 In contrast to his real @-@ life personality , which was described as " a regular guy and , by all accounts , one of show business ' most low @-@ key , decent people " , Hartman often played seedy , vain or unpleasant characters as well as comedic villains . He noted that his standard character was a " jerky guy " , and described his usual roles as " the weasel parade " , citing Lionel Hutz , Bill McNeal , Troy McClure and Ted Maltin from Jingle All the Way as examples . Hartman enjoyed playing such roles because he " just want [ ed ] to be funny , and villains tend to be funny because their foibles are all there to see . " 
