View Full Version : Mitch Hedberg Dead?
roqnap1
March-31st-2005, 08:52 AM
Stern keeps reporting that Mitch Hedberg died last night...
I can't find anything else reporting the same. You think this is true or an early (and against the rules) April Fools?
If it's true...it sucks. Sucks even more that when we hear that a comedian died, we don't immediately believe it. I guess we can thank Andy Kaufman for that.
manichispanic
March-31st-2005, 09:10 AM
He's supposed to at the Improv from today to the 3rd in Baltimore. I'm going to wait on this before i believe it.
Raub
March-31st-2005, 09:12 AM
He's a funny bastard, but he definitely has some substance abuse issues.
DUSTINMFOX
March-31st-2005, 09:13 AM
Yeah, Howard said he would be doing a tribute for him tomorrow.
manichispanic
March-31st-2005, 09:16 AM
The depressing thing about tennis is that no matter how good I get, I'll never be as good as a wall.
I hope this isn't true, i liked his act a lot
donnyg
March-31st-2005, 09:41 AM
Maybe a Howard Stern April fools day joke?
dg28daman
March-31st-2005, 09:49 AM
Although I hated his act, I hope this isn't true. Anytime a young person dies its really sad.
Island Boy
March-31st-2005, 10:21 AM
He has been sick for awhile..............he was supposed to be Richmond on Fri & Sat and didnt show up for either show. :(
RonJeremy
March-31st-2005, 10:56 AM
:wtf:
I just heard him on the XM Comedy station yesterday. He was talking about Mr. Pibb being a bullsh*t copy of Dr. Pepper. He said "Mr. Pibb didn't even go to college and get a degree"...:laugh:
Alright, it was funny if you heard the way he said it.
BayouBrave86
March-31st-2005, 11:01 AM
No way? That guy is a comedic genius! His joke about the Dufrains being missing and the restaurant not caring was a classic.
ntotoro
March-31st-2005, 11:01 AM
It seems there is no definitive source for this yet. I'm gonna' file it as a 4/1 hoax, a bad one at that.
If I'm wrong, I'm really very sorry... ;)
Nick
NASMTrainer
March-31st-2005, 12:05 PM
He's funny but he's just doing the same thing Steven Wright has been doing for a long time.
TankRizzo
March-31st-2005, 01:13 PM
Been confirmed :( The Improv took him off of their website: http://www.improv2.com/baltimore.html
and here's a news story:
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/11278099.htm
Comedian Mitch Hedberg dead at 37
BY MATT PEIKEN
Pioneer Press
Even family and close friends had a hard time understanding Mitch Hedberg, a St. Paul native who ran away from home and, despite living a scattershot life, became a runaway success as a standup comic.
Hedberg, whose space-case persona was as much part of his soul as it was his act, died early Wednesday morning in a New Jersey hotel room. He was 37. A medical examiner hasn't issued findings, but Hedberg's family is told he suffered a heart attack. His wife was with him.
After graduating St. Paul's Harding High School, Hedberg rose through the ranks at Minneapolis' Acme Comedy Co., and caught his big break through a Comedy Central special. He made several appearances on David Letterman's and Conan O'Brien's shows, made more Comedy Central appearances and produced two comedy CDs. His big dream, to have an HBO comedy special, was in the works.
Hedberg's one-liners, dished off in a spacy staccato, were based on absurdist, random observations. His long, dirty blond hair harkened to the image of a 1970s stoner, and his success occurred in light of, in spite of and even because of his quarter-century affair with drugs and alcohol.
"I'd probably be living in Costa Rica, eating oranges on the beach, if I wasn't doing comedy," he told the Pioneer Press last September.
"There's no two ways about — having a son in entertainment industry is challenging," his mother, Mary Hedberg, said Thursday.
She recalls being at work when her oldest daughter called in a panic to tell her Mitch had packed some brown paper bags and left home. Mary Hedberg couldn't get home in time to either see him off or talk him out of it.
"That was heartbreaking for us, but he kept in contact with us. He called as soon as the car broke down," she said. "You know, it was like putting him through college, even though he wasn't at college. But when he got his first break, we were just so thrilled for him, because we wanted him to know he was O.K., and to have that self-confidence that he could do what he wanted to do."
Louis Lee, owner of the Acme, said Hedberg not only became the Twin Cities' first breakout comedian of the 1990s but, along with Lewis Black, helped shape a national resurgence in standup comedy.
