Rob Reiner, the legendary director and actor who rose to prominence in All in the Family and who went on to direct classics This Is Spinal Tap, Stand by Meand The Princess Bridedied at his Brentwood home in California on Friday, Variety has confirmed. He was 78.
The beloved and celebrated actor and director died with his wife, photographer Michele Singer, whom he married in 1989.
The couple were found dead Sunday afternoon. Los Angeles Robbery Homicide Division detectives have been assigned to the case, NBC Los Angeles reports. Paramedics had been called to the home at around 3:30 pm and officers were dispatched after firefighters discovered a death.
While Reiner played several bit roles in popular television shows in the Sixties, including Batman and The Andy Griffith Showand partnered with Steve Martin writing for Smothers Brothers Comedy Hourhis breakout role came in the Seventies playing the liberal Mike “Meathead” Stivic, the son-in-law of the cantankerous conservative Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) in Norman Lear's hit sitcom, All in the Familywhich ran from 1971 through 1979. Reiner won two Emmys for the portrayal.
During that time, he also guest starred on The Partridge Family and created the sitcom The Superwith Phil Mishkin and Gerry Isenberg, which aired in 1972.
He would not return to television acting for a recurring role until New Girlwhere he played the father of Jess Day (Zooey Deschanel). In the interim, beginning in the Eighties, he turned to directing where he helmed some of the most beloved cult films of the time, including the 1984 rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap (in which he also acted), 1986's Stand by Meand 1987's The Princess Bride.
He had a penchant for directing humorous and touching films, including the aforementioned Reiner classics and 1989's When Harry Met Sally… but his range was boundless. He directed the horror thriller Miserythe Stephen King adaptation which starred Kathy Bates, who went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for the role. His work on his biggest film, 1992's A Few Good Menearned a nomination for Best Picture at the Oscars.
While his return to a recurring role came with New Girlhe continued to appear as an actor in supporting roles in films and television through the late Eighties into the 2000s. He appeared in blockbusters like 1987's Throw Momma From the Train1993's Sleepless in Seattle1996's Sleepless in Seattleand 2013's The Wolf of Wall Street. He played himself as Rep. Rob Reiner in the “Let's Stay Together” episode of 30 Rock.
Most recently, he made his first sequel, directing Spinal Tap II: The End Continueswhich arrived in theaters in September. He reunited with Harry Shearer, Michael McKean, and Christopher Guest for the This Is Spinal Tap sequel, where he reprized his role as documentary filmmaker Marty DiBergi.
When Reiner was asked about what makes a “Rob Reiner film” by 60 Minutes in 1994, he explained that it was hard to categorize given the range of films he has made, but one way they are relatable is that “the main character in the film is always going through something that I've experienced or am experiencing, and I try to make it as personal as possible,” he said.
“It's the only way I know how to tell a story,” he continued. “You know, I didn't come through the film schools. You know, I'm an actor, and I approach it from, can I inhabit the insides of this character? Can I be this person? And if I can, then I know how to tell the story of what that person is going through. And I also know how to tell the actor who's playing that part, how to play the part.”
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