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Comedians mourn the loss of Heath Ledger
By Doug on January 23rd, 2008
The world is still mourning the untimely death of rising superstar Heath Ledger. Feeling the pain more than many is hack stand up comedian Joe Messer. “We didn’t just lose Heath, we also lost all of those great Brokeback Mountain jokes. I have like ten minutes of that stuff, just one homophobic joke after another,” Messer said. “With Heath gone, there’s no way I can get a laugh with those anymore. Nobody’s going to laugh at that.”
Echoing Messer’s disenchantment is veteran open mic comic Mike Pearl. “Sure, the movie came out in 2005 but that doesn’t mean people cannot still appreciate a good recycled homophobic Brokeback joke.” Unlike Messer, Pearl is not dismayed. “I still have plenty of Bush and Viagra jokes left,” said Pearl , who has been doing open mics off and on for the past ten years. “People never get tired of hearing those. Never…If you have an erection that lasts more than 4 hours, consult a physician? I’m not going to call a doctor. I’m going to call more women! God, that’s gold.”
It wasn’t just the amateur comedy world that is reeling from the loss. Even the late night talk show hosts have been hit hard. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno has been placed on hiatus pending the release of a new gay movie. “That’s half of my monologue every night,” said Leno. “Almost every current event, I could somehow relate it to Brokeback for a cheap laugh, especially if it was something about Bush & Cheney. But with this writer’s strike and everything, I just don’t feel the show can go on right now. And God help us when Bush is out of office in a year.”
