Comedian Carl Reiner (SFS ’43) received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Georgetown at a ceremony at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, Calif., Tuesday.

Reiner, who came to Georgetown to study French as part of the Army Specialized Training Program, is the creator of “The Dick Van Dyke Show” and a director and producer of many successful comedies.

University President John J. DeGioia presented him with the degree, and Associate Dean Bernard Cook (C ’90) read the degree citation.

“His genius has always been to serve the joke, the laugh — never to demand the spotlight,” Cook read from the citation.

Reiner recalled his time impersonating his professors during comedy shows in Gaston Hall as some of his finest comedic moments.

“I’m watching everything here, and I realize, ‘I’ve done it,’” he said. “If I don’t get a laugh tonight, it means I’m finished, right? I can’t top any of that, so I won’t try.”