# Dan Hentschel

Daniel George Hentschel (born June 4, 1996) is an American comedian and satirical creator, known for creating caricatures of himself and other original characters. Through his viral stunts, Hentschel has repeatedly pranked news outlets and viewers of his content into believing parody stories and advice.

## Early life and education

Hentschel was raised in Harford County, Maryland. He attended The John Carroll School. Hentschel won the first prize at the Baltimore High School Film Festival. He received a major in Dramatic Writing at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Georgia.
Hentschel first began working as a stand-up comedian in 2017 during his studies at SCAD, performing in two talent shows and becoming the Vice President of the college's stand-up comedy club.

## Viral posts

In 2022, Hentschel gained widespread attention when he posted a series of videos to TikTok with satirical relationship advice. In October, he claimed that he had found a "genius" method to detect if a significant other still has romantic feelings for their ex. He then proposed that viewers should photoshop the ex out of an old photo and see if their partner notices. The video was then posted by outlets such as New York Post, which shared the advice to their Sex and Relationships column and discussed the pros and cons.
In December 2022, Vice reported that the idea of "quiet quitting" a relationship could be attributed to Hentschel, after he uploaded a video where he pretended to be a psychiatrist and gave satirical relationship advice.
In June 2023, Hentschel posted a series of videos on TikTok where he convinced viewers he had put salt in his partner's water in order to dehydrate her. The videos showed Hentschel in various costumes as he claimed to put bacon grease in his partner's beauty products. The storyline led to her being hospitalized for poisoning and dying. The joke was an elaborate parody that involved a fake mugshot photo of Hentschel, a fake New York Post article and doctored security footage. After changing his TikTok profile to appear as a true crime news outlet, Hentschel was able to fool viewers into thinking the story was real, including fans who did not know it was his TikTok account.
In August 2024, Hentschel claimed to have taken his girlfriend on a road trip across the United States, with the road layout spelling the words "Will You Marry Me". He followed up by implying that at the end of the road trip, his girlfriend had broken up with him; the fake story immediately caught the attention of some news outlets.

### Legal issues

In January 2025, Hentschel posted a video on social media where he stood on the campus of The John Carroll School, his former school. In the video, he jokes he was "almost a school shooter" in 2013 and described memories of wanting to fire an AK-47 into the bleachers during a sophomore homecoming game. The video caught the attention of administrative staff at The John Carroll School, who identified Hentschel and alerted authorities on January 4.
Later that month, the Bel Air Police Department launched a criminal investigation into Hentschel, releasing a statement on Facebook in which they called the video "disturbing". Despite assuring the public that Hentschel and his immediate family did not have access to firearms, Hentschel is currently facing a trespassing charge, and the department are consulting the state's attorney's office to determine if additional charges are applicable.
In a 42-minute long YouTube video responding to the investigation as his fictionalized self, Hentschel jokes the shooter joke video wasn't "supposed to be funny" and acknowledged he had "no control" over how people react to his content. He joked about the police department visiting his immediate family in the days following the original post, hoping the police would have visited him personally instead. Hentschel then recalled how once the police department were satisfied he was not a threat, they left him alone, only for him to receive a call the next day from the Harford County Sheriff's Office alerting him he was facing a criminal charge. These events are likely fictional, as all his videos are in character.
Hentschel described the situation as an "out-of-body experience", but expressed a complete lack of regret in posting the original video, claiming it was fully protected under free speech rights and did not contain illegal content.

## Comedic style

Hentschel claims that his videos are "a place that's between satire and truth" and admits that "an accidental byproduct" of his videos have been "how outrageous [he can] make the premise", with viewers openly relating to his satirical behavior.
Often, Hentschel's videos are filmed in his car with his phone propped up on his dashboard, some of which are up to 40 minutes in length. He believes that viewers enjoy his content because it feels "spontaneous" and realistic. Due to the fact he does not edit his videos, Hentschel believes it "feels like somebody who's just talking to you", which adds to the realism of the satire and sympathetic approach to some of his characters.
Hentschel has stated that his comedic inspirations have included John Mulaney, Amy Schumer, Michelle Wolf and Mike Birbiglia. He also mentioned that he used to be a fan of Louis C.K., but disavowed him due to his sexual misconduct.

### Characters

Hentschel is known for creating caricatures of himself and other original characters. He has impersonated multiple professions, most notably a disgruntled therapist who documented his hatred for patients and their issues. He has also played the role of a teacher going through a mental breakdown, a judge handing out life sentences to avoid missing lunch, and a priest. Common themes throughout Hentschel's videos involve disgruntled employees, anti-establishment influencers, characters recounting themselves committing a crime such as murder, and characters suffering mental crises. Most characters are caricatures of Hentschel himself. He often wears face paint or over-the-top costumes to gain viewer attention.