From the AP:
Mitch Hedberg, a Minnesota-born comedian who worked in nightclubs, television and film in a wide-ranging career, died in New Jersey, his family said. He was 37.
Hedberg, who struggled with drugs and alcohol, died Wednesday in a hotel room in Livingston, N.J.
Pending the medical examiner’s report, the cause of death appears to be heart failure, said his mother, Mary Hedberg. She said her son was born with a heart defect and frequently felt anxious about his condition.
Mary Hedberg said speculation that her son’s death was drug-related was gossip […]
Hedberg delivered absurdist, random observations in a spacy staccato. His long, dirty blond hair harkened to the image of a 1970s stoner.
Jokes about Hedberg’s drug use were a staple of his act. He took a hiatus from performing for several months after a May 2003 arrest in Austin, Texas, for felony possession of heroin.
Born in St. Paul, Hedberg rose through the ranks at Minneapolis’ Acme Comedy Co. and caught his big break through a Comedy Central special.
His rambling, non-sequitur style often drew comparisons to Steven Wright, but Hedberg disagreed.
“If I made potato chips and put them in a can, people would say I was ripping off Pringles,” he said. “But what if I put them in a bag?”
Hedberg had two popular comedy CDs, “Strategic Grill Locations” and “Mitch All Together.” He acted in the movie “Almost Famous” smoking fake pot with Peter Frampton and appeared on Fox’s hit series “That ‘70s Show.”
Hedberg is survived by his wife, comedian Lynn Shawcroft, his father and mother, Arne and Mary Hedberg of St. Paul, and sisters Wendy Brown of Woodbury and Angie Anderson of South St. Paul.
Like Steven Wright, this guy was a certified comic genius. Absolutely brilliant. In fact, had this guy been a quantum physicist, he’d have been Niels Bohr, analyzing vibrations of water jets as a means of determining surface tension. With a heroin needle stuck in his arm.
More here. Official site here.
You can buy the CDs here.
****
(h/t perfidy, who also points me to this regrettable news. Patton’s right, incidentally. Which is why you haven’t seen me carrying this on. Life is too short to waste on certain things. And people.)
Why are Koala Bears so far away from me?
That wasn’t fake pot, mate. RIP, Mitch.
“I used to do drugs. I still do drugs. But I used to, too,” he often said, adding, “Alcoholism is the only disease you can get yelled at for having.”
I try not to have too many opinions. That way I don’t get tired of myself.
Agreed, Jeff.
Here’s link that reminds you why – http://hometown.aol.com/valleygirl1983/mitch.html
I don’t get through the mall without thinking, you know, an escalator can never break…
I’d rather be yelled at than dead.
This guy was the hero of my XM radio. A tragic loss. Bummer
Did Terri Schiavo die? I hadn’t noticed.
That’s so sad–the boy was funny.
Terri Who?
No!!! Damn, he was my favorite by far. He couldn’t even stay sober enough to remember his own jokes when he performed, but he was one of the more original guys out there…
Guess we won’t be able to catch him at the Improve in Baltimore tonight. . .
Of course, if this isn’t ‘real’ (turing word), but this kind of joke is too goulish for April 1st.
This is a bigger buzzkill than the Schiavo thing.
I mean, rest in peace Mitch and Terri..
but Terri never was all that funny…
Oh shit….
Turing word: death
As in: MR DEATH: Shut up! Shut up, you American. You always talk, you Americans. You talk and you talk and say ‘let me tell you something’ and ‘I just wanna say this’. Well, you’re dead now, so shut up!
“I do not have a girlfriend. I just know someone who will be very mad that I said this.”
I don’t know if it was his speech pattern or accent or what, but Mitch was the funniest stand-up comic I’ve ever seen. Guess I’ll have to raise a pint at RMBB for him.
RIP, Mitch.
This has been verified, right, being April 1 and all?
The news reports are from yesterday. His website doesn’t mention anything yet—ditto IMDB—but I believe the AP.
His website says he died 3/30/05. I clicked through Jeff’s link (which now says the account is suspended).
A quick google search indicates an article about his death from yesterday in the Baltimore Sun.
Comedy Central is reporting he’s dead.
http://www.comedycentral.com/standup/central/detail.jhtml?p=/comedians/h/mitch_hedberg.xml
Sorry, too bummed to remember my html right now.
Damn.
Another good one gone.
“I don’t need a receipt for the donut, I give you the money, you give me the donut, end of transaction. We do not need to bring ink and paper into this.”
Funny, funny stuff. He’s gonna be missed.
Funny guy and a damn shame he’s gone. I’ve never agreed with this though:
There’s plenty of STDs that my wife would scream like a banshee at me for getting.
Dammit Otto, you have Lupus!
I’ve got two more links here.
“I’m against picketing, but I don’t know how to show it.”
Comedy Central will have one of his shows on tonight at 8pm Central.
… or 9pm Mountain, apparently. It’s his episode of “Comedy Central Presents”.
“Alcoholism is the only disease you can get yelled at for having.”
That’s not quite right: you get yelled at for not doing anything about it.
Careful now… those fops may soon declare themselves diseased… then no more jokes about feckless liberalists :(