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Let's face it: Will Ferrell is funny. No matter how much you hate his "laugh at my out of shape, hopelessly hairy and perpetually naked body" brand of humor, his latest venture, FunnyorDie.com, is perfect for people who fall into the "I really dislike anything with Will Ferrell in it" group, because he appears on so little of the website.
FunnyorDie.com was launched in April 2007, giving aspiring comedians a chance to put their own videos on the web. If viewers love the video, they click the "funny" button, and if they dislike it, they click the "die" button. Users can also comment on these videos. This idea is perhaps a bit harsh, but FunnyorDie.com provides a chance for anyone to get noticed on the Internet.
The minds behind this website are Anchorman director Adam McKay and Ron Burgundy himself. On April 12, 2007, they introduced their website in the best way they could: by making a video of their own. The pair wrote and filmed a sketch in which McKay's own two-year-old daughter, Pearl, plays an ornery landlord who belittles tenant Will Ferrell into paying the month's rent early so she can "get her drink on."
The visual of a two year old degrading a humiliated Will Ferrell multiple times, all while holding a beer, may seem unsettling, but these two masters of comedy make it work. The video received 49 million hits, becoming one of the most viewed Internet clips in history. FunnyorDie.com now draws an impressive 3.5 million viewers a month. It has become so popular that stars such as Bill Murray, James Franco, Brooke Shields and, oddly enough, John Mayer have appeared in the site's videos. It should be said that these stars appear in the best videos on the site, and so you can find their clips in either the "most viewed" or "most favorited" sections.
One video many viewers have put on their favorites list, Fact Checker, is a five minute clip made by and starring two unknowns as devout fact checkers for a magazine who go to spy-like lengths to make sure that their facts are accurate. Their latest feat: confirming that Bill Murray drinks a glass of warm milk before bed. They travel to his New York City apartment and ask Bill Murray himself, who, at the end of the video, makes it all too clear that he enjoys his nighttime dairy.
So even if you hate Will Ferrell, you should check out this site. Why miss out on the Internet's best source for comedy? Who cares if you didn't like Blades of Glory? FunnyorDie.com definitely beats watching some bone head's cat dancing to techno beats on YouTube.
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