NAMES IN THE NEWS : Grodin Sees Growth in Rejection

Charles Grodin believes would-be actors should view rejection as an opportunity for growth.

“You can’t take (rejection) too personally,” said Grodin, who co-stars with Jim Belushi in the new comedy film “Taking Care of Business.”

“When you realize that there may be 1,000 people who look and sound very much like you, it’s very hard. So many of the better people get lost because of the sheer numbers,” he said.

Grodin’s philosophy is spelled out in his book “It Would Be So Nice If You Weren’t Here,” published last year and out in paperback next month.

Aspiring actors, he said, should “think not so much about getting ahead as becoming as good as you can be, so you’re ready when you do get an opportunity.”

“I did that,” he said, “so I didn’t suffer from the frustration of all the rejections. They just gave me more time.”

Grodin made his film debut as Mia Farrow’s doctor in “Rosemary’s Baby” and went on to play the navigator in “Catch-22” and the overly ambitious hero of “The Heartbreak Kid.”