Named after a fierce World War II general, he became a comedian who voiced a cartoon rat and obsessed over obscure 1970s movies. Then he ended up playing a pivotal role in the real-life hunt for one of America's most notorious serial killers.

This episode traces the through line connecting Patton Oswalt's contradictions: the disciplined military namesake, the accessible Disney voice, the underground nerd icon, and the grieving husband. It reveals how a master of transmutation channels chaos, depression, and devastating loss into coherent art and radical empathy.

• How a military-brat childhood made him an amateur anthropologist perfect for stand-up
• His obsessive film consumption, including 720 movies in four years at one revival theater
• How he finished his late wife Michelle McNamara's book that helped crack the Gol ...