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Leaving frigid Minnesota for the beaches of California.
No, it's not the latest script for "That '70s Show." This is the real life story of comedian Mitch Hedberg.
"My whole quest was to get warm first - leave Minnesota and get warm first," the native of the Land of a Thousand Lakes said. With his Surfer Boy-meets-Cajun accent, it's hard to imagine the comedian wrapped up in a parka.
Perhaps the world owes the unforgiving weather of Minnesota a debt of gratitude, for Hedberg may have never found the calling of comedy had he not wanted to get away from the chilly Midwest.
Hedberg wasn't thinking about making a living with comedy when he left Minnesota - he just wanted to leave - but he knew showbiz was where he wanted to be.
"I was considering music for a while, but I couldn't get the chops down. I tried to be a bass player, but I wasn't a bass player. I was just the guy who grew his hair long," Hedberg said.
He still has that long hair, a part of his persona indicative of his comedy, when he greets fans from the stage. Hedberg looks like a natural with the microphone, but the first time he was on stage was far from natural.
"My very first time on stage, in order to alleviate fear, I went on stage with my roommates, and we tried to reenact stuff that we were making up at the apartment, like macaroni and cheese," Hedberg said, evoking memories from his days in Florida. "It was really dumb shit, but I wanted to be a stand-up comedian, so I used my friends to get on stage."
That "really dumb shit" has courted a loyal fan base to Hedberg and has resulted in sales of 63,000 copies of his latest album, "Mitch All Together." The two buddies that joined him on stage that night haven't been nearly as successful with comedy - one of them making the blooper reel on the television show "Last Comic Standing."
"[He] is still a comic, and he sucks, and he never should have gotten into comedy. I fucked his whole life up, because now he thinks he's funny, and he's horrible," Hedberg said. "But you know what, I'm making his car payments now, so I'm helping him out."
Hedberg's success as a comedian was highlighted last year when he toured the nation as the opening act for Dave Attell and Lewis Black.
"That was my favorite experience in comedy ever. I wanted that tour to go on forever," Hedberg recalled. "The crowds were amazing, so every night I got done first, I got to chill, I got to get drunk first."
Hedberg's love for performing in theaters drove him to put together another tour, although this time, he won't have the opportunity to get drunk first. Partnering with Hedberg is Stephen Lynch, a singer-comedian who works humorous bits into his songs.
"I love to tour theaters, but I can't quite fill them yet," Hedberg said of his partnership with Lynch. "I think it's a good fit. I think it's a cool show, and we're attracting crossover fans. He has his fans that don't know me and vice versa."
Lynch's clean-cut Jeff Buckley-like singing style combines with the comedic wit to rival any other professional comedian. Lynch's singing comedy should fit well with Hedberg.
Observational comedy is Hedberg's specialty - he points out comical things in our lives that we encounter every day but never give a second thought to.
"Everyone probably thinks of shit that's funny or could be a joke, every day, many times throughout the day," Hedberg said. "It becomes my job to record it and practice presenting it."
Why do Pringles Potato Chips come in cans? Why don't we have koalas as household pets? Hedberg answers all of these questions. Perhaps he will bring some of that material to Austin, along with his big sunglasses and tattered T-shirts.
"If I have any plans for Austin, I'm gonna go to Fifth Street. I want to know what Fifth street is all about. Because I know Sixth is happening, but what about Fifth?" Hedberg posed in his trademark matter-of-fact delivery.
From Minnesota to California to Florida to Fifth Street, Hedberg has come a long way. Saturday night he will be on stage at the Paramount Theater, far far away from the cold.
Mitch Hedberg and Stephen Lynch will be performing on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 8 p.m. at the Paramount Theater.
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