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Rob Reiner’s father always knew his son had a knack for comedy. 

TV icon Carl Reiner, who earned multiple Emmys for his work on The Dick Van Dyke Show, reminisced about his long career in entertainment in a 1998 interview with the Television Academy Foundation. He also spoke about his son, Rob, who followed in his dad’s footsteps, first as an actor on shows like All in the Family and later as the director of a string of beloved movies, including The Princess Bride, Stand By Me, and When Harry Met Sally. 

Rob Reiner and his wife, Michelle Singer Reiner, were found dead in their home in Brentwood, California, on December 14. Their son, Nick Reiner, has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is being held without bail, according to a statement from the Los Angeles Police Department.  

Carl Reiner said son Rob Reiner was ‘the most talented’  

“Rob is the most talented,” the elder Reiner said. “He’s always been interested in show business. He never said he wanted to be in show business. But anytime we ever had a party, Robbie was the kid sitting on the steps when he should have been in bed because he wanted to hear the fun and humor.”

“He always knew where the joke was,” Carl, who died in 2020 at age 98, added. “Even when he was very young … He was a very quiet kid. He had a great sense of humor.” 

Carl acknowledged that his son had made an indelible mark on Hollywood. 

“When he made a couple of pictures I said, ‘He just flew past Dad … He did a better picture than I could have done.” 

Rob Reiner ‘idolized’ his father 

In his own interview with the Television Academy Foundation, Rob discussed his childhood, where people like Mel Brooks, Norman Lear, Neil Simon, and Sid Caesar were frequent guests. 

“It was a pretty funny household,” he said. “There were some of the greats … all these people that made most of the comedy of the second half of the 20th century.”

“I was pretty much forged in this world of show business for my father,” he said in the 2004 interview, adding that he “idolized” and “admired” his dad. “I loved him, looked up to him and I pretty much wanted to do what he did.”

At one point, a young Rob told his father that he wanted to change his name to Carl. “I basically wanted to be him,” he said. “And I’ve pretty much followed in his footsteps.”

At the same time, he acknowledged that pursuing the same line of work as his dad came with challenges. Despite his success on All in the Family and with movies like This Is Spinal Tap, he said he didn’t feel truly successful until he made Stand By Me.  

“It’s a tremendous burden,” he said. “There’s no question about it. You’re definitely looked at differently. You’re scrutinized, and if you don’t measure up, you’re gonna be tossed aside. And there’s so many people that that has happened to. So it was a very tough road to hoe.”

“I often worry about my children from that standpoint,” he continued. “And hopefully they will do OK.”  

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