JESSE L. MARTIN

I want 'Rent' to last forever.

I think I might want to get into development, as in developing my own sort of piece, whether it be for the stage or the big screen or for television.

I have plenty of 'Law & Order' on my resume.

As a child, I was fortunate enough to be close to family members who were - and still are - great storytellers. I was a gullible country boy from Rocky Mount, Virginia, and I believed every folktale they told me, no matter how fantastic.

Real men know how to listen, and real men know how to be honest.

Teaching is a truly noble profession. It's sad the amount of responsibility that teachers have today. They're not only teaching kids: they're raising kids, policing kids - and they don't make a lot of money.

'Law & Order' was amazing but so consuming, I couldn't get to the stage.

Women do come up to me, and they tell me what they think! I've gotten great compliments on my eyes and my smile. But I don't see myself as sexy.

We want to start a 'Flash' band. Everyone can play an instrument and sing.

I was in 'Rent,' for God's sake. The closest we came to stunts was dancing on a table.

The best decision I made at NYU was joining the Shakespeare ensemble. It literally led to everything I did after that. It gave me the kind of confidence I really needed.

You remember what you go through as a kid, what's going to make you listen, what's going to make you respond. I held onto that. People who treated me like that when I was younger got every bit of respect and attention I could give them, because I knew that they were coming at me from almost an equal level.

My biggest break wasn't 'Rent;' it was the first job that ever paid me. I couldn't believe that they were paying me all that money to go around the country and do Shakespeare. I would have done it for free.

If I get the chance to be philanthropic, I want to help kids and teachers.

Jesse Tyler Ferguson is probably one of the funniest people I've ever met in my life. Everything the kid does is funny. I think he tunes his life to being funny.

'Law & Order' was so very interesting to me because what I got to do was explore New York along with getting to work with some of the best actors New York City had to offer.

I honestly believe there are good things happening in this world, and I'll spend most of my time trying to find them and bring them to light.

On TV, you never know where it's going. They may even lie to you about where it's going. You never really know because the scripts come in every couple of weeks or so.

Go back to what's good, what's certain, what's always there. You woke up today. Just start walking. Whatever it is, it'll pass. Time doesn't go backward. That's the one real blessing. It happened; it does you no good to worry. Keep it movin'.

I didn't read comic books, growing up. I was more of a science fiction/fantasy novel guy. I loved reading Edgar Rice Burroughs' 'Tarzan' and that kind of stuff.

Shakespeare in the Park is one of the greatest gifts in New York City. You just have to wait for the tickets - and it's worth the wait.

'The Merchant of Venice' is a straightforward, clear story, while 'The Winter's Tale,' as a general rule, is hard to present because there is so much plot.

Jerry Orbach was the first person to take me to the Friars Club. It's a beautiful building, and you walk into these halls of comedic history and meet these old cats who could tell you a million stories about how things went down in New York City.

I want to be remembered as a great actor - and a shining example of humanity.

As a student studying acting, I was always broke, so going to see any live theater was almost impossible.