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 His career spanned seven
decades and every medium from theater and
recordings to television and movies, including
directing "Oh, God!," three collaborations with
Steve Martin and a role as an elderly con man in
the revived "Ocean's Eleven" series.
Reiner passed away on Monday night at his home
in Beverly Hills, his assistant Judy Nagy told
Reuters on Tuesday.
He was still taking voice roles in his 90s and
had a key role in "If You’re Not in the Obit,
Eat Breakfast," a documentary about people who
keep busy into their 90s.
Reiner is survived by three children, including
Rob Reiner, director of several hit movies and
known for playing Archie Bunker's son-in-law
"Meathead" in the hit TV comedy "All in the
Family." Reiner's wife of 64 years, Estelle,
died in 2008.
Rob Reiner on Twitter mourned his father's
passing, saying, "As I write this my heart is
hurting... He was my guiding light."
His father was also active on Twitter. His final
tweet on Monday was in praise of British
playwright and composer Noel Coward, whom he
lauded as "the single most prolific writer of
musical comedies, plays, songs and films.”
Tributes to Reiner poured in from across the
show business spectrum.
Comedian Sarah Silverman noted the comedy
legend's accomplishments as well as his
generosity. "Never left his house empty handed -
book, space pen, Swiss Army knife. RIP to a man
that embodies the word mensch," she wrote on
Twitter.
Late-night comedy host Stephen Colbert simply
tweeted "The Greatest" in a post accompanying a
picture of Reiner as a young man.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo also hailed the
enduring comedy of the Empire State native,
saying on Twitter, "He made America laugh — a
true gift."
Reiner expressed his approach to his work in his
book "My Anecdotal Life," when he said,
"Inviting people to laugh at you while you are
laughing at yourself is a good thing to do. You
may be the fool but you are the fool in charge."
Reiner, the Bronx-born son of a watchmaker,
started in entertainment as a teenager in a
touring theater troupe that performed
Shakespearean plays. His career took a decisive
turn after he joined the Army Signal Corps
during World War Two.
Recruited into a special unit that put on shows
for the troops, Reiner began writing and
performing his own comedy material.
Returning to New York City after the war, Reiner
appeared in several Broadway musicals, including
a lead in "Call Me Mister," before he was hired
to join Caesar's popular TV sketch comedy series
"Your Show of Shows" in 1950.
Reiner was part of Caesar's ensemble of
performers as well as a celebrated writing team
that included then-unknown talents such as
Brooks, Neil Simon and Larry Gelbart.
Reiner and Brooks remained close into their late
90s with Reiner telling USA Today in 2019 that
they got together regularly to watch game shows
and movies.
Brooks called him "a giant, unmatched in his
contributions to entertainment," in a tweet on
Tuesday.
"A tired cliche in times like this. But in Carl
Reiner's case, it's absolutely true. He will be
greatly missed," Brooks said.
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 2000-YEAR-OLD STRAIGHT MAN
Brooks joined Reiner in creating the
"2,000-Year-Old Man" routine in which Reiner
interviewed the world's oldest living man,
played by Brooks, who deadpans satiric,
first-person anecdotes of history in a thick
Jewish accent. Asked why the
cross became a symbol for Christianity, for
example, Brooks replied: "It was easier to put
together than the Star of David."
Originally ad-libbed by Reiner and Brooks at a
party, the sketch evolved into a perennial TV
favorite and basis for five comedy albums, the
latest of which earned a 1998 Grammy Award.
When "Your Show of Shows" ended its 4-1/2-year
run in 1954, Reiner followed Caesar to his next
series, "Caesar's Hour," and earned his first
two Emmys.
Encouraged by his wife to develop a TV show as
his own, Reiner began work on a sitcom pilot
loosely based on his experiences with the Caesar
shows, titled "Head of the Family," casting
himself as a TV writer with a wife and two kids.
Network executives initially passed on the
project, unhappy with Reiner as the lead
character, Rob Petrie. But CBS ultimately picked
up the series in 1961, recast and retitled for
its new star, "The Dick Van Dyke Show."
Reiner, who earned several Emmys writing and
producing the hit series, played the recurring
role of Petrie's boss, the temperamental variety
show host Alan Brady.
A reprisal of his Alan Brady role three decades
later, for a guest spot on the 1990s sitcom "Mad
About You," earned Reiner yet another Emmy.
Besides helping transform its creator and star
into household names, "The Dick Van Dyke Show"
launched the career of Mary Tyler Moore, who
played Rob Petrie's wife. The series, considered
a TV sitcom classic, ended its run in 1966.
The following year, Reiner made his feature film
directing and producing debut with "Enter
Laughing," which he adapted from a Joseph Stein
play that was based on Reiner's
semiautobiographical 1958 book of the same name.
 He later directed George Burns in the title role
of the 1977 comedy film "Oh God!" before
collaborating with Steve Martin for a string of
movies, including "The Jerk," "Dead Men Don't
Wear Plaid" and "The Man with Two Brains."
Starting in 2001, he made a big-screen comeback
playing elder con artist Saul Bloom, who comes
out of retirement to join George Clooney, Brad
Pitt and others in the blockbuster remake of the
1960s heist film "Ocean's Eleven." Reiner
returned to that role in two "Ocean's" sequels.
But Reiner never strayed far from television,
continuing to make guest appearances on various
shows such as "Two and a Half Men" and "Hot in
Cleveland" well into his 90s, as well as keeping
up a busy Twitter account.
Reiner wrote four volumes of memoirs, including
"I Just Remembered" in 2014, as well as
children's books.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; additional reporting
by Peter Szekely and Barbara Goldberg in New
York; editing by Franklin Paul, Jonathan Oatis
and David Gregorio)
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