Azaria told the story of his unconventional academic path at Tufts. His grades were so poor in high school that he wasn't accepted to any college — he was only wait-listed, and had to audition his way in by treating his admission interviews as acting jobs. Once at Tufts, he spent almost all his time at the Arena Theater, not caring about grades, and didn't even complete his degree on time — he marched with his class but received an empty box instead of a diploma. It wasn't until his mother placed what Azaria called 'a mother's curse' on him — telling him nothing would happen in his life until he finished that degree — that he completed his credits two years late, officially becoming the Class of '87. But finishing on his own strange timeline taught him something invaluable: that his weird, atypical, 'borderline bizarre' path could still lead to the same destination. This realization — that unconventional paths are valid — became the foundation of both his acting career and his approach to life. Coming from someone who had turned his singular stubbornness into Emmy Awards and one of the most iconic voice portfolios in television history, the message carried deep authority.