CBS via Getty; Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty
Rob Reiner has died at the age of 78. He and his wife, Michele, were found dead by apparent homicide inside their Brentwood, Calif., home on Dec. 14,TMZ reports.The outlet reports that the two suffered wounds consistent with a knife attack. Authorities are currently investigating.
The Reiners had been married since 1989.
Reiner became famous for his role as Mike — a.k.a. Meathead — on the 1970s classicNorman LearsitcomAll in the Family. After leaving the series, he became a successful director, with iconic movies includingThis Is Spinal Tap,The Princess Bride,When Harry Met Sally...andA Few Good Men.
Reiner was born in the Bronx, N.Y., in 1947. His father was legendary comedianCarl Reinerand his mother was actress and singerEstelle Lebost.
20th Century Fox/Archive Photos/Getty
Reiner didn't know at the time that his future wife,Penny Marshall, was living across the street. She told PEOPLE in 1976 that the one time they came close to meeting was when she got Carl's autograph in a grocery store; she kept it.
The Reiners moved to Beverly Hills when Rob was 12. "Rob was independent very early, maybe too early," Carl told PEOPLE in 1976. "He was racing to be me, I guess. I rocked him and I diapered him, but I didn't give him enough of myself. He has a strong sense of making it on his own."
He attended Beverly Hills High School, where his classmates included Richard Dreyfuss and Albert Brooks. Then he attended film school at UCLA.
CBS via Getty
By the late '60s, Reiner was making appearances on TV, with guest spots onThat Girl,Batman,The Andy Griffith ShowandThe Partridge Family. He was hired as a writer forThe Smothers Brothersshow; one of his coworkers in the writers' room was a youngSteve Martin.
In Los Angeles, he met Marshall, whose brother was directorGarry Marshall. They fell in love and married in 1971. PEOPLE called the couple "Hollywood's Hapsburgs" because of how many of their family members were in the business. Reiner also adopted Marshall's daughter Tracy from a previous marriage.
Marshall and Reiner both auditioned forAll in the Family, though only Reiner booked a role. The sitcom, which ran for nine seasons, became an enormous hit; for seasons 2 through 6, it was the No. 1 show on television. Reiner received five Emmy nominations for his role as Meathead, winning twice.
"The show was a total collaborative effort," Reiner told PEOPLE about the series, whose ensemble cast included Carroll O'Connor as Archie, Jean Stapleton as Edith and Sally Struthers as Gloria.
Just asAll in the Familyfell from its perch, a new show rose:Laverne and Shirley, starring Marshall as Laverne. "I love it!" Reiner told PEOPLE in 1976. "I'd like my family to be in control of the airwaves as long as possible."
George Rose/Getty
Reiner and Struthers left the show in 1978 after its penultimate season. Reiner was focused on developing his own projects as a writer and director.
He and Marshall also ended their marriage. She told PEOPLE in 1980 that it wasn't a dramatic end. "We just asked each other, 'Is this it? Are we happy? I don't think so.' So we decided to try a separation." Their divorce was finalized in 1981. They remained on good termsuntil Marshall's death in 2018.
Universal/Getty
Reiner made his directorial debut with 1984'sThis Is Spinal Tap, the mockumentary about a fictional rock band. The film was critically acclaimed, though it was not a box-office success. Once it was released on VHS, it became immensely popular. It was chosen for the National Film Registry in 2002.
Reiner's next films were 1985'sThe Sure Thingand 1986'sStand By Me. The latter became one of the most iconic of the '80s and featured future stars like Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Kiefer Sutherland. Richard Dreyfuss also appeared in a small role.
"That's the one that means the most to me, that has the most emotional connection for me of all the films I've made," Reiner toldSlash Filmin 2023. "I don't know if it's my best, but it's the one that means the most to me."
Alex Berliner/BEI/Shutterstock
In 1987, Reiner directedThe Princess Bride, another modern classic. It included Reiner's good friendBilly Crystalin a supporting role. Reflecting on the tongue-in-cheek fairytale and its legacy, Reiner told PEOPLE in 2007, "At the end of the day,The Princess Brideis about true love conquering all, and that's timeless." The movie joined the National Film Registry in 2016.
Then, in 1989, cameWhen Harry Met Sally.... "I wanted to make a movie about what men and women go through," he told PEOPLE in 2019. "I had been single for 10 years and was making an utter mess of my personal life. I always figured I would have to have a female voice for it, and what better than the most brilliant, incisive, observant female voice in America?"
Aaron Rapoport/Corbis/Getty
Nora Ephron signed on to write the script. "Sally became an extension of Nora, and Harry was like an extension of me," Reiner explained. For Sally, they cast relatively unknown actressMeg Ryan. Rob had a harder time casting Harry.
He did not want to cast Crystal at first. "Whenever you do something this personal and you're best friends, if it doesn't work, it's like, 'Oy!'" Reiner told PEOPLE in 2019. "Finally, I said, 'Aw, f--- it; he's perfect!'"
Reiner loved putting his family members in his films. His mother uttersone ofWhen Harry Met Sally...'s most famous lines: "I'll have what she's having." His daughter Tracy plays one of Harry's girlfriends, Emily the baker.
Neilson Barnard/Getty
When Harry Met Sally...initially ended with Harry and Sally parting ways;Reiner changed the ending, in part, because he had met and fallen for Michele Singer during filming, changing his own attitude about romance. They married in 1989.
When Harry Met Sally...was added to the National Film Registry in 2022. Ephron would go on to direct her own movies, and Reiner had a role in Ephron'sSleepless in Seattleas Tom Hanks' friend.
His next films included 1990'sMisery, 1992'sA Few Good Men, 1995'sThe American President, 1999'sThe Story of Us, 2005'sRumor Has It…and 2007'sThe Bucket List. In 2024, he began filmingSpinal Tap II. Reiner also appeared in films as an actor, including 1990'sPostcards From the Edge, 1996'sThe First Wives Cluband 2013'sThe Wolf of Wall Street. On TV, he cameoed as himself onIt'sGarry Shandling's Show,The Larry Sanders Show,Curb Your Enthusiasm,Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip,The Simpsons,Hannah Montanaand30 Rock. OnNew Girl, he played the father of Zooey Deschanel's character.
Reiner and Singer welcomed three children together, Jake,Nickand Romy.
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic
His mother Estelle died in 2008, and his father Carl died in 2020. "He was my guiding light,"Reiner wrote in a tributefor his dad at the time.
"I was lucky to have a man in my life who conducted his career in a way that was very honorable and decent," he toldThe New York Timesin 2024. "I saw how he treated other people, and I saw how he handled his fame. People have always asked me, 'Did he sit down and give you advice?' And I said, 'No, he never gave me any advice. He just lived a certain way, and that was the best advice I could have gotten.'"
Related:Rob Reiner Says Dad Carl Reiner Taught Him and Son Jake to Love Baseball: 'Passing the Game Down' (Exclusive)
Reiner was an active voice for liberal causes. He co-founded the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which initiated the court challenge against California's Prop 8, campaigned for higher taxes on cigarettes and was an outspoken critic of Donald Trump.
Talking about his philosophy as a director, he toldThe Guardianin 2018, "I want everyone around me to feel comfortable and happy. And then I can come into work and be like: 'Hey, I get to spend today with these people today! Isn't that great? Aren't I lucky?'"
Read the original article onPeople
