Patrick Warburton brought all the good feelings Friday at 4PM in the Hilton Salon. His iconic deep voice, his family, and his love of Disney were all on full display as he answered fan questions and talked with moderator Crispy, who asked what geeks him out. Turns out, its Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam.
Warburton described Vedder a sweet person who gifted him a Social Distortion shirt and once let him write a set list. Of course, Warburton is also a fan of some of his colleagues, having worked with the director Barry Sonnenfeld multiple times, done acting jobs as favors to good friends, and even cosplayed characters from shows he’s provided voices on.
A Dallas-based radio station gives out the “Patrick Warburton Manliest Man Award,” which Warburton finds humorous considering that he takes his coffee “frou frou” and is a self-professed Disney-phile who’s even voiced rides. But that voice betrays his goofy, softer side even if he’s used it to bring characters to life on Family Guy, The Venture Bros, and in Bee Movie and The Emperor’s New Groove.
He’s also been on beloved sitcoms, such as Seinfeld and 8 Simple Rules, and led Rules of Engagement, which he noted really should have been a 200-episode show considering how well it’s done in syndication. When asked about the cast, he said he still sees David Spade and Oliver Hudson and keeps in touch with Megyn Price.
Of his role as Lemony Snicket in A Series of Unfortunate Events, he noted that he was likely not Netflix’s first choice, but both Sonnenfeld, who produced it, and the book author, Daniel Handler, had him in mind. Doing the show—which had magnificent sets and was a fantastic experience—convinced him to get his first tattoo, and he only wanted the best, so he tracked down an older artist known for having inked celebrities such as Tupac Shakur. The man agreed to tattoo Warburton, and as he was doing so said he loved Warburton’s National Car commercials.
When asked about his favorite roles, he easily picked The Tick, saying that it was really fun. He also mentioned an early art film he did called The Woman Chaser, because he liked playing a psychopath. Outside of his work, he’s been influence by Sling Blade, Dead Poets Society, Jerry Lewis, and his own mom, who was an actress that told Warburton he was going to be a Catholic priest.
Warburton gladly obliged when asked how Kronk from The Emperor’s New Groove would tell a squirrel to go to Disneyland, and then talked about the process of creating that voice. The character description called Kronk a “reticent henchman,” which could have called for a very low, dark voice, but Warburton decided to go lighter and sweeter, creating the loveable oaf of a character.
On whether he gets recognized more visually or sonically, he said people change from uncertain to certain as soon as he speaks, which he enjoys doing sometimes to embarrass his kids, like when riding “Soarin’” at Disneyland. He’s the narrator, so he will turn to others and tell them to be quiet while on the ride.
Warburton talked about gratitude being a superpower and told the audience to focus on the positive when facing adversity before he invited a special guest on stage: his brother-in-law dressed as Sir Thomas Moore who engaged with Warburton on the creation of the idea of a utopia.
The world as it is may not be one, but it does feel a little closer to good with the all the fun Warburton puts into it.