"It's very difficult for one-liner comedians to get an audience going, but when Mitch worked here, you could see the kids call out the punchline," Lee said. "Mitch made the whole comedy community realize how important good writing is. It's a huge loss."
Unlike many comics, Hedberg was demonstrably thankful to his fans. Not long ago, a group of college students in Florida, speaking with Hedberg backstage after a show, mentioned how hot their dorm room was. Hedberg surprised them the next morning by showing up to their dorm with a new air conditioner.
"Mitch presented a lot of challenges, but a lot of opportunities for traveling that we wouldn't have otherwise had, and he had a heart of gold," his mother said. "He was a brilliant comic and a wonderful person."
Dates haven't been set, but eventual visitation and services will be at Wulff Family Services, Woodlane Mortuary, in Woodbury.
Matt Peiken can be reached at 651-228-5440 or mpeiken@pioneerpress.com.
Thrilla4
March-31st-2005, 01:36 PM
man and i was suppossed to go see him at the improv this sat. this sucks.....its a long shot but hopefully this is a hoax....
Spaceman Spiff
March-31st-2005, 01:55 PM
i'm more upset about this than terri schiavo, thats for sure.
RIP Mitch. You were just getting started.
big z
March-31st-2005, 01:55 PM
very sad to hear this...he was awesome.
here are some of his classics. RIP Mitch.
http://www.mitchhedberg.net/html/images/headshot.jpg
* Because of [dropping] acid, I know now that butter is way better than margarine. I saw through the bull****.
* I bought a doughnut and they gave me a receipt for the doughnut...I don't need a receipt for the doughnut - I'll just give you money and you give me the doughnut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario in which I would need to prove that I bought a doughnut...Some skeptical friend, don’t even act like I didn't buy a doughnut, I've got the documentation right here...oh wait it's back home in the file...under "D", for doughnut.
* I had a bag of Fritos, they were Texas grilled Fritos. These Fritos had grill marks on them. Hell yeah, reminds me of summer time, when we used to fire up the barbeque and throw down some Fritos. I can still see my dad with the apron on, better flip that Frito, dad, you know how I like mine.
* I like cinnamon rolls, but I don't always have time to make a pan. That's why I wish they would sell cinnamon roll incense. Perhaps I'd rather light a stick and have my roommate wake up with false hopes.
* I like vending machines, because snacks are better when they fall. If I buy a candy bar at the store oftentimes I will drop it, so that it achieves its maximum flavor potential.
* I opened up a container of yogurt, and under the lid it said "Please Try Again" because they were having a contest I was unaware of. But I thought I might have opened the yogurt wrong...or maybe Yoplait was trying to inspire me, 'c'mon, Mitchell, don't give up. Please try again. A message of inspiration from your friends at Yoplait. Fruit on the bottom, hope on top.
* I think foosball is a combination of soccer and shish kabobs.
* I think pickles are cucumbers that sold out. They sold their soul to the devil, and the devil is dill...
* I think Pringles' initial intention was to make tennis balls. But on the day that the rubber was supposed to show up, a big truckload of potatoes arrived. But Pringles is a laid-back company. They said "**** it. Cut 'em up."
* I saw a six pack of soda-pop for $1.20. That price ****s with your head, man. Because then I thought that I would start selling soda-pop. Suddenly I got things of pop with me. "What's going on, Mitch." "Not much, looking to buy some pop? Fifty cents a can. It's not refrigerated because this is a half assed commitment."
* If carrots got you drunk, rabbits would be ****ed up.
* That would be cool if you could eat a good food with a bad food and the good food would cover for the bad food when it got to your stomach. Like you could eat a carrot with an onion ring and they would travel down to your stomach, then they would get there, and the carrot would say, "Its cool, he's with me."
* You know they call corn on the cob, corn on the cob, but that's how it comes out of the ground, man. They should call that corn, they should call every other version corn off the cob. It's not like if you cut off my arm you would call it Mitch. Then reattach it and call me Mitch-all-together...
* I like swiss cheese. It's the only cheese you can draw with a pencil and identify.
[edit]
Other
* I got an ant farm. Them fellas don't grow ****.
* I went to the store to buy a candle-holder, but they were out. So I bought a cake.
* I haven't slept for ten days, because that would be too long.
* Last week I helped my friend stay put. It's a lot easier than helping someone move. I just went over to his house and made sure that he did not start to load **** into a truck.
* I got my hair highlighted, because I felt some strands were more important than others.
* I want to be a race car passenger: just a guy who bugs the driver. "Say man, can I turn on the radio? You should slow down. Why do we gotta keep going in circles? Can I put my feet out the window? Man, you really like Tide..."
