Patton Oswalt Fights Against KFC...

[Wryan]

Hilarious article penned by Patton on TheOnion. Concerns the KFC Famous Bowls menu item that he has railed against in the past on albums and in stand-up. Here he is explaining how TheOnion asked him to taste the item and review it, sorta. I love him. I really do.

A choice paragraph:

"The franchise I visited, on Hollywood Boulevard near my old apartment, looked like it had withstood assault by bullets, flamethrowers, Baseball Furies, and a hundred hook-handed whores. Everything inside the store—including the employees and customers—looked like it had been rubbed with sad ham. And they were offering a new product for kids—"fun meals" that came in colorful cardboard containers that opened like laptop computers. A generation of children are growing up associating computer use with fun, grease, and food. I will flee to the mountains before I see how porn gets folded into that equation."

http://www.avclub.com/content/feature/a_v_club_taste_test_special_th e

[MadMan]

That was one of the funniest things I've ever read. My favorite part was the bit about KFC making a bobble head of him. The entire thing is gloriously written in a style that would make someone like the late Hunter S. Thompson proud. I wonder what Thompson would think of today's fast food....or if he wrote a column about it before his demise.

[bac0n]

God, I totally love the HP Lovecraft reference at the very end.

[D_Davis]

God, I totally love the HP Lovecraft reference at the very end.

On his stand up bit, he references This Mortal Coil's It'll End in Tears. Probably the only time this album has ever been referenced by a stand up comedian.

[number8]

Patton Oswalt references a lot of stuff most comedians don't, especially comic book stuff. I've heard him work Brian K. Vaughan's writings into his material. What's great is that he doesn't give a shit if you get it or not.

[D_Davis]

Patton Oswalt references a lot of stuff most comedians don't, especially comic book stuff. I've heard him work Brian K. Vaughan's writings into his material. What's great is that he doesn't give a shit if you get it or not.

Yeah. And I like how he doesn't sound like he's doing just to be hip or indie. It seems genuine.

[Wryan]

Yeah definitely genuine. His Werewolves and Lollipops album is hysterical (audio better than DVD).

"The cheese had congealed. Even in the heat and steam of the covered Famous Bowl, it had congealed. I stabbed it with the tines of my spork and it all came up in one piece. I nibbled an edge, had a vision of a crying Dutch farmer, and put it down."

How can anyone not find that funny?

[Rowland]

Why a crying Dutch farmer?

I always sense a bit of elitism in Patton Oswalt's comedy, but it isn't nearly as abrasive as some comedians, and he keeps it under control behind his self-deprecating dork persona.

[number8]

Yeah. And I like how he doesn't sound like he's doing just to be hip or indie. It seems genuine.

Have you seen the Comedians of Comedy?

It explains why his routine feels genuine. A lot of his material is spur-of-the-moment things. One segment of the doc shows him and Posehn picking up comics on a Wednesday (new comics day!) and comparing what they got, and that same night he goes on stage and jokes at length about why comic book fans are like junkies on Wednesdays, and even talks about the comics he picked up that day.

[Wryan]

Why a crying Dutch farmer?

Sure, there's some elitism, but I don't mind it. And I don't get all his references either, so it's not just because I'm in the know.

Dutch farmer, to me, can be read two ways, and I believe it's intentionally written that way. One, nibbling the awful carbon copy of "cheese" reminds him of a Dutch farmer who, presumably, fashions the real stuff himself and weeps openly at the crass version peddled by KFC. Second, nibbling the cheese gives him a brief, chemically/spiritually-inspired vision of, for some unknown reason, a Dutch farmer, probably sitting down in a field somewhere and crying. Personally I like the second one better. It's how I read it. Plus it's funnier.

[Derek]

Why a crying Dutch farmer?

I always sense a bit of elitism in Patton Oswalt's comedy, but it isn't nearly as abrasive as some comedians, and he keeps it under control behind his self-deprecating dork persona.

I dunno, he made the cheese and is sad that it's being used in such shitty food?


Have you seen the Comedians of Comedy?

It explains why his routine feels genuine. A lot of his material is spur-of-the-moment things. One segment of the doc shows him and Posehn picking up comics on a Wednesday (new comics day!) and comparing what they got, and that same night he goes on stage and jokes at length about why comic book fans are like junkies on Wednesdays, and even talks about the comics he picked up that day.

