Rob Reiner – Archive Interview

Posted on 29. Jan, 2010 by quynhgiao in Celebrities

Actor/Director Rob Reiner talks about growing up surrounded by comedy legends that included his father Carl, Sid Caesar and Mel Brooks. He describes his work as a TV writer on the last season of “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour”, for which he was partnered with Steve Martin. Reiner speaks in detail about his work on the groundbreaking sitcom “All in the Family”. He discusses working with the series ensemble, describes his character “Mike ‘Meathead’ Stivic,” and talks about the atmosphere on the set. Reiner then details his work as a film director, including work on This Is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally…, and Misery. Reiner also talks about his role in the creation of Castle Rock Productions, the production company for “Seinfeld”.

About Rob Reiner

Robert Norman “Rob” Reiner (born March 6, 1947) is an American director, producer, writer, and political activist. As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence as “Archie” and “Edith Bunker’s” (played by Carroll O’Connor and Jean Stapleton, respectively) son-in-law, Michael “Meathead” Stivic, on All in the Family. That role earned him two Emmy Awards during the 1970s. As a director, Reiner was recognized by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) with nominations for Stand by Me, When Harry Met Sally…, and A Few Good Men. He was trained at the UCLA Film School.

Reiner became famous playing Michael “Meathead” Stivic, Archie Bunker’s liberal son-in-law, on Norman Lear’s 1970s sitcom All in the Family, which was the most-watched television program for five years (1971–1976) in the United States. The nickname “Meathead,” referring to Reiner’s character Mike Stivic in All in the Family, became a pop culture reference. Indeed, Reiner has stated, “I could win the Nobel Prize and they’d write ‘Meathead wins the Nobel Prize’.” In a 2004 interview on A&E Biography, Reiner said that he often enjoyed working with Carroll O’Connor on-screen, as well as becoming best friends and for having a second father-in-law, off-screen. Reiner continued being loyal to him until O’Connor’s death on June 21, 2001. At the time, he, alongside Sally Struthers and Danielle Brisebois, attended O’Connor’s funeral.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Reiner was best known as a director of successful Hollywood films. Some of these films—The Princess Bride, Stand By Me, and This Is Spinal Tap— have achieved cult status. He has stated that the film which will go down as his masterpiece is Stand by Me. The film is also his favorite film of his own work. In 1994 (after a three-year development period), Reiner was slated to direct the big-screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, with Robin Williams as The Baker, Goldie Hawn as The Baker’s Wife, Cher as The Witch, and Roseanne Barr as Jack’s Mother. For unspecified reasons (although it is speculated to be due to the decline in popularity of musical films), this production fell through, and the film was never started.

Reiner went on to direct other critically and commercially successful films with his own company, Castle Rock Entertainment, such as When Harry Met Sally…, Misery, and his most commercially successful work A Few Good Men.

However, his career has seen less commercial success in recent years, starting with North, which was critically panned (notoriously by Roger Ebert: “I hated this movie. Hated hated hated hated hated this movie.”). Reiner’s subsequent films Alex and Emma and Rumor Has It have been unsuccessful both critically and commercially. His next feature, The Bucket List, was released in December 2007 and starred Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman as two terminally ill men who escape from a cancer ward and head off on a road trip with a wish list of tasks to accomplish before they die. Although it was more commercially successful, it too was met with poor critical reviews. Ebert, a thyroid cancer sufferer, was especially off-put by treatment of the disease in the film: “‘The Bucket List’ thinks dying of cancer is a laugh riot followed by a dime-store epiphany.”

Reiner has made cameos in a number of movies, including Throw Momma from the Train, Sleepless in Seattle, Bullets Over Broadway, The First Wives Club, Primary Colors, and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star.