Interview: Patton Oswalt & his thoughts on creating comedy

aspecialthing.com INTERVIEW: PATTON OSWALT is a really great interview about comedy from the bonzo late-80's to now.

Also it is about the creative process and just creating because you really love it -- no matter if the audience loves it or not.

PO: You can’t go up and hate the audience, but you also can’t go up and need the audience. It’s gotta be just this -- you better be having fun. “I’m so happy to be up here. So happy you guys came out. But I’m gonna do what I do. And you can come along. Or not. But if you don’t come along, it’s all the same to me, ‘cause I’m happy to be up here period.”

isoS: It just seems like it’s kind of an unnatural thing, and yet you can’t really succeed without that.

PO: I. Hate. Needy. Comedy. Ninety percent of comedy films, ninety percent of sitcoms, are the neediest, most desperate, please God, what can we do to make you laugh? Please, anything, what do you want? Whereas all the movies and TV shows that become classics and become huge favorites are the ones that are like, “Hey, we’re glad you’re watching, but let’s remember who’s here for who. We’ve got some stuff going that we really like and we think you’re gonna like it, too.”

isoS: Right, like: “Here’s what we think is funny.”

PO: I think George Carlin, there’s a quote from him that’s like, “I’m here for me, and you’re here for me. No one’s here for you.”