 The congratulations offered by the comedian Patton Oswalt to Brian Corman, the Columbia University 2010 School of General Studies valedictorian, in a Twitter message on Tuesday were hardly heartfelt: the online video linked to in that tweet showed that Mr. Corman had appropriated material from Mr. Oswalt’s standup routine in his valedictory speech, drawing an apology from the student and an admission by the university that it was “deeply distressed” by the incident. The video was later restored for public viewing, with a message from the School of General Studies that read: 
 
 
 
 It has come to our attention that a portion of our Valedictorian’s address at this year’s Columbia University School of General Studies Class Day was taken from a comedy routine by Patton Oswalt. The student speaker has appropriately issued an apology to his classmates and to Mr. Oswalt for failing to provide such attribution. In a separate statement, Peter J. Awn, the dean of the Columbia University School of General Studies, wrote: “As an institution of higher learning that places a core value on respect for the works of others, we were surprised and disappointed to have learned of this matter today. Columbia University and the School of General Studies do not condone or permit the use of someone else’s work without proper citation.” 
 
 Mr. Oswalt said he was sent a note of apology by Mr. Corman.
– Another day, another commencement gaffe. Columbia's valedictorian has apologized for lifting part of his speech—a jokey riff on attending a class called Physics for Poets—from comedian Patton Oswalt, probably best known for his King of Queens supporting role. (See videos for comparisons.) Oswalt called out Brian Corman on Twitter for plagiarism, and both the student and the school subsequently apologized, notes Gawker. “In people’s heads they think that comedians can’t possibly make up their own material,” Oswalt tells the New York Times. “They're like, 'I can just take it. He didn't make it up.'"