Heh, that was hilarious and I don't even by comics. I loved how genuinely pissed off Posehn was when Patton grabbed the last copy of something he wanted. If I'm remembering right, Patton made fun of him more when he was on stage that night.

[Rowland]

I didn't know Dutch farmers were known for cheese.

[Derek]

I didn't know Dutch farmers were known for cheese.

They sure are, but even if you don't know that, I don't see it as much of a jump to make. You can call it elitist, but the joke just wouldn't have been as funny with Wisconsin farmers. :)

[Rowland]

They sure are, but even if you don't know that, I don't see it as much of a jump to make. You can call it elitist, but the joke just wouldn't have been as funny with Wisconsin farmers. :)That wasn't the elitist part I was talking about. Just a genuine question... I thought there may have been more to the reference.

[Wryan]

You can call it elitist, but the joke just wouldn't have been as funny with Wisconsin farmers. :)

Exactly. Something I love about Patton is his attention to detail, particularly in the words he chooses and the cadence of his voice (in standup). Look up his Einstein-cum-Passion of the Christ comparison. That's deep fried gold.

Never mind I did it for ya.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RE6rdIQBcY

Passion of the Christ comes in later toward the end, but this couple of minutes is pretty funny.

[D_Davis]

Have you seen the Comedians of Comedy?

It explains why his routine feels genuine. A lot of his material is spur-of-the-moment things. One segment of the doc shows him and Posehn picking up comics on a Wednesday (new comics day!) and comparing what they got, and that same night he goes on stage and jokes at length about why comic book fans are like junkies on Wednesdays, and even talks about the comics he picked up that day.

I have not, but it sounds awesome. I'll check it out.

Hey, have you listened to Demitri Martin? I love this guy. He's like the new, indie, Mitch Hedberg. Not as funny as Hedberg, but still.

[Wryan]

I have not, but it sounds awesome. I'll check it out.

Hey, have you listened to Demitri Martin? I love this guy. He's like the new, indie, Mitch Hedberg. Not as funny as Hedberg, but still.

I've seen Martin. Pretty funny for the most part. Seen Louis CK?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoonP2YeIWQ

Delicious.

[Acapelli]

Saw a Comedians of Comedy show a few months back and he was hilarious (as well as the rest of the guys and gals there).

[megladon8]

Isn't this the guy who played Remy in Ratatouille?

That article was great :)

[Wryan]

Isn't this the guy who played Remy in Ratatouille?

That article was great :)

Indeed it is. Disney/Bird saw one of Patton's sketches about Black Angus (really funny) and thought he had the perfect foodie/elitist voice for Remy. One thing lead to another...

[origami_mustache]

my favorite part:

"I must've watched the commercial a dozen times. It looked like a self-shot (but well-cut and -lit) video that someone would make as they prepared to commit suicide. I couldn't take my eyes off it. I didn't think the implosion of society would be so funny."

[megladon8]

Indeed it is. Disney/Bird saw one of Patton's sketches about Black Angus (really funny) and thought he had the perfect foodie/elitist voice for Remy. One thing lead to another...


Well it was definitely a perfect choice.

One thing I really appreciated about Ratatouille was that it didn't use a bunch of instantly recognizable stars for the voices.

I find it can be really distracting when they use those strong star voices - it's even worse when they don't seem like the best choice for the role, and are obviously just there to have a recognizable name.

Shark Tale was one of the worst offenders with this.

[number8]

Hey, have you listened to Demitri Martin? I love this guy. He's like the new, indie, Mitch Hedberg. Not as funny as Hedberg, but still.

I can only take Martin in small doses. His segments on The Daily Show are always hilarious, and whenever I see clips from his stand up it makes me laugh. However, I can't watch his full set. His deadpanness wears out after a while.

[number8]

Heh, that was hilarious and I don't even by comics. I loved how genuinely pissed off Posehn was when Patton grabbed the last copy of something he wanted. If I'm remembering right, Patton made fun of him more when he was on stage that night.

Yeah, his comparison is actually pretty spot on too. There's nothing worse than coming home from a comic shop with your loot, then finding out that a particular title came out that week and your comic store guy didn't put it in your box. It feels almost exactly like being shorted by your dealer.

[Wryan]

It feels almost exactly like being shorted by your dealer.

/eyes num queerly











/not that kind of queerly