'm feeling especially seedy :)
Stand up comedy is the most stressful thing. I'm so codependent that I worry that they won't be good. Or I worry that they will be good but that I won't get it. I'll even cringe if it's on TV and I could choose to change the channel. I think about how someone somewhere could be watching it and not think it's funny. And about how if the comedian knew this he'd probably be in a bar by himself, staring unfunnily into a whiskey and soda. Honestly, it would be less stressful to actually do stand up comedy and bomb than to attend...
Oh brother...
Post a Comment