Paul Reiser, successful actor/writer/producer and among the most recognizable of SUNY Binghamton’s alumni, sees great opportunity for students in the first annual Binghamton Media Summit, to be held Tuesday, Feb. 28 in room 133 of the Old University Union. Although Reiser won’t be able to attend, he urges students interested in the field of media to check it out.

Media Summit organizers Richard Hecker, Ryan Dunham and Ben Spier were given the chance to interview the “Mad About You” star and talked about his career path, his advice for students and his BU days.

BTV: When you were here, what were you interested in? What were you involved with?

Paul Reiser: I was a music major, with a minor in business … I didn’t have any real plan for what I was going to be doing after Binghamton … I knew I wasn’t a really good pianist … I vaguely recall trying to get into commercial jingle writing … I sent one letter to some guy in an advertising company and he replied, ‘it’s the hardest thing in the world. If there’s anything else you can do, do that.’ I’ve told other people that about acting … unless you have the absolute passion that I’ve got to do it, it’s not going to work out … there are so many obstacles and closed doors that unless you have the tenacity and depth of spirit and strength to be rejected time after time, it’s going to be a tough go.

BTV: What were you involved in on campus?

PR: I was in Hinman Little Theater for a couple of years … I don’t think anything else. I was a lazy guy.

BTV: What were your most memorable moments?

PR: I remember a lot of great concerts … seeing Billy Joel my freshman year, that opened my eyes to a lot of what music can be and what the world can be … he had just come out … and the concert was at the gym … and he looked different than everyone else at the time … and certainly the grey slush of Vestal Parkway that goes from September to April.

BTV: Coming out of Binghamton, what was your next step?

PR: During the summers I would go to the comedy clubs. They were first being discovered and people were being discovered out of there. [Stand-up] led to acting by happenstance. I actually wandered into a casting call … by accident … which became “Diner,” which was my first movie I ever had. And one thing chain-linked into another. I was lucky … and that sort of led to other doors.

BTV: “Mad About You.” What was the inspiration for that?

PR: I was approached by a studio to develop something for myself … and if I ever wanted to do a show I’d want to do something about this, about a couple and how they evolve. The real inspiration was my own relationship but the timing of it was right and when they asked me to do it I was into that subject.

BTV: Which is your favorite episode?

PR: The one that always comes into mind is … one that was one shot, one continuous twenty-two minute play. I [also] think about the guest stars we had — Carl Burnett, Yoko, Lyle Lovett, Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks. A long list of greats.

BTV: What are you working on nowadays?

PR: I just finished promoting a DVD release of this movie that I wrote and starred in with Peter Falk called “The Thing About My Folks”… I’ve been writing mostly. I have an [untitled] pilot for CBS now.

BTV: What’s the toughest part about making a show? After you’ve got the idea?

PR: The toughest job is doing it again every week … coming up with the ideas and keeping it inspiring and creative. After a while you can run on a momentum/formula, but it takes a lot of energy and will power to keep a long-running creative project on track, to keep it fresh but not lose what’s important about it.

BTV: What advice would you give someone trying to break into television or film?

PR: Run away! But it helps if you love what you do. If you’re so determined … if you’re lucky and you have that drive, it’ll serve you well.