The Untold Tragic Truth Of Mitch Hedberg

Many comedians have created humor that lasts for ages. One of the most beloved is Mitch Hedberg, but his life didn't last as long as his legacy, as he died at an early age from drug addiction. This is his tragic real-life story.

Hedberg was born on February 24, 1968, in St. Paul, Minnesota. After graduating from high school, he moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to pursue stand-up comedy. While he honed his act, he also worked as a cook at Applebee's. He once recalled,

"I was born in Minnesota, that's where I was raised...When I was 18, I was kind of sick of living there, so my friend Tim and I, we packed up his car. We moved from Minnesota to Florida. We wanted to move to Texas, but the front-end alignment was bad."

In a 2004 interview with The A.V. Club, Hedberg discussed how he first became interested in becoming a stand-up comic. As he put it,

"I knew comics and I loved them and I loved being funny, but I didn't understand the whole concept of becoming one. A friend of mine from another restaurant let me know about these things called open mics. That's all it took. My first couple of times on stage, I was like, 'This is what I'm doing for sure.' I was so excited."

Open mic nights soon became low-paying gigs, as Hedberg would often sleep in the back of a pickup while on the road. Eventually, he moved from Fort Lauderdale to Seattle, Washington, where he improved his act and gained a larger audience.

Watch the video for more about The Untold Tragic Truth Of Mitch Hedberg.

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The early days | 0:00
Breaking through | 1:18
Moving to the mainstream | 2:27
Dabbling in film | 3:15
Returning to the club circuit | 4:24
Worsening drug use | 5:10
Saving the best for worst | 6:34
Premature punchlines | 7:45
Helping up-and-comers | 8:29
His final days | 9:25

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