If You Look Up "Father-Daughter Duo" in the Dictionary, You'll Find Patton and Alice Oswalt
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In April 2016, comedian-actor Patton Oswalt's life was rocked upside down after his late wife of over a decade, Michelle McNamara, died in her sleep. His daughter, Alice, was only 7 years old when she lost her mom. While Oswalt may be a funnyman at heart, he fully admits that if he didn't have Alice, the grief and darkness would have drowned him. "Drinking would have been a problem. Binge-eating would have been a problem. I would have merely existed," he told The Guardian. "Having Alice was like: 'I've got to get up, I've got to make breakfast, I got to take care of this little life.' So, it's almost like I had freedom from choice because I had our daughter."
From the support of family, friends, each other, and Oswalt's now wife, Meredith Salenger, they're healing. "I don't want her memories of me to be of a parent that's despairing even deeper than she is," he explained to People magazine. " . . . I went out of my way to deal with myself and just be there as a symbol of strength and happiness for her." It's clear as day the two are inseparable and we adore watching their relationship blossom. Read more about their father-daughter bond ahead!
Alice Rigney Oswalt
Alice Rigney Oswalt — Oswalt's only child whom he shares with late wife and legendary crime writer Michelle McNamara — was born in April 2009. According to her dad, she's a big, big Tom Holland/Spider-Man fan, and Oswalt let it slip on Jimmy Kimmel Live that she already has her first TV credit! The 12-year-old did a voiceover alongside her dad and stepmom on a My Little Pony episode, which was inspired by their own blended family. How cool is that?!
The comedian-actor also shed some light into what pandemic life has been like in their household. "I just hope that doesn't scar her in any way where she remembers that, 'Yeah, I kind of had to raise my dad technology-wise during the pandemic,'" he laughingly revealed on A Little Late With Lily Singh after admitting he's had to ask for Alice's technological help on a multitude of occasions. Alice is also into building her own escape rooms around the house, he added.