Scott Dikkers is the creator and former editor-in-chief of The Onion. The Onion is a successful online publication which deals in political satire and other humorous news stories. The Onion has found its home on the web including an array of social media sites.

The funnyman began the event by describing his evolution into the publishing business.  He documented his journey from the time he was a young kid and up until his dream began to come into fruition.  

Dikkers struggled to fit in as a child. He explained his troubled start to life by quipping about an attempted suicide by way of holding his breath when he was in the third grade. As the audience edged forward he put a cap on the joke by exclaiming “too soon?”

Dikkers credits a combination of Mad magazine and his miserable childhood as the inspiration for his comedy. Reflecting on his emotional state following his parents’ divorce, he labeled himself a “sad class clown.”

The majority of Dikkers’ focus was about the writers that he helped establish on his road to creating The Onion. He depicted his writing staff as a variety of misfits including, “conspiracy theorists, suicidal antidepressants and folks from broken homes.” He restates his point, by explaining his hiring philosophy of “shooting low” when it comes to comedic minds.

Dikkers commended his former writer’s comedic virtues and recognized their continuing success as prominent Hollywood writers on late shows, movies and more.

His success story is blemished with years living homeless, even as his comedy was getting significant attention.  Despite a nomadic lifestyle of “couch surfing,” Dikkers did not look down during this period of time because he was doing what he loved.

Dikkers ended the presentation part of his visit by giving attendees several tips, a few of which included to “invest your time not your money, trust your people and live your mission all in.”

He closed out his time at by fielding questions from an eager audience of listeners. In an answer about offensive jokes, Dikkers defended comedic speech and explained his gravitation toward “no hold barred” comedy.