Mitch Hedberg was a funny fuckin’ dude. Sadly, he was found dead today in his hotel room at age 37. Like his fellow almost-genius Steven Wright, Hedberg’s one liners were undeniably funny. He was a gifted joke writer, and one of the funniest guys never to break through to mainstream success. Perhaps it was his eternally stoned delivery or the tinted ’70s glasses he wore that kept the masses at bay. Or maybe the network TV brass just never found the right vehicle for his off kilter approach. And now we’ll never know just what might have become of this offbeat fellow. On a recent trek up Interstate 5 from Seattle to Vancouver, his CD “Mitch All Together” kept us smiling the entire drive. His clever observations brought a bit of sunshine to a rainy day ride. Those that have had the pleasure of discovering him, love him, and he had a devoted and loyal group of converts. You were either a member of the Church of Hedberg, or your world was a lot less funny. He will surely be missed. Here, is but a small taste of his legacy:

“A severed foot is the ultimate stocking stuffer.”

“I think foosball is a combination of soccer and shish kabobs.”

“If carrots got you drunk, rabbits would be fucked up.”

“I got my hair highlighted, because I felt that some strands were more important than others.”

“I’m against picketing, but I don’t know how to show it.”

“I got an ant farm. Them fellas don’t grow shit.”

“I used to do drugs. I still do drugs. But I used to, too.”

“The thing about tennis is, no matter how much you play, you’ll never be as good as a wall. I played a wall, once. They’re fucking relentless.”

“I went to the store to buy a candle holder, but they were out. So I bought a cake.”

“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!”

Somewhere a comedy club stage is very, very empty.