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Five Years: James Urbaniak Interview

As the voice of Dr. Thaddeus S. 'Rusty' Venture, James Urbaniak brings a lot to the table. Angry, cynical, sarcastic and bitter, it's a role that is hard to picture any other actor voicing. That's not just because you're used to him either; James was the first and only choice for the role.

Aside from portraying a jaded super scientist on and off for the last six years (among other parts on the show), James has taken on many roles on both stage and screen (big and small). He's had parts in films such as American Splendor and Sweet and Lowdown and had guest roles on shows such as Weeds and The Office and he's even been on two of the three Law & Orders.

Aside from all that he has been posting his thoughts on his Live Journal for the last four years and has recently gained quite the following on Twitter where he very often responds to and jokes around with fans.

So when I recently asked James if he wouldn't mind giving a quick interview in support of my Five Years of Mantis-Eye thing, he was gracious enough to say yes. James Urbaniak; great guy or greatest guy? You be the judge.

Mantis-Eye:

You were Jackson Publick's first choice for the voice of Dr. Venture, correct? Did that still involve an audition of some kind or was it just "okay you've got the job, you start Wednesday?"

James Urbaniak:

He offered it to me point blank one night at a bar in New York City. I wish all jobs came about that way.

Mantis-Eye:

Had you guys worked together on anything before Venture Bros.?

James Urbaniak:

I hadn't worked with Jackson or Doc before but a few years earlier I was in a live action sitcom pilot with Patrick Warburton. It never aired.

Mantis-Eye:

Has anything about how the character has changed over time affected how you play him? He seems to be falling into more of a father role this season, at least with Dean.

James Urbaniak:

There are little flashes of emotional nuance and fatherly sensitivity in some later scripts. You try to honor those.

Mantis-Eye:

What are your favorite things about playing Dr. Venture, and your favorite things about the character in general?

James Urbaniak:

It's fun and possibly therapeutic to rant like a lunatic for two hours in the booth.

Mantis-Eye:

The other major character you play is Phantom Limb whose voice is obviously further from your own than Dr. Venture's. Was there a specific kind of voice requested, or did you come up with the voice?

James Urbaniak:

Just came up with it based on seeing a drawing and hearing a description of the character. I was influenced by Ian McKellen's vocal quality on a video of a production of Macbeth he did in the '70s. He taffypulls his vowels very luxuriously.

Mantis-Eye:

Is it more difficult to play Phantom Limb or Dr. Venture?

James Urbaniak:

They both take energy. Dr. Venture screams in panic more, which is more stressful on the throat.

Mantis-Eye:

You also play David Bowie! Is that a tough impersonation to do? Do you think they'll ever make you sing?

James Urbaniak:

I listen to Bowie interviews before we do it. I don't know that it's really a great Bowie impression; it's more an essence of Bowie.

One of my characters does sing a little in one of the back eight episodes of Seasons Four. No spoilers!

Mantis-Eye:

What about the smaller more one-off characters, like that melted scientist guy. How do those types of parts work? Do they just tell you to make a funny voice or is there more specific direction?

James Urbaniak:

The usual give and take. I'll try something but they might have specific area they want me to push it towards. I do think doing Paul Lynde for a one-off character in the Tag Sale episode was my idea.

Mantis-Eye:

Do you think the show has gotten you more exposure as an actor?

James Urbaniak:

It's raised my profile a notch or two but I'm not aware it's led directly to other jobs. But I must say whenever I work on a TV show or film, there's always someone working on it who's a huge fan of the show. I did an episode of The Office and John Krasinski asked me to leave a voicemail as Dr. Venture for a friend of his. I did and later Krasinski showed me a text he got from the guy that said "NO FUCKING WAY!!!"

Mantis-Eye:

So you've had your livejournal for like four years now, how has that been going? Has it ever affected your work in any way?

James Urbaniak:

The LJ fell off for a while but I've tried to keep up with it recently. I've sort of switched operations to Twitter. Some LJ posts have been linked at some mainstreamy outlets so I guess that reinforced my presence here and there.

Mantis-Eye:

Yeah your Twitter is really enjoyable. Have you considered starting a fan club? You've got what I guess would be considered a cult following, do you enjoy having that kind of status?

James Urbaniak:

I have not considered starting a fan club but I do appreciate the appreciation. I always enjoy meeting anyone who's a fan of the show. Once a clerk at a drugstore asked me where I got my Venture Brothers hoodie.

Mantis-Eye:

You also seem to be pretty friendly with fans of the show, which is awesome. It's great to think you can stop by the web site of one of the major voice actors on the show and post comments and he'll actually respond to them. Or, for example, you could ask him to do an interview. That's probably had a pretty positive effect on the show and how fans see you guys, do you think?

James Urbaniak:

I think.

[ed: Sorry for asking a question without an answer there, not sure what I was thinking]

Mantis-Eye:

Ever get recognized on the street by Venture Bros. fans? Do they request that you 'do Dr. Venture' or anything?

James Urbaniak:

I was at the zoo once talking to my young son in front of the gorillas. A guy came up to me and said, "Excuse me, are you James Urbaniak? I'm a huge fan of the Venture Brothers!" And I thought, my God, do I sound like Dr. Venture when I'm TALKING TO MY OWN SON? A handful of times I have left voicemails for people in character like I did for John Krasinki's friend.

Mantis-Eye:

I'm not famous at all so I have no idea how this works, but is it hard to come up with a voice mail message on demand? Do you mind that sort of minor loss of privacy when you're out in public?

James Urbaniak:

I usually just blurt out "Have a scientastic day!" It's not a big deal.

Mantis-Eye:

Has anyone famous ever asked you about the show? I know you worked with Al Pacino recently, he's a big fan, right?

James Urbaniak:

You should hear Pacino's Monarch. Actually, the makeup woman on that movie was a MAJOR fan of the show. She told me she was more starstruck meeting me than Al Pacino. I enjoyed hearing that.

Mantis-Eye:

Outside of the Venture Bros (which I can only assume is the best ever), what's been your favorite role or favorite project?

James Urbaniak:

My work with the indie director Hal Hartley is way up there. I recommend his movie "Henry Fool" for those who may not have seen it. I play a weird, repressed garbageman poet.

[ed: check out Henry Fool on IMDB]

Mantis-Eye:

Have you ever been involved with a project where you just kind of know it's not well written? You don't have to name anything specific, but what do you do in those cases?

James Urbaniak:

You try to act as best you can. That becomes its own challenge and can be weirdly rewarding.

Mantis-Eye:

Did you get to meet David Caruso when you were on CSI: Miami (I confess I haven't seen that episode)? I don't have any reason for asking really, I just wanted to know.

James Urbaniak:

Meet him? My scenes were WITH HIM. He was great. My only regret is he didn't do the sunglasses rip.

Mantis-Eye:

Anything you've got coming out soon (or that you're working on) to look forward to?

James Urbaniak:

I'm in a movie called "Drones" that's premiering in the main competition at Slamdance next month. It's a sort of sci-fi office comedy directed by a couple of actors who were on Buffy and featuring some people from Freaks and Geeks among other things. And I'm in an HBO biopic about Jack Kevorkian starring Al Pacino that comes out in the spring. Yes, Rusty and Scarface have scenes together.

[ed: here's Drones on IMDB and you can find more info about Slamdance at their website]

Many, many thanks to James for putting up with me badgering him about this. He was super receptive and didn't complain about my terrible questions even once.