Remembering Rob Reiner – TPM – Talking Points Memo

I’m not usually one to bring up or comment on a celebrity’s death here. I feel like I have to say something about Rob Reiner. It is difficult for me to think of anyone in public life whose contributions were so oriented toward humor and joy and whose final fate was one of equal horror and sorrow. When I put the pieces of this collision together last night, I couldn’t quite make sense of it.

I’m old enough that, from my own childhood and probably even more from my parents’ vicarious memories, I still think of Rob Reiner as Carl Reiner’s son. Which of course he was. And Carl Reiner – who only died in 2020 – was one of the greats of television’s first golden age. But in the best sense of the word, in terms of creation, longevity, cultural influence, reach and so much more, Reiner has totally eclipsed his father. Watch the film series in the 80s and 90s and the many since. Look, if you don’t know him as well, at the very dedicated, practical and successful political engagement. Not just fundraising and donations, but also working on specific issues over the years.

It is a reminder that to make sense of this world and be at peace with it, we must find a path of solace or redemption that can coexist even with abject tragedy and grief.