WhenPatton Oswalt‘s first wifeMichelle McNamaradied unexpectedly in 2016 at the age of 46, she not only left behind a grieving husband, but their daughter, Alice Rigney.
The actor and comedian, 50, found love again with now-wifeMeredith Salenger, whom hemarried in November 2017. And Alice has since adjusted to her stepmother, but Oswalt remembers that “there was some weirdness” at first — specifically surrounding his daughter’s newfound responsibilities around the house.
“There’s been times where [Alice] goes, ‘With Mommy, I didn’t have to do this,’ [and I tell her], ‘Well, that’s because you were 5, and if Mommy were here, you’d be doing all this same stuff — probably even more,’ ” he adds.
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TheRatatouillevoice actor admits that he is “guilty of” a similar mindset, “In that, yes, my daughter is 10, and a lot of times, I want to treat her like a 3-year-old.”
“I still want her to be this little [girl],” Oswalt says. “And I talk to her like she’s 3 and she’s like, ‘Dude, what are you doing?’ You don’t want them to grow up.”
When it comes to wanting the best for Alice, he says what he worries about most is “that she is constantly being shown examples of bad behavior being rewarded” in society.
“We are in such a f—ed up time, morally and responsibly — and that scares little kids,when they see adults acting likemean little kids and no one’s correcting them,” Oswalt continues. “So it just makes them feel, ‘Well, does anything matter?’ ”
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McNamara, a crime writer, died in April 2016 due to a “combination of drugs” in her system, “along with a condition we were unaware of,” Oswalt wrote in astatement to the Associated Pressin February 2017.
He also explained thatthe couple, who wed in 2005, had “no idea” she had a condition that caused artery blockages. The blockages, combined with her taking the medications Adderall, Xanax and the pain medication fentanyl, caused the mother of one’s death, Oswalt said.
The actortied the knot with Salengerin November 2017 at Jim Henson Studios in Los Angeles,and shared a photo ofa sweet post-nuptials moment, where the bride and groom each held one of a smiling Alice’s hands.
Hiking with Kevin‘s full episode featuring Patton Oswalt premieres Thursdayon Nealon’s YouTube channel.
source: people.com
