It took just nine episodes of "Seinfeld" for actor Patrick Warburton to become typecast. He played Puddy (the stoic boyfriend of Elaine) so successfully that he is still identified with that character. The son of a surgeon, Warburton, 44, ended up following his mother's footsteps into acting. He is married to his college sweetheart and stars on the CBS comedy "Rules of Engagement" with David Spade on Mondays at 9:30 p.m. EDT.
Talking with the actor:
Q: The connection between the cast on "Rules of Engagement" seems genuine. Do you find that often in your work?
A: Hmmm. Geez, I don't know, it's always good when there's a connection and everyone gets along well. I think that is truly the case in this instance. I wouldn't say it's always the case; it's not. David (Spade) was always a fan. We had only worked together on animated projects. He always made me laugh.
Q: What was your pre-marriage dating life like?
A: I never got to have all that fun. I have been married 17-18 years, and I've known my wife since I was a freshman at Orange Coast College and she was still at Edison High School. It would be fun to swap lives with David for just a month and have some crazy fun. (Laughs) That's my request to my wife. She doesn't seem to be real big on that.
Q: Growing up with three sisters, were you babied?
A: I was, and to my sisters' dismay, too. I was the eldest and the only boy. You have to understand, I weighed 95 pounds freshman year in high school. I started a year early. Anyway, my mother would wake up and make me special breakfasts in the morning. She was trying to put meat on my bones. My sisters would always have to fend for themselves.
Q: You followed in your mother's footsteps, not your father's.
A: It's true. Growing up, I didn't get to go see her do anything professionally because she left the business to have a family. She would do community theater, so what I found to be an inspiration was going to see my mom do shows in town.
Q: How did your dad react when you told him you wanted to be an actor?
A: I didn't really get any opposition. Like any father and son, you are going to butt heads over things, you know, growing up. After a year and a half at junior college, I didn't have the grades to make it into any worthwhile university. I don't think it's because I'm stupid. I really do think it's because I felt like I was narcoleptic. I fell asleep probably every day in class. I think it was due to the fact that I was rowing crew every morning.
Q: Crew is brutal.
A: It is, it really is. After a couple of hours of rowing a boat, you know, you are depleted. But that was a great experience.
Q: Was there ever consideration of a Puddy spin-off, like "Frasier" after "Cheers"?
A: There were never any serious talks in regard to that. As an actor, when you do a character on a show as widely watched as "Seinfeld" and a real definitive caricature, then you are at serious risk of being typecast the rest of your life. I did nine episodes and it's still an issue. I can't get meetings in town for anything outside of something comedic. So whatever.
Q: But you have this sort of John Wayne/Rock Hudson kind of presence. I am surprised you haven't been cast in a Western or that kind of movie.
A: I'd love to do a Western, but I don't think they are making a lot of them. I bumped into guys who knew John Wayne, who were good friends of him. The late Gene Roach, who was a good friend of mine, once told me that I should play the Duke in something. I took that as a great compliment. I'll probably never get that opportunity. Now I am going to whine. No one will take me seriously, wha, wha, wha.
Q: You seem unfazed by all the celebrity. Are you just waiting for an Oscar?
A: (Laughs) We live a rather non-celebrity-type life. We live in Ventura County (Calif.). Now it's about going to kids' baseball games and my daughter's swim meets and doing family stuff. It's funny because David's (Spade) life is almost the complete opposite. I went to his birthday party a couple of years ago, and it was like going to the Emmys or the Academy Awards. Everybody was there. My birthday party, my dear friend Jason Alexander shows up; oh, actually that was my wife's birthday party. My birthday party, I don't think there was a single actor there. It was just a neighborhood drunk fest.
Q: You are keeping it very real there.
A: I guess. I'm not really a big shot. My only concerns are to take good care of the family and put four kids through college. And not to have a lot of money worries. (Laughing) You never know what's in the future in this industry. You never know.
(Patricia Sheridan can be reached at psheridan@post-gazette.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)