NEW YORK -- Hello, Knight. But don't call him that. He startles easily.

"Somebody calls me Wayne, I jump," says Wayne Knight who plays Seinfeld's annoying neighbor Newman on the TV series.

That's right. He's "Hello, Newman" usually.

And hears the Jerry Seinfeld sitcom salutation every place he goes.

"In Prague, it seldom happens," he says chuckling. But in most North American cities, Knight admits he is `Hello Newmanned' quite a bit.

"Although in New York, they rapidly pass me by and whisper, `Newman,' for some reason.

Some actors might be angered by the pigeon-holing, and annoyed by the intrusion. Knight is refreshingly grateful for it. "I only look at it as good fortune. How the hell can that upset you?"

Unemployment, on the other hand, does bother him. To that end, he's tried to work steadily as an actor since scoring a Broadway role in the hit Gemini more than a decade ago.

He's also made appearances in such films as The Wanderers, Dirty Dancing and Dead Again.

In the movie world, Knight is best remembered by kids as the doomed computer nerd in Jurassic Park, and by adults as the sweaty Basic Instinct cop during Sharon Stone's notorious crotch-flashing interrogation scene.

Knight's profile will increase even more with the release of the animated live action Space Jam, opening tomorrow. The 40-year-old actor co-stars with Bugs Bunny and his cartoon crew, along with basketball superstar Michael Jordan and comedian Bill Murray.

"During filming, I'm thinking, here I am with the greatest basketball personality that ever lived, and then Murray walks in, one of the funniest guys that ever lived. I said, `Yeah, I'll be over here in the corner somewhere'."

Not that he should feel insecure. Knight's hot. He's also a semi-regular on another hit TV show, Third Rock From The Sun. "I couldn't be happier," he says of his goofy cop part. "When I'm not doing Seinfeld, I just walk across the alley to do Third Rock."

Fame and fortune weren't always in the cards for the affable actor. After graduating from the University Of Georgia, in Athens, Knight found it tough, actually. After doing some regional theatre, he returned to New York but couldn't find work. Mostly he found jobs in lounge comedy troupes. He just couldn't bring himself to do standup - even to pay the rent.

"I needed the shield of character," he recalls. "I still admire someone who can stand naked before people and make them laugh - well I've done that - but I'm talking about on stage."

His Broadway stint in Gemini led to a job in London on the skit series Assaulted Nuts with Emma Thompson. By the time he returned to New York in the mid-'80s, things were so bad with his career, he had to take a job as a private investigator.

Day jobs are behind him now. But the easy-going Knight remembers that PI time well - and on purpose. It keeps him honest.

"It was the lowest of the low," he says of the five-year stint as an investigator.

"Was it glamorous? No. Did I carry a gun? No. Only two or three carried guns in the firm, and I think only one of those guys knew where it was."


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