Patton Oswalt

It was a kid who was... always loved movies growing up, but lived in, had very limited access to them or had them only on videotape. There weren't a lot of rep theaters in Northern Virginia. There were in D.C., but it was hard to get into D.C.

It was a kid who was... always loved movies growing up, but lived in, had very limited access to them or had them only on videotape. There weren't a lot of rep theaters in Northern Virginia. There were in D.C., but it was hard to get into D.C.

I couldn't, I had to like, you know, sometimes I would, a couple times I did skip school, I would fake an illness and then sneak into the city and go to the Janus or the Biograph and, you know, if it was like a Kuro Kurosawa film. But that wasn't, but now I'm in L.A. and there are, at the time, in the 95, it was

I couldn't, I had to like, you know, sometimes I would, a couple times I did skip school, I would fake an illness and then sneak into the city and go to the Janus or the Biograph and, you know, if it was like a Kuro Kurosawa film. But that wasn't, but now I'm in L.A. and there are, at the time, in the 95, it was

rep theaters everywhere, you know, Tales Cafe, New Beverly, it was just, it was all over the place, and I could just go and consume these movies, and not just watch movies, but I could watch them with an audience, that's what was the important thing, was watching what still landed with people, and what didn't anymore, and that was something I had never really gotten

rep theaters everywhere, you know, Tales Cafe, New Beverly, it was just, it was all over the place, and I could just go and consume these movies, and not just watch movies, but I could watch them with an audience, that's what was the important thing, was watching what still landed with people, and what didn't anymore, and that was something I had never really gotten

to experience the way that I wanted to. And I just got really, really addicted to that thrill, to being wired into that mind. And this was before the internet, where that's where you went to really be wired into the zeitgeist. And I couldn't get enough of it.

to experience the way that I wanted to. And I just got really, really addicted to that thrill, to being wired into that mind. And this was before the internet, where that's where you went to really be wired into the zeitgeist. And I couldn't get enough of it.

Yeah, I mean, one of the ways it really, really affected me creatively was there were always moments in... films where they would cut off and I'm like, no, show the show that part. Why aren't you showing that part? That should be the start of a movie. And then that kind of became how I wrote a lot of my comedy was about these weird I was also very much influenced by Brian Regan.

Yeah, I mean, one of the ways it really, really affected me creatively was there were always moments in... films where they would cut off and I'm like, no, show the show that part. Why aren't you showing that part? That should be the start of a movie. And then that kind of became how I wrote a lot of my comedy was about these weird I was also very much influenced by Brian Regan.

Brian Regan is the king of looking at those moments in life where you're like, this is an absolute waste of time. This is something that you block out because it's something you got to do so I can get to the creative stuff. And he realizes, no, there's actual real life happening right here, like ordering a dozen donuts. There's kind of cosmic significance to this. And he would explore that.

Brian Regan is the king of looking at those moments in life where you're like, this is an absolute waste of time. This is something that you block out because it's something you got to do so I can get to the creative stuff. And he realizes, no, there's actual real life happening right here, like ordering a dozen donuts. There's kind of cosmic significance to this. And he would explore that.

So I, because I'd watched so many movies and see so many movies would follow the same rhythm and the ones that didn't and the ones that went other places made me so,

So I, because I'd watched so many movies and see so many movies would follow the same rhythm and the ones that didn't and the ones that went other places made me so,

happy that i would remember those moments and then try to put those moments into my writing into my comedy now i do comic books and a lot of those are about because i read a lot of comic books and there's a lot of superhero comics that look at part i'm like show the parts that you're not showing that would be so much more fascinating how does this person like live with these powers and what would that be like so i always want what is going on in the margins or what is

happy that i would remember those moments and then try to put those moments into my writing into my comedy now i do comic books and a lot of those are about because i read a lot of comic books and there's a lot of superhero comics that look at part i'm like show the parts that you're not showing that would be so much more fascinating how does this person like live with these powers and what would that be like so i always want what is going on in the margins or what is

How does real life actually... There's a great movie called The Matador. Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear and, oh my God, Hope. She was in Ghost World. I'm blanking on her name. This is so embarrassing.

How does real life actually... There's a great movie called The Matador. Pierce Brosnan and Greg Kinnear and, oh my God, Hope. She was in Ghost World. I'm blanking on her name. This is so embarrassing.

Yeah, with age.

Yeah, with age.