PATTON OSWALT: I wanted to become some sort of writer, although my parents were hoping for pre-med or pre-law.

ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: You graduated from the College of William & Mary (in Williamsburg) with a degree in English. In this interview, he also recounts how Bird discovered him while driving around Los Angeles, what it means for him to be in a Pixar movie (Here’s a hint: It’s bigger than a dream come true) and why a movie about rats may be the feel-good family film of the year. Married to writer Michelle McNamara, Oswalt writes an occasional column for The New York Times Sunday magazine. In 2004, he created the “Comedians of Comedy,” a national tour that played rock venues instead of the more conventional comedy clubs. He has appeared in “Starsky & Hutch,” “Man on the Moon,” “Reno 911: Miami” and “Magnolia.”īut, as the Portsmouth, Va., native explained over a breakfast of huevos rancheros at a trendy Hollywood coffee shop, movies and television place a distant second to his first love – stand-up comedy. Oswalt, 38, is a newcomer to the Pixar world, but he is not new the world of films. “Ratatouille,” written and directed by Brad Bird ( “The Iron Giant” and “The Incredibles”), is the latest from Pixar Animation Studios, which has an unblemished record of churning out computer-generated family blockbusters, from “Toy Story” and “A Bug’s Life” to “Monsters, Inc.” and “Finding Nemo.”

Remy’s family doesn’t understand his passion for gourmet food – they prefer garbage – and the humans in the kitchen of the Parisian restaurant he hangs out in don’t particularly care for the unwelcome rodent in their midst.

The stand-up comic (his latest comedy album, “Werewolves and Lollipops,” will be released next month) and sitcom actor (he played Spence on “The King of Queens” for nine seasons) lends his voice to the movie’s lead character Remy, a lovable rat who dreams of becoming a great French chef. Oswalt is, however, a longtime animation fan and he is enjoying his own kind of glory this week as the star of the new Disney-Pixar animated film “Ratatouille,” which opens Friday. Then again, Oswalt is not a retired Marine colonel like his father, who named his son after the legendary World War II general, George S. Unlike his namesake, Patton Oswalt is an unlikely candidate for military glory. Patton Oswalt puts the rat in ‘Ratatouille’ – Orange County Register Close Menu

Rat from ratatouille