WHY did the Funnyman Burst into Tears at the End of the Rainbow?

That's not gold, that's dung!

Neil Hamburger (Aka: America's Funnyman, or The World's "Worst" Stand-up Comedian) performed at our very own Club Downunder this last Saturday; it was every bit as glorious as I had hoped and expected it to be. Hamburger announced his presence on the stage with his usual exaggerated throat clearing (which, apart from a standard gag of his, he also uses as a clever tool in order to cut off rowdy audience members who heckle him or try to shout out his punchlines), and signature 2+ cups held using his right arm (for drinking from and spitting in, of course).
His anti-humor consists mainly of his awful pacing, abrasive personality, in which he actively tries to get a rise out of the audience or at least make them uncomfortable, and his predominant use of the simple question-punchline joke structure (think "Why did the chicken cross the road?). More often then not, his question and punchline are vulgar, loosely if at all connected, and deal with mainstream pop culture and celebrities, usually picking on the same subject for an extensive amount of time (we were treated to at least ten minutes of Red Hot Chili Peppers/ Heroin jokes).
In one particularly inappropriate joke about Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, he proceeded to tell us in a somber, almost apologetic manner that the musician had actually died earlier that night, causing shock and silence throughout the audience, along with guilt at having laughed at the previous joke. Sure enough, after a quick trip to Wikipedia, I realized that Tyler was in fact alive and well. I find it interesting how Hamburger, as a comedian, doesn't focus solely on getting laughs out of the audience, but successfully toys with other emotions as well, almost as if trying to repel fans, while ironically attracting more in the process. I'll leave you with what may have been my favorite joke of the night: What do you get when you shove a penny in the @$$#%!& of each of the members of Smashmouth? Nickleback.