Top 10 Funniest Bill Burr Moments
#10: Facelifts
Bill Burr never shies away from offending anybody’s delicate sensibilities with his comedy. His bit on facelifts from his 2012 special “You People Are All the Same” takes on perceptions of beauty with observations on plastic surgery. Burr opines about how some people occasionally go too far with their plastic surgery obsessions, as opposed to growing older with grace. Facelifts, liposuction, hair plugs and more receive Burr’s no-nonsense approach, as the comedian stresses how so many of these procedures have the opposite effect to what’s desired. In Burr’s own words: SB [“What would you rather be 52 and look 52 or be 52 and look like a 28 year old lizard?”]
#9: Heaven
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Everybody has a different idea about the afterlife: what it entails, and what happens. Bill Burr’s 2014 special “I’m Sorry You Feel That Way” contains a bit that references a heavenly paradox with which many of us struggle. Burr asks a very specific question: what happens if somebody we want to be in heaven with us…well, isn’t there? The very concept sort of defies heaven as this sort of emotional paradise, without worry or hurt. Burr, naturally, makes light of this subject, admonishing Jesus for the plight of Bill’s missing friends. The comedian also makes fun of nepotism stereotypes, daring Jesus to “go tell his dad.”
#8: George Bush
Bill Burr’s “Paper Tiger” special from 2019 featured a number of funny bits about the United States presidency, including the duties of a First Lady. However, older fans of the comedian’s work will realize that these sorts of hilarious potshots are nothing new. Burr’s 2003 CD “Emotionally Unavailable” included a bit which poked fun at former U.S. president George W. Bush, notably needling Bush’s pronunciation and cadence. The bit then leans into some folksy American stereotypes in hilarious fashion.
#7: Robots
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Artificial intelligence seems to be in the news lately on a daily basis. However, Bill Burr was already expressing his concern about these matters back in his 2019 special “Paper Tiger.” The comedian shares a memory about how, while sitting in a hotel room, he watched a TV program that featured a robot being interviewed. In hilarious fashion, Burr mimics his reactions to the interview. He also stresses the danger of autonomous robotics, and how so many science fiction movies have prepared us for the worst of what may (or may not) occur in the not-so-distant future.
#6: Stephen Hawking
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It didn’t take much more than a few seconds for Bill Burr to stun the audience at London’s Royal Albert Hall when he pivoted from dangerous robotics to famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. Those in attendance at Burr’s “Paper Tiger” special audibly gasp at the comedian’s segway to this topic. Burr doesn’t stop there, either, and continues to needle Hawking as being “smarmy” and “negative,” while also creating an imaginary scenario about Hawking in the afterlife. It’s gloriously scorched-earth stuff, without any thought or care as to who it might offend.
#5: On Joe Rogan
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The 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic affected nearly every aspect of our daily lives, to the point where it feels surreal now to watch interview segments that took place during the early part of the pandemic. Bill Burr was a guest on “The Joe Rogan Experience” back in the thick of it in 2020, and the pair have an excellent back-and-forth about Covid-19 safety protocols. Burr’s comparison of mask wearing and rollerblading is particularly funny, and Rogan seems to enjoy steering the conversation to a place he knows will garner a reaction from his audience. But Burr lightly makes sure to keep Rogan in check. It’s stunningly funny stuff.
#4: The Muffin Bit
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Bill Burr’s reputation as a stand-up comic with perceived “anger issues” has been well-documented. The man’s 2023 directorial debut, “Old Dads” referenced this in a great, surprisingly deep fashion. There’s nothing deep, however, about this bit from the 2007 Montreal International Comedy Festival. Here, the punchline is about how Burr…well, is fantasizing about punching muffins. The setting is a street fair, and Burr does NOT want to be there, so he decides to indulge a hypothetical where he smashes an entire table of muffins. The bit is borderline ridiculous, but it makes us laugh every time.
#3: The Philadelphia Incident
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Heckling is, unfortunately, a big hazard when it comes to maintaining a living performing stand-up comedy. “The Philadelphia Incident'' references a 2006 comedy tour stop in Philadelphia. The show turned out to be combative, however, as the audience seemed intent upon heckling every comedian. Rather than going home, however, Burr decided to let the Philly audience have it with both barrels blazing. The set was so intense that Burr actually won over the crowd, who ended up giving him a standing ovation at the end of his set.
#2: The Helicopter
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This outstanding bit from Bill Burr’s 2014 special “I’m Sorry You Feel That Way” does such a great job at making such a dark and depressing story feel like the funniest thing we’ve ever heard. Granted, we must admit that the animated version on Bill Burr’s YouTube channel does a lot of the heavy lifting with regards to lightening the mood. Still, the story of a man who chooses self-destruction during a helicopter tour and the fact that the guide of that tour had JUST been given control of the family business is SO wrong. Yet, if laughing at The Helicopter bit is wrong…well, then we don’t wanna be right.
#1: The Indianapolis Story
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We’ve probably all had instances where we were seated next to somebody on an airplane that just would not leave us alone. Bill Burr’s recollections on “The Joe Rogan Experience” about this red eye flight to Indianapolis is full of anecdotes about one particularly combative situation. We particularly love it when Rogan and other co-hosts ask Burr whether he filmed the exchange, to which Burr responds: SB [Why can’t you just be in the moment and not turn into a film crew?”] The Indianapolis Story just escalates more and more as this individual on the airplane will just NOT leave the comedian alone. We hope that this sort of thing doesn’t happen to you, but we’re honestly kind of stoked that it happened to Bill. What’s your favorite Bill Burr bit? Let us know in the comments!
