Neil Hamburger

Neil Hamburger
Turkington performing as Hamburger in 2016
First appearanceGreat Phone Calls Featuring Neil Hamburger (1992)
Created byGregg Turkington
Portrayed byGregg Turkington
In-universe information
Occupation
Genres
Websiteamericasfunnyman.com

Neil Hamburger is a standup comedian and singer character created and portrayed by Australian-American entertainer Gregg Turkington. Distinguished for his misanthropic jokes and anti-comedy style,[1] Turkington has released a number of albums as Hamburger and has appeared as the character in various films, television shows, and other media. In 2015, the act inspired the feature-length film Entertainment, which stars Turkington as a "variant" of the character.[2]

Turkington developed the character in the 1990s and originally envisioned the concept as a "weird recording project". It originated from a prank call that had appeared on the album Great Phone Calls Featuring Neil Hamburger (1992). He followed the LP with three more albums issued on Drag City Records before he began receiving offers to perform as the character for live shows.[3] His albums Neil Hamburger Sings Country Winners (2009) and First of Dismay (2014) feature original songs and cover versions backed by "The Too Good For Neil Hamburger Band".[4]

  1. ^ Logan, Brian (August 20, 2010). "Neil Hamburger: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh". The Guardian.
  2. ^ Ratliff, Ben (November 21, 2015). "For Gregg Turkington's Character, There's No Success Like Failure". The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  3. ^ The Cris Kirkwood Podcast (2015). "7: Gregg Turkington AKA Neil Hamburger" (Audio). SoundCloud. Event occurs at 27:14–30:00. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  4. ^ Colburn, Randall (August 8, 2014). "Neil Hamburger – First of Dismay". Consequence of Sound.