* I wrote a letter to my dad - I wrote, "I really enjoy being here," but I accidentally wrote rarely instead of really. But I still wanted to use it so I crossed it out and wrote, "I rarely drive steamboats, dad - there's a lot of **** you don't know about me. Quit trying to act like I'm a steamboat operator." This letter took a harsh turn right away...
* ...and then at the end of the letter I like to write "P.S. - this is what part of the alphabet would look like if Q and R were eliminated.
* I got in an argument with a girlfriend inside of a tent. That's a bad place for an argument, because then I tried to walk out, and had to slam the flap. How are you supposed to express your anger in this situation? Zip it up real quick?
* I type at 101 words a minute. But it's in my own language.
* I think Bigfoot is blurry, that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra scary to me, because there's a large, out-of-focus monster roaming the countryside. Run. He's fuzzy. Get outta here.
* I have an underwater camera just in case I crash my car into a river, and at the last minute I see a photo opportunity of a fish that I have never seen.
* One time a guy handed me a picture of himself, and he said, "Here's a picture of me when I was younger." Every picture of you is of when you were younger. Here's a picture of me when I am older. You son of a *****, how'd you pull that off? Let me see that camera...
* My roommate says, "I need to 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...
* ...Every time I go and shave I assume there is somebody else on the planet shaving as well, so I say "I'm gonna go shave too"
* Sometimes I wave to people I don't know. It is very dangerous to wave to people you don't know, because what if they don't have a hand? They'll think you're cocky. "Look what I got mother****er, this thing is useful...I'm gonna go pick something up"
* My sister wanted to be an actress, but she never made it. She does live in a trailer. She got half way. She's an actress, she just never gets called to the set.
* On a traffic light green means go and yellow means yield, but on a banana it's just the opposite. Green means hold on, yellow means go ahead, and red means where the **** did you get that banana at...
* I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it.
* An escalator can never break. It can only become stairs. You would never see a escalator temporarily outta order sign, just escalator temporarily stairs. Sorry for the convenience... we appologize for the fact that you can still get up there"
* I was walking down the street with my friend and he said "I hear music." As though there's any other way to take it in. You're not special. That's how I receive it too...I tried to taste it, but it did not work...
* 2-in-1 is a bull**** term, because 1 is not big enough to hold 2. That's why 2 was created.
* I have a cheese-shredder at home, which is its positive name. They don't call it by its negative name, which is sponge-ruiner. Because I wanted to clean it, and now I have little bits of sponge that would melt easily over tortilla chips...
* I know a lot about cars. I can look at a car's headlights and tell you exactly which way it's coming.
* I use the word totally too much. I need to change it up and use a word that is different but has the same meaning. Mitch do you like submarine sandwhiches? All-encompassingly...
* This shirt is dry clean only. Which means...it's dirty.
* I saw a human pyramid once. It was very unnecessary. It did not need to exist.
* I bought a seven dollar pen because I always lose pens and I got sick of not caring.
* I played golf...I did not get a hole in one, but I did hit a guy. That's way more satisfying...
* ...You're supposed to yell 'fore' but I kept thinking there ain't no way that's gonna hit him.
* I have a friend who is a juggler. When I go to his house I don't like to take food from him if it is in threes. "He has three apples left...I guess I can't have one"
* At my hotel room, my friend came over and asked to use the phone. I said "Certainly." He said "Do I need to dial 9?" I say "Yeah. Especially if it's in the number. You can try four and five back to back real quick."
* My lucky number is four billion. That doesn't come in real handy when you're gambling. "Come on, four billion! ****. Seven. Not even close. I need more dice."
* I love blackjack. But I'm not addicted to gambling. I'm addicted to sitting in a semi-circle.
* I went to the park and saw this kid flying a kite. The kid was really excited. I don't know why, that's what they're supposed to do. Now if he had had a chair on the other end of that string, I would have been impressed.
* If you had a friend who was a tightrope walker, and you were walking down a sidewalk, and he fell, that would be completely unacceptable...
* I don't own a cell phone or a pager. I just hang around everyone I know, all the time. If someone needs to get a hold of me they just say, "Mitch," and I say, "What" and turn my head slightly...
* I hope the next time I move I get a real easy phone number. Something like, 222-2222. I would say sweet. People would say, "Mitch, how do I get a hold of you?" I would say, "Press 2 for a while, and when I answer, you will know that you have pressed 2 enough"
* I wrote a script for a guy, and he said he liked it but he thought that I need to rewrite it. I said, "**** that, I'll just make a copy."
