Benjamin says he never had any kind of agenda, but treated comedy like a "full-time hobby" — which Katz confirms.

"I still don't think he's particularly ambitious," says Katz. "Sometimes a guy with a lot of talent ... finds himself surrounded by people who want to exploit that talent."

After "Dr. Katz," Benjamin starred in "Home Movies," which was produced by the same production company of "Dr. Katz," Soup2Nuts. The show was co-created by Loren Bouchard, who worked with Benjamin on "Dr. Katz," and on the short-lived "Lucy, The Daughter of the Devil" and "Bob's Burgers," which is about a family running a burger joint.

"He's incredibly present and an incredible listener," says Bouchard. "He's very interested in playing off of other actors and performers. He's especially activated by the idea that there's someone else in the room that he can make fun of."

Benjamin eventually moved to New York and began performing on his own more frequently.

"I still sort of avoided any, you know, goal," he says. "Most comedians at the time were watching `Seinfeld' or something, and (thinking), `I want to do that.' I guess people just wanted to get rich and famous. But not this little guy! Well, now I do."

There were a litany of projects: short-lived TV series such as "Freak Show," "O'Grady" and "Assy McGee." He also made appearances on "Family Guy," "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" and "Parks and Recreation," and was a writer, producer and sketch player on Comedy Central's "Important Things With Demetri Martin," in 2009.

Benjamin, who lives in New York and has a 7-year-old son named Judah, turned down at least as many opportunities, generally shunning sitcoms and professional voice-over jobs, once even being rejected for a part that was listed as a "Ben Katz type."

"I avoided doing commercial work and stuff that was more professional, because really what I did was extremely unprofessional," says Benjamin. "I didn't really know how to do it professionally. When I tried, it felt awkward and I wasn't very good at it. So I stayed away from that entirely, and I guess then became known for being unprofessional."

Though comedic voice work was never what he sought, it was available, and his highest-profile live-action work will come this summer,

Benjamin declines to guess why his voice has held such allure.

"I'm not a fan of it," he says. "I don't know. That's like asking a model, `What is it like to be so beautiful?'"