Robin Williams started studying political science, but realized that this field was not for him and dropped out to pursue acting. He studied theatre for three years at the College of Marin in California. One of the professors, James Dunn, said that he realized how talented Williams was when he was cast in the musical Oliver! as Fagin. When he attended Juilliard, during summers he worked as a busboy. After he graduated, he tended a bar, but managed to work his way up to making his first stand-up performance. Later he appeared in television and one of the shows was Mork & Mindy (1978-1982), which can be credited with making Williams famous.