* I don't wear a watch because I want my arms to weigh the same. So if somebody asks me what time it is, I have to tell them something that is going on. "What time is it, Mitch?" "Uh, that guy is eating a hamburger." "****, I had to be somewhere..."
* My friend said to me "Man, this weather is trippy." I said to him, "No man, perhaps it is not the weather that is trippy, it is the way we perceive it that is indeed trippy..." then I thought, man, I should have just said, 'yeah...'
* Foosball ****ed up my perception of soccer. I thought you had to kick the ball and then spin 'round and round. I can't do a back flip, much less several...simultaneously with two other guys.
* I never joined the army because at ease was never that easy to me. Seemed rather uptight still. I don't relax by parting my legs slightly and putting my hands behind my back. That does not equal ease. At ease was not being in the military. I am at ease, bro, because I am not in the military.
* The depressing thing about tennis is that no matter how much I play, I'll never be as good as a wall. I played a wall once. They're ****ing relentless.
* A severed foot is the ultimate stocking stuffer.
* I used to be a hot-tar roofer. Yeah, I remember that...day.
* I don't have a girlfriend. But I do know a woman who'd be mad at me for saying that.
* I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too.
* My friend said to me, "You know what I like? Mashed potatoes." I was like, "Dude, you have to give me time to guess. If you're going to quiz me you have to insert a pause."
* I went to see a band in New York. The lead singer got on the microphone, and he said "How many of you people feel like human beings tonight?" Then he said "How many of you feel like animals?" And everyone cheered after the animals part. But the thing is, I cheered after the human being part because I did not know that there was a second part to the question.
* People teach their dogs to sit, it's a trick. I've been sitting my whole life, and a dog has never looked at me as though he thought I was tricky.
* In England Smoky the Bear is not the forest fire prevention representative. They have Smacky the Frog. It's just like a bear, but it's a frog. I think it's a better system, I think we should adopt it. Because bears can be mean, but frogs are always cool. Never has there been a frog hopping toward me, and I thought 'man, I'd better play dead. Here comes that frog...' You never say here comes that frog in a nervous manner. It's always optimistic. Hey here comes that frog, al-right. Maybe he'll come near me so I can pet him, and stick him in a mayonnaise jar, with a stick and a leaf, to recreate what he's used to. And I'm pretty sure I'd have to punch some holes in the lid, because he's damn sure used to air. Then I can observe him, and he won't be doing much in his 16 ounce world.
* Alcoholism is a disease, but it's the only one you can get yelled at for having. Goddamn it Otto, you are an alcoholic. Goddamn it Otto, you have Lupus... one of those two doesn't sound right.
* I was at this casino minding my own business, and this guy came up to me and said, "You're gonna have to move, you're blocking a fire exit." As though if there was a fire, I wasn't gonna run. If you're flammable and have legs, you are never blocking a fire exit.
* When you go to a restaurant on the weekends and it's busy they start a waiting list. They start calling out names, they say "Dufresne, party of two. Dufresne, party of two." And if no one answers they'll say their name again. "Dufresne, party of two, Dufresne, party of two." But then if no one answers they'll just go right on to the next name. "Bush, party of three." Yeah, what happened to the Dufresnes? No one seems to give a ****. Who can eat at a time like this - people are missing. You ****ers are selfish....the Dufresnes are in someone's trunk right now, with duct tape over their mouths. And they're hungry. That's a double whammy. Bush, search party of three, you can eat when you find the Dufranes.
* I hate turtle necks. I have such a weak neck. Plus if you wear a turtle neck it's like being strangled by a really weak guy... all day. And if you wear a turtle neck and a back pack it's like a weak midget trying to bring you down.
* I tried to throw away a yo-yo. It was ****ing impossible.
dannyboy70
March-31st-2005, 02:02 PM
Hopefully this is a hoax, but I don't see what Howard would gain from reporting it, were it not true. Mitch is (was) a funny funny guy. I'll miss him if were gone.
Spaceman Spiff
March-31st-2005, 02:02 PM
Haha, thanks Big Z, that was awesome. I'm sitting here laughing so hard. Those are all so great. And the thing about reading his jokes is that you can hear that stoner voice. Absolutely hysterical.
TODD
March-31st-2005, 02:11 PM
I'm a huge Mitch fan and this is very disturbing. I'm glad that he could make so many people outside of myself laugh so hard. RIP, Mitch.
