By Andrew Hay and Sandy Hooper LOS ANGELES, Dec 15 (Reuters) – The son of filmmaker Rob Reiner was arrested on homicide charges after the director of beloved movies like "When Harry Met Sally …" and his wife were found dead in their Los Angeles home, a police official said on Monday. Nick Reiner, 32, was being held in a Los Angeles County jail on a $4 million bond, according to jail records. An official with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said he had been arrested on homicide charges. Police said they found two bodies at the Reiners' home at 3:40 p.m. in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles on Sunday, whom they did not identify. Other officials confirmed the victims were Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele, 68. Local media reported the couple had been stabbed to death. Nick Reiner spoke openly over the years about his struggles with substance abuse and about being homeless at times when he was on the run and refusing to go into rehab. He told People Magazine in a 2016 interview that he first went into rehab for drug abuse at age 15 – and that he eventually had at least 17 stays in rehab facilities over the years. Rob and Nick Reiner co-wrote the film "Being Charlie," based on Nick's experiences with heroin addiction and homelessness. "It was the most personal thing I've ever been involved in," Rob Reiner told podcaster Marc Maron in 2016. Nick told People, "when I was out there, I could've died." Tributes poured in for Rob Reiner, who was active in politics, supporting liberal causes. "This is a devastating loss for our city and our country. Rob Reiner's contributions reverberate throughout American culture and society, and he has improved countless lives through his creative work and advocacy fighting for social and economic justice," Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement. FROM 'MEATHEAD' TO 'SPINAL TAP' As an actor, Reiner was best remembered for his role on the 1970s television comedy hit "All in the Family" as Mike "Meathead" Stivic, the son-in-law and liberal foil of the biogoted lead character. The role garnered Reiner two Emmy awards for outstanding supporting actor. Reiner went on to a prolific Hollywood career as a director, starting with "This Is Spinal Tap," a 1984 mockumentary about a fictional hard rock band. The film became a cult classic, known for its mostly improvised script, with Reiner playing the faux documentary filmmaker Marty DiBergi. "That was the trick – to make fun of it and at the same time, honor it," Reiner told CBS's "60 Minutes" this year as he promoted a sequel, "Spinal Tap II: The End Continues." Reiner directed nearly two dozen films in all, including classics such as "Stand by Me," a 1986 coming-of-age drama about four boys who set out to find the body of a missing youth, and 1989's "When Harry Met Sally …," often cited as one of the greatest romantic comedies of all time. That movie featured the famed line, "I'll have what she's having," delivered by the director's real-life mother, Estelle Reiner, reacting to a faked orgasm in a restaurant. Reiner also directed the beloved 1987 fairy-tale adventure "The Princess Bride," the 1990 psychological thriller "Misery," and the 1992 military courtroom drama "A Few Good Men." CHAMPION OF PROGRESSIVE CAUSES Michele Reiner was at one time a photographer who captured the image of Donald Trump that appears on the cover of his book "Trump: The Art of the Deal." Rob Reiner, the son of the late comedy writer and actor Carl Reiner, also made campaign ads for 2004 Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry and campaigned against a 2008 California effort to ban same-sex marriages. Prior to Nick Reiner's arrest, Trump said on social media that their deaths were "reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME." Reiner was first married to Penny Marshall, who starred in the TV sitcom "Laverne & Shirley," and was also a producer and director. He was an adoptive father to Marshall's daughter and had three children with Michele Singer. (Reporting by Andrew Hay, Sandy Hooper, Brad Brooks and Dietrich Knauth; Writing by Andy Sullivan and Steve Gorman; Editing by Paul Thomasch and Bill Berkrot)
(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)
