Paul Reiser’s career in comedy almost didn't happen. He dreamed of being a comic from the time he was a child, and he dabbled in New York's stand-up comedy scene for a while, but when it came time to make a career decision, he began training to take over his father's wholesale health food business. Ultimately, the lure of the stage was too much. "I remember thinking," he told an interviewer, "if in ten or fifteen years my friend Jerry Seinfeld has some big show, I don't want to be a potbellied guy sitting behind a desk telling my kids, 'You see him? I knew him when we were kids.'" With that in mind, Reiser headed back to New York, and this time, his snappy stand-up acts were more successful. He got his foot in the door in the film world when he impressed a casting agent's secretary; his charm led to a role in Barry Levinson's hit film Diner. Reiser padded his résumé with supporting roles in Aliens and Beverly Hills Cop II, and a co-starring role in My Two Dads, a cute TV sitcom. But it was the success of Mad About You, the semi-autobiographical show in which he got to be married to Helen Hunt, that made him famous. Not satisfied with being the creator, co-producer, and star of one of the most popular shows on television, Reiser branched out with headlining roles (Bye Bye, Love and Mr. Write) and supporting assignments (The Marrying Man and The Story of Us) in movies, and the fluffy best-sellers, Couplehood and babyhood. All this success hasn't made Reiser forget his friends: he still gets together for lunch with old pals Seinfeld, Larry Miller, and Mark Schiff every New Year's Day at New York's River Cafe.
Paul Reiser