RonJeremy
March-31st-2005, 02:25 PM
Big Z...:notworthy Great Tribute!
I was reading all them and his voice was in my head... :laugh:
Sad news, indeed...:(
Island Boy
March-31st-2005, 02:34 PM
very very sad, now I know the reason he didnt show up in Richmond.:(
RIP Mitch
TankRizzo
March-31st-2005, 02:42 PM
more on MTV
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1499352/20050331/hedberg_mitch.jhtml?headlines=true
Comedian Mitch Hedberg was found dead in a New Jersey hotel room Wednesday morning, according to Minnesota's Pioneer Press. He was 37.
The cause of death has not been determined, and details concerning his death have yet to be
released. The Pioneer Press reported that Hedberg's family has been told he suffered a heart attack.
The comic — who bore an uncanny resemblance to Rush frontman Geddy Lee and once explained the reason his was not a household name was because most of his fans lived in apartments — spent much of his career straddling that fine line between cult status and relatively larger stardom. Born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, Hedberg was known for his disheveled hippie look, his relaxed, almost sedate stage manner, and his dawdling delivery — his face forever concealed behind a pair of shades and a wall of floppy bangs.
Much like Steven Wright, Hedberg was a master of the sharp-as-glass-shards one-liner ("Rice is great when you're hungry and want 2,000 of something"; "I would imagine if you understood Morse code, a tap dancer would drive you crazy"; "When someone hands you a flier, it's like they're saying, 'Here, you throw this away.' ") His comical, almost-too-obvious observations about life's subtle peculiarities inspired Time magazine to declare the stand-up comic "the next Seinfeld" in 2000.
A frequent guest on Howard Stern's morning radio show and "Late Show With David Letterman," Hedberg's resume also included several television and film roles, including appearances on FOX's "That '70s Show," the NBC comedy series "Ed" and the animated shows "Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist" and "Home Movies."
Hedberg also lent his voice to Comedy Central's "Crank Yankers," played the Eagles' road manager in the film "Almost Famous" and wrote, directed, produced and starred in the 1999 independent film "Los Enchiladas!" The film centered on a small Mexican restaurant in Minneapolis, where Hedberg's character, a drifter, was working as a cook until he suddenly found himself in charge of the joint after the manager attacked a customer and the chef left for a better job.
Hedberg's first television appearance came on MTV's stand-up series "Comikaze," a gig he landed by personally pitching his act to the program's talent coordinator. In 1997, he won the grand prize at the Seattle Comedy Competition. Years of headlining club tours followed, and Hedberg eventually secured a development deal with FOX to create a sitcom, though that project never came to fruition. In 2003, Comedy Central Records issued his albums Mitch All Together and Strategic Grill Locations, and sponsored a tour with Hedberg, Lewis Black of "The Daily Show" Dave Attell of "Insomniac."
"He had a heart of gold," his mother, Mary Hedberg, told the Pioneer Press. "He was a brilliant comic and a wonderful person."
Hedberg joked often about drug abuse, but in a recent interview, he said he'd given up smoking marijuana several years ago. "For 10 years, it was amazing, but then I had to give it up because it didn't feel as good," he said. "The audience thinks I'm stoned all the time and I have to write my material that way ... so sometimes, when they come up to me after a show and ask me to join them, I just tell them I'm an undercover cop."
According to an article published in the Los Angeles Times in 2003, Hedberg spent two-and-a half-days in jail, and six weeks in a hospital bed, following his arrest in May of that year for felony heroin possession. But Hedberg said he was arrested for "possession of paraphernalia and pills and things like that. My actual bust was minor. I got a misdemeanor. People used that bust to try and prove that I was busted for having, like, a kilo of heroin on me."
A posting on Comedy Central's Web site reads, "Tragically, Mitch Hedberg passed away this week. Mitch was a beloved member of the Comedy Central family, and we join fans in our sadness. He will be missed."
— Chris Harris, with additional reporting by Gil Kaufman
PSUHeckler
March-31st-2005, 03:48 PM
As a tribute, one of the jokes he delivered so perfectly:
I opened up a container of yogurt, and under the lid it said "Please Try Again" because they were having a contest I was unaware of. But I thought I might have opened the yogurt wrong...or maybe Yoplait was trying to inspire me, "C'mon, Mitchell, don't give up. Please try again. A message of inspiration from your friends at Yoplait. Fruit on the bottom, hope on top."
Dan T.
March-31st-2005, 03:56 PM
z, thanks for the highlights. I haven't laughed so much in a long, long while. Tragic, tragic news losing an obviously gifted comedian.
