Patrick Warburton is no stranger to television viewers.
He’s starred in Fox’s “The Tick,” continues to voice Griffin family neighbor Joe Swanson on “Family Guy,” starred in sitcoms “Less Than Perfect” and “Rules of Engagement,” and narrated Netflix‘s “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events,” among others.
Despite racking up more than 200 screen credits, Warburton will always be best known as David Puddy, on-and-off boyfriend of Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) on “Seinfeld.”
Now, Warburton is looking back on even earlier chapter in his career, which placed him in a up-close-and-personal situation with television legend Carol Burnett.
He Was 27
Warburton was appearing on AM 970’s “Nostalgia Tonight With Joe Sibilia” when he shared his anecdote about Burnett.
“I made out with her,” Warburton shared, via Entertainment Weekly.
“I was 27 at the time and she played a soap star. She played the good sister (the good twin), and the evil twin. And they were both dating the same toy boy, which was 27-year-old me. I had scenes where I was making out with the good one and the bad one.”
‘Like Kissing Mom’
Warburton recalled Burnett being a bit on the cheeky side.
“Carol was adorable,” Warburton said of their scene. “She looked at the director and she goes, ‘Oh, we’re going to have to rehearse this some more.'”
Of course, Warburton admitted there was also something surreal about locking lips with a woman that he’d grown up watching on television.
“For me, it was kind of like kissing mom because I grew up with the family on ‘The Carol Burnett Show,'” he added. “But it is funny as I look back. I made out with Carol Burnett … me and the older gals, I don’t know!”
‘Carol & Company’
While Warburton didn’t identify the project that he and Burnett had worked on together, a scan at the timeline would indicate he was a guest star on “Carol & Company,” a short-lived 1990 sketch comedy series intended to recapture the glory of “The Carol Burnett Show,” which ran for 11 seasons as one of the biggest hits on CBS.
“Carol & Company,” however, was not nearly as well received. The show only lasted six episodes before it was cancelled.
That said, the series proved to be a launching pad for an impressive roster of future stars. Among the actors who appeared on the show were Richard Kind (who would later go on to “Spin City” and other roles), Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”) and Peter Krause (“Six Feet Under,” “Parenthood,” “9-1-1”).
Puddy Started It All
Warburton remains grateful for his signature character, crediting “Seinfeld” for lighting the spark that causes his career to escalate.
“Anytime you got invited back to be on, you were just thrilled to be there, thrilled that they liked your character, that they wanted to bring him back,” he told The Sun (via Geo News) of how what had been intended to be a one-off guest spot became a recurring “Seinfeld” role.
“It was a great starting point for me,” he added. “It did open the door for me to do a lot of interesting things.”
