Craig Zablo

Yesterday Rob Reiner and his wife were found murdered in their Los Angeles home.  They had been killed by an assailant using a knife.  Their son, Nick has been charged for both murders.

Rob Reiner was the child of Estelle and Carl Reiner.  Carl Reiner was an award-winning actor, comedian, author, director and screenwriter.  Over his career Mr. Reiner won numerous awards including 11 Prime Time Emmys, a Grammy, the Mark Twain Prize for Amerian Humor and an induction into the Television Hall of Fame.

Rob Reiner decided to follow in his father’s footsteps.  He began getting acting roles while still in high school.  Juggling his new found acting career with school, Rob Reiner enrolled at the UCLA Film School.  Rob Reiner made several television guest appearances on popular shows of the day including Batman, The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle.  Rob Reiner also started to appear in feature films.  In 1968, Rob Reiner became one of the writers and actors on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

Rob Reiner’s breakout role came when he played Mike Stivik on All in the Family.  Over the course of the series Mr. Reiner was nominated for five Emmys (winning two) as well as five Golden Globe nominations.  In 1974, Rob Reiner directed the television movie Sonny Boy while still co-starring in All in the Family.  After All in the Family ended, Rob Reiner was co-creator of the television comedy The Super.  It ran for one season.  Mr. Reiner continued to act in guest roles throughout the 1970s.

In 1981, Rob Reiner returned to directing with the segment Tommy Rispoli: A Man and his Music as part of the television movie Likely Stories: Volume 1.  Mr. Reiner followed that up by directing This is Spinal Tap.  This is Spinal Tap became a huge hit.  Rob Reiner then went on a streak.  The next six films Rob Reiner directed were The Sure Thing, Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery and A Few Good Men.  What a run!

Over the course of his career Rob Reiner continued to act, direct, write and produce.  Some of the Awards he was nominated for and/or received include:

• 1972 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Supporting Actor – Television – All in the Family
• 1972 Primetime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy –  All in the Family – For playing: “Michael Stivic”.
• 1973 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Supporting Actor – Television – All in the Family
• 1973 Primetime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy –  All in the Family – For playing: “Michael Stivic”.
• 1974 Primetime Emmy Winner for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy –  All in the Family – For playing: “Michael Stivic”.
• 1974 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Supporting Actor – Television – All in the Family
• 1975 Primetime Emmy Nominee for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy –  All in the Family – For playing: “Michael Stivic”.
• 1976 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Supporting Actor – Television – All in the Family
• 1977 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Supporting Actor – Television – All in the Family
• 1978 Primetime Emmy Winner for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Comedy –  All in the Family – For playing: “Michael Stivic”.
• 1987 DGA Nominee for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures – Stand by Me
• 1987 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Director – Motion Picture – Stand by Me
• 1990 DGA Nominee for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures – When Harry Met Sally…
• 1990 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Director – Motion Picture – When Harry Met Sally…
• 1993 Academy Award Nominee for Best Picture – A Few Good Men
• 1993 DGA Nominee for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures – A Few Good Men
• 1993 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Director – Motion Picture – A Few Good Men
• 1993 PGA Nominee for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures – A Few Good Men
• 1996 Golden Globe Nominee for Best Director – Motion Picture – The American President
• 1996 PGA Nominee for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures – The American President
• 1999 Star Awarded on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
• 2024 PGA Nominee for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television – Albert Brooks: Defending My Life
• 2024 Primetime Emmy Nominee for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special – Albert Brooks: Defending My Life
• 2024 Primetime Emmy Nominee for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program – Albert Brooks: Defending My Life

Some of the television projects that feature Rob Reiner acting include: Manhunt; Batman; Hey, Landlord (3 episodes); The Andy Griffith Show; That Girl (3 episodes); The Mothers-In-Law; Gomer Pyle (3 episodes); The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (5 episodes); The Beverly Hillbillies (2 episodes); Room 222; The Partridge Family; Getting Together; The Odd Couple; The Rockford Files; Free Country (5 episodes); More Than Friends; All in the Family (184 episodes); Archie Bunker’s Place (2 episodes); Tall Tales & Legends; It’s Gary Shandling’s Show (4 episodes); Morton & Hayes (6 episodes); A Spinal Tap Reunion; The Larry Sanders Show; Frasier; Curb Your Enthusiasm; The Simpsons; Wizards of Waverly Place; 30 Rock; About a Boy; Happyish (2 episodes); The Comedians; When We Rise; New Girl (11 episodes); Hollywood (3 episodes); The Good Fight (2 episodes); Home Movie: The Princess Bride (3 episodes); The Bear (4 episodes) and Conan o’Brien Needs a Friend.

Some feature films that Rob Reiner acted in include: Enter Laughing; The Jerk; This is Spinal Tap; Throw Mama From the Train; Postcards from the Edge; Misery; Sleepless in Seattle; Bullets Over Broadway; The First Wives Club; Primary Colors; The Story of Us; The Wolf of Wall Street and Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.

Some of the television projects that feature Rob Reiner directing include: Sonny Boy; I am Your Child and 8.

Some of the feature films that Rob Reiner directed include: This is Spinal Tap; The Sure Thing; Stand by Me; The Princess Bride; When Harry Met Sally; Misery; A Few Good Men; The American President; Ghosts of Mississippi; The Story of Us; The Bucket List; Flipped; The Magic of Belle Island; LBJ; Albert Brooks: Defending My Life; and Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.

I probably first saw Rob Reiner acting in Batman.  I never missed that show when I was a kid.  Of course, I’m sure I saw Mr. Reiner’s guest appearances on The Andy Griffith Show; That Girl; Gomer Pyle; The Beverly Hillbillies; The Partridge Family and The Rockford Files before I ever saw Rob Reiner in his breakout role on All in the Family.  He was so good as Archie Bunker’s foil.  If the character of Mike Stivik was the only acting role Rob Reiner was known for, it would still make for a great career.

Who could have guessed what a talented director Rob Reiner would become.  I would match his first first seven films (This is Spinal Tap; The Sure Thing; Stand by Me; The Princess Bride; When Harry Met Sally; Misery and A Few Good Men) against any other director’s first seven.

By all accounts Rob Reiner was a gentle, kind, humble man loved by anyone who knew him.  We need more folks with those qualities.

Out thoughts and prayers go out to Rob Reiner’s family, friends and fans.