Oswalt in NYT on arti$tic freedom

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on June 25th, 2007

Joe Rhodes of the New York Times interviews Patton Oswalt on the occasion of the release of “Ratatouille,” in which Oswalt voices the title character.

Oswalt makes great points in response to a question that is so totally squaresville it makes the eyes water:

Asked whether he worries about losing his antiestablishment aura or, worse yet, being accused of selling out, he said: “I think it depends on what you do with your success. I’m not doing comedy so I can get out of comedy. I’m doing movies and TV shows and writing screenplays so I can have freedom to do more comedy. And now I have the money to produce my own tours and showcase other comedians.

“So I don’t look at it as being a sellout,” he continued. “I think King of Queens was a really funny show. And as long as I’m out there doing stand-up, what difference does it make what else I do? That’s like someone saying they can’t listen to Richard Pryor’s old albums ever since they saw “Superman III.” Really? Well, you’re an idiot then. ‘Cause those albums are amazing.”

Shouldn’t the NYT be “over” the concept of selling out? Are they really that wired into that segement of the population that even cares about such matters? We would guess that only 15-year-olds (and those that think like them) would be so utterly ignorant of the way the world works that they could muster any indignation over their favorite artist “selling out.”

from → News • 0 Comments - Let's discuss! • Print-Friendly • Back To Top