Ghost of Nibbs McPimpin
March-31st-2005, 04:16 PM
Originally posted by Spaceman Spiff
i'm more upset about this than terri schiavo, thats for sure.
That's understandable but it really wasn't necessary.
Dan T.
March-31st-2005, 06:51 PM
Another:
You know when they have a fishing show on TV? They catch the fish and then let it go. They don't want to eat the fish, they just want to make it late for something...
ArmchairRedskin
March-31st-2005, 07:01 PM
I was a huge fan of this guy. I caught every possible appearance I could on TV. His one liners and the way he delivered them was pure gold.
RIP Mitch
Mickalino
March-31st-2005, 07:19 PM
Was that the dude that always hung his head low and never looked straight ahead ?
NY_Skinsfan
March-31st-2005, 10:55 PM
How about...
I find that a ducks impression of me depends on whether or not I have bread.
Not his best but for some reason the first time it caught me off guard and I couldn't stop laughing...
I saw him live a year ago...this is some bad news...he was really funny....RIP man
The Sir
March-31st-2005, 11:15 PM
My friend said that his own website was reporting earlier today that it was an April Fools joke that got out of hand. But the website isn't up anymore because it exceeded it's bandwidth.
The Sir
March-31st-2005, 11:39 PM
Disregard that, I think my boys an idiot because I saw countless sites saying that he's died and they're much more credible than him. I looked all over and couldn't find any site saying anything different.
roqnap1
April-1st-2005, 06:26 AM
His website does say that it was last updated 04.01.05 but mentions nothing of his passing.
I know I am a fool (on ALL days, not just today)...but I still want to hold on to hope.
rdsknbill
April-1st-2005, 07:30 AM
What a shame. I liked his style of comedy
Rest in Peace Mitch :(
Mickalino
April-1st-2005, 08:01 PM
I'ts not a morbid April Fool's joke.
It's official.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=495&e=4&u=/ap/obit_hedberg
Sweet Sassy Molassy
April-1st-2005, 11:24 PM
Damn, I can't believe it! He was such a good comedian. Definitely a sad day in the comedy world. R.I.P. Mitch.
carter23
April-2nd-2005, 10:52 AM
yes this really sucks... i never really got into him, but by reading all the jokes on the front page, he seemed to be really funny
he actually died in my hometown, which is even stranger... can't think of any reason he'd be there
China
December-28th-2005, 12:21 PM
Follow-up:
Report: Mitch Hedberg died of drug overdose (http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2005-12-27-hedberg-death_x.htm?POE=LIFISVA)
NEW YORK (AP) — Comedian Mitch Hedberg died accidentally in March of "multiple drug toxicity," including cocaine and heroin, Spin magazine reports, citing reports filed by the New Jersey medical examiner's office.
The medical examiner's findings were filed in May, according to an article in the January issue of Spin about the convergence of comedy and rock 'n' roll.
Hedberg, 37, died in a hotel room in Livingston, N.J., while on a club tour performing standup. The comedian, who was born with a heart defect, was initially believed to have died from heart failure.
He had struggled with drugs and alcohol, and took a hiatus from performing for several months after a May 2003 arrest in Austin, Texas, for felony possession of heroin.
In the Spin article, Maureen Taran, a comedy manager who knew Hedberg, is quoted as saying that life on the road is difficult for a struggling comedian.
"It's a very lonely existence," Taran says. "If you aren't born with manic-depression, you will have it after being in this business."
A hit on The Late Show With David Letterman, on which he appeared 10 times, and The Howard Stern Show, Hedberg once was dubbed "the next Seinfeld" by Time magazine. But TV-series fame eluded him because his unique style of mumbled one-liners didn't lend itself to the sitcom format.
Born in St. Paul, Hedberg rose through the ranks at Minneapolis' Acme Comedy Co. and caught his big break through a Comedy Central special. He had a role in the film Almost Famous— smoking fake pot with Peter Frampton — and appeared on Fox's hit series That '70s Show.
Hedberg had two popular comedy CDs, Strategic Grill Locations and Mitch All Together.
rincewind
December-28th-2005, 12:40 PM
A shame - but not shocking.
I still miss him...
TODD
December-28th-2005, 02:06 PM
I'm sure most fans already figured this, but it's sad that it was a heroin thing. :(
Still missin' Mitch.
Captain Chaos47
December-28th-2005, 02:13 PM
How weird, I was just listening to his CD at work today.
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