# ADSactly Comedy: Mitch Hedberg

<center>

_{[src](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjQjs3OpNDjAhVSsaQKHSPXC7AQjhx6BAgBEAM&url=https%3A%2F%2Frwrant.co.za%2F30-funny-mitch-hedberg-quotes%2F&psig=AOvVaw1n6cEeOBdzp11k-YcxzNll&ust=1564151487023279)}

</center>

> As an adult, I'm not supposed to go down slides. So if I end up at the top of a slide, I have to act like I got there accidentally. "How'd I get up here, god damnit?! I guess I have to slide down."

Hello again dear @adsactly comedy lovers. Let me begin by saying I was not planning on writing this post. I try to keep a balance in the stuff I write for Adsactly and by that order, I should be writing something about theater history or some natural beauty products. Instead, I find myself coming back again to comedy, simply because once more, it’d proved its miraculous effect on me.
I hope on you, too. Really, whenever you feel sad/frustrated/annoyed, just pop into YouTube and listen to some stand-up. It’s what I do and it works better than anything. Gets my mind off the bad things and the one person who managed to steal my thoughts today is American comedian Mitch Hedberg.

In my opinion, Mitch is painfully underrated, perhaps because he died at such a young age. Still, he is one of my all time favorites. I used to lie awake in bed at night and giggle into the wee hours listening to this guy.

And today, after all these years, he still manages to put a smile on my face whenever I’m down.
You may remember we spoke of George Carlin in our last post. Well, Carlin happened to be a fan of Hedberg’s, so that should tell you something about how good he was. If not, I’ll let some of his one-liners win you over.

<center>

_{[src](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj9_OzcpNDjAhVSNOwKHboQAi0Qjhx6BAgBEAM&url=http%3A%2F%2Fsharedonfacebook.blogspot.com%2F2014%2F10%2Fquotes-from-comedian-mitch-hedberg-of.html&psig=AOvVaw1n6cEeOBdzp11k-YcxzNll&ust=1564151487023279)}

</center>

Little is known about Hedberg’s private life or early years, other than that he was born with a heart defect, which may have later contributed to his untimely death.
So let’s just focus on his comedy.

Now, the thing that stands out most about Mitch is his unique, laid-back delivery. Often, he gave the impression that there was no performer-audience divide and that you were just two friends chilling and talking non-sense. And he certainly was good at talking non-sense. Or at least, seeming to.
His jokes were almost always related to the day-to-day, the little things in life that seem not to matter but that everyone can secretly relate to. And his jokes often bordered on the absurd and surreal.

> I used to live here in Los Angeles, on Sierra Bonita, and I had an apartment, and I had a neighbor. And whenever he would knock on my wall, I knew he wanted me to turn my music down. And that made me angry, cause I like loud music. So when he knocked on the wall, I'd mess with his head. I'd say, "Go around! I cannot open the wall. I don't know if you have a doorknob on the other side, but over here there's nothing... it's just flat!" 

I would say this is one of my favorite Hedberg jokes, but that’s sort of a lie. I love all his jokes, particularly because they are so bizarre and he spoke in such a way. Really, check this video out, to understand what I am talking about.
<center>
<iframe width="477" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cF8MpK-yK5o" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>

Like with any comedian, he wasn’t born with this delivery method, though he came to be recognized for it later in his career. If you look through the early Hedberg, you’ll see a much quirkier person, working to define his style. Part of his charm, if you ask me.

> I like the public hot tub at the hotels, the whirlpool. I like to go there when there's a guy in there already and say "Hey, man, you mind if I join ya?" And he says "no." Then I go and I turn the whirlpool heat up. Then I come by and I add some carrots and onions... then I say "Hey man, just simmer for ahw-I mean, sit there."
>
Mitch Hedberg also suffered of terrible stage fright, which was quite obvious in some of his performances and very probably led to his drug habit. But more on that later.
One of his most fascinating performances was at the Comedy Central Special, where he had the misfortune of a rough audience, unfamiliar to his way of talking and his jokes. Online, you can find two versions of the performance – the edited one, which comes off brilliantly and gives the impression he had a great set that night and the unedited version, where you hear the awkward, disjointed laughter of the audience.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Z3QLxaUufmQ" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

You can see how uncomfortable he is in both, and he even jokes towards the end of the special that he wishes he could start it over again, as the audience is finally laughing at his stuff.

He was a painfully honest man and often criticized his own jokes on stage or confided that saying a certain joke was something of a risk, as he wasn’t sure people would get it.

> When I'm on my hotel elevator, I like to pretend that someone else's floor is wrong. Like, if someone gets on and presses 3, I'm like "You're on three? Hahahaha. Dude, I don't think I can ride with you."

The reason I’m including so many quotes from Mitch is that, in my opinion, that’s the only way to truly get into him. He had a brilliant sense of humour, which is just impossible to explain or describe. You have to hear him say it.
Oh, here’s my absolute favorite joke from him. If you didn’t watch the special above, at least watch this. It’s only one minute.

<center>

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UUNvFVQYClY" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

</center>

Mitch tragically died of a mix of cocaine and heroin at the age of thirty-seven. A terrible loss, one I can’t even describe. Of course, I discovered him posthumously, and it still hits me sometimes, watching old videos of him, how good he was, how unfair that he died so young. He frequently joked about his own drug habits and struggled for years to keep in under control. Sadly, he couldn’t.

Still, he was an amazingly gifted man and I do hope you check out some of his stuff.

*References [1](https://www.grunge.com/63183/untold-truth-mitch-hedberg/) [2](https://www.buzzfeed.com/mrloganrhoades/a-complete-ranking-of-almost-every-single-mitch-hedberg-joke) [3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitch_Hedberg)*

#### Authored by @honeydue

<center>


</center>