Placing the face with a familiar voice
By Daniel Wolowicz camarillo@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers FAMILY GUY- The Warburtons take a minute for a family photo outside their Santa Rosa Valley home. From left, Gabriel, 6, Cathy, Shane (front), 8, Lexie, 12, Talon, 14, and Patrick Warburton.

Patrick Warburton calls it "the barn," but the small cottage-style bungalow nestled into the backyard of his Santa Rosa Valley home is more clubhouse than hayloft.

It's where the tall, square-jawed "Seinfeld" actor says he comes to turn up the volume and watch Pearl Jam concerts on the projection screen that stretches across one of the walls.

The room is a collection of odds and ends, including a foosball table once owned by Alice in Chains frontman Jerry Cantrell, and an original portrait of Eddie Vedder by renowned artist and Warburton family friend Gary Saderup.

Dressed in a dark shirt, jeans and cowboy boots, Warburton leans back on the deep-seated couch and takes a minute to catch his breath and collect his thoughts.

Chances to do either seem to come few and far between for the busy actor and father of four who spends long hours on the road shuttling between his Ventura County home and the sound stages of Hollywood.

With his trademark baritone voice laced with a good-natured cockiness, Warburton has become a mainstay in the world of animation both on the small and big screens.

His voice will be heard in Dreamworks' animated feature "Bee Movie" opening this summer and can be found almost everywhere on the small screen with roles on Fox's "Family Guy," Disney Channel's "The Emperor's New School," and Cartoon Network's "Venture Bros."

But the New Jersey native also spends a considerable amount of time away from the sound studio and in front of the camera. He will play the villain in Disney's upcoming film "Underdog" and appears in the 2007 independent comedy "I'll Believe You."

Most recently, he co-starred in CBS' sitcom "Rules of Engagement" alongside David Spade.

His success as an actor by no means came overnight. It's a career that's taken more than 20 years to build. Warburton, perhaps best known for his short-lived role on "Seinfeld" as David Puddy - Elaine's face-painting, high-five loving boyfriend - said tenacity has helped him succeed in the ever-fickle entertainment business.

"The reason I've been so tenacious is because I really wasn't prepared to do anything else," he said.

Warburton moved to California at a young age with his father, an orthopedic surgeon, and his mother, an actress. The family eventually settled in Huntington Beach, where Warburton's interest in acting was sparked by watching his mother perform in local community theater.

"I've always had the bug, since I was a 13-year-old hanging out backstage at Westminster Community Theater in Orange County," he said. "Watching my mom do a play or two was great fun, and that's probably where I got inspired."

Following a less than memorable year and a half at Orange Coast Community College, Warburton said he soon realized a college education and a 9-to-5 job wasn't in his future. He began modeling and eventually landed his first major acting role as an 18th century pirate in "Dragonard," a little-known B movie.

Although the film was lambasted by critics, a sequel ensued, and slowly but surely Warburton's career took flight.

Following 'The Rules'

Warburton said he was approached last year to co-star in "Rules of Engagement" by the show's creator Tom Hertz and co-executive producer Doug Robinson.

Even though the show - a midseason network replacement - was backed by Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions, Warburton said he was wary of doing a sitcom about relationships, fearing it'd simply retread boilerplate he-said-she-said situational story lines.

"Rules" revolves around the ups and downs of two couples - one married, the other engaged - and their confirmed-bachelor friend, played by Spade. Warburton, in real life married for 16 years, plays the married man opposite TV wife Megyn Pierce.

"Rules," which finished airing on CBS last month, did well in the ratings. Warburton said the last-minute addition of Spade gave the show an edgier voice, and veteran directors Ted Wass and Andy Ackerman were instrumental in helping the new series stand out from others like it.

"I think we're blessed in that we're working with two of the best directors there are in TV," Warburton said. "I see this as a show that's going to continue to improve, to get better and get tighter," Warburton said. He and the rest of the cast will know next month if CBS gives the go-ahead for a full-season order of the show.

Creative challenges

As much as he enjoys the animated work and the primetime sitcoms, Warburton said he really appreciates following the road less traveled when choosing roles. Warburton said he's still disappointed that Fox canceled "The Tick," a live-action television show based on the independent comic book series that spoofed superheroes.

"The Tick," which ran a mere nine episodes in 2001, has established a cult following that continues to grow. The birth of reality television and the show's high production costs led to its quick death.

"'The Tick' was exorbitantly expensive," said Warburton, who felt the off-beat show had a lot of potential. "The places we could have gone with a show like that were endless. They could have been so terribly creative and wonderful."

Warburton continues to star in independent films- projects like the 2005 dark comedy "The Civilization of Max Bright."

"The role of Max . . . is the greatest acting challenge I've ever had and the greatest opportunity as an actor I've ever been given," Warburton said. "I'll be forever grateful to the writer-director David Beaird, who gave me that opportunity."

A '20-year house'

Five years ago the Warburtons moved to the Santa Rosa Valley from Woodland Hills in hopes of putting down roots.

"We wanted to have a place that I called the '20-year house,'" Warburton said. "The place where we would be happy while the kids grew up. . . . We wanted to move somewhere good and permanent."

Warburton said he and his wife, Cathy, knew instantly that the roomy home with park-sized front and back yards was exactly what they wanted.

Like other parents who send their children to nearby Santa Rosa Technology Magnet school, Warburton and his wife said they are frustrated by the school district's recent decision to shut down the school's sixth and seventh grades.

"We have just a marvelous school," Warburton said. "They have over 450 students there right now. It's really the only elementary school for our children in a nine- or ten-mile radius."

Full circle

Warburton said he plans to return to live theater in September co-starring in Crispin Whittell's evolution-versus-creation play "Darwin in Malibu."

The play- to be performed at Thousand Oaks High School - co-stars artist Sedarup as Darwin. It will be Warburton's first stage performance in more than 15 years. "It's the riskiest thing an actor can do, but at the same time, it takes the most amount of commitment from an actor and can be the most rewarding," Warburton said.

The project seems fitting for the Ventura County actor who continues to evolve- on and off the stage.

Warburton and his wife have four children- Talon, 14, Lexie, 12, Shane, 8, and Gabriel, 6.