Based on early and still-unverified reports, Rob Reiner (78) and Michele (68), his wife of 36 years, were stabbed to death in their Brentwood, California, home Sunday afternoon. No suspects have been announced, only unverified reports about the police interviewing family members as persons of interest and arresting their 32-year-old son Nick on an unspecified felony.

The Reiners had three grown children: daughter Romy (who reportedly found the bodies), and sons Jake and Nick. Rob Reiner also had another daughter with his first wife, the late great Penny Marshall.

Jake works in the entertainment industry. Nick, who has had lifelong substance abuse problems reaching back to his early teens, co-wrote the semi-biographical Being Charlie, a 2015 feature directed by his father. It’s the story of a young man fighting addiction and the strained relationship he has with his famous father.

If all of this turns out to be true, it’s an unimaginable way to die: 1) stabbed to death, 2) in your own home, 3) while one spouse likely watched the attack on the other.

I don’t even want to think about the added horror of the murderer being a family member, much less a son.

Director Rob Reiner (second from left) and family arrive at the premiere of “Rumor Has It” at the Grauman?s Chinese Theater on December 15, 2005 in Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

It’s unfortunate that those under the age of 40 will likely remember Reiner only as a divisive and boorish political activist. His decade on social media where he obsessively ranted against anyone who dared disagree with him, was not a pleasant thing to witness, especially his attacks on President Donald Trump and Trump’s supporters.

Thankfully, those of us of a certain age can remember him based on our first impression, as one of the Hollywood greats, a man who delivered two decades of iconic entertainment.

Rob Reiner might have been comedy legend Carl Reiner’s son, but this was no nepo baby. Born in 1947, he paid his dues guest-starring on the popular TV shows of the time (That Girl, Gomer Pyle, etc.) and writing for the era’s hippest show on television, The Smothers Brothers.

In 1971, he landed a co-starring role in what would quickly become one of the most popular and game-changing TV shows in pop culture history: All in the Family, where he played the flawed but likable Mike “Meathead” Stivic, a counterbalance to his Nixon-loving father-in-law, Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor). For five seasons, All in the Family was the number one TV show in America ,with over 20 million households tuning in, which translates to some 60 million viewers. During this time, he won two Emmys and co-wrote the 1974 pilot episode for Happy Days.

All of this before he turned 30.

Then, in 1984, it all came together for Reiner. This run might be unprecedented… Starting with his feature debut, Reiner directed seven popular feature films in a row, many of them iconic, all of them entertaining and timeless.

We’re still watching and quoting these movies, and I would add two more things about them…

The first is how Reiner succeeded in such a wide array of genres: mockumentary, teenage sex comedy, coming of age, fantasy and farce, romantic comedy, horror, and courtroom drama. Can any other director say that?

Second, despite the success and continued audience goodwill for each of those titles, no one has yet tried to remake them. No one dares. They are that definitive.

Reiner’s other legacy will be Castle Rock Entertainment, which he co-founded in 1987. The familiar Castle Rock logo was seen at the beginning of countless movies that helped shape popular entertainment over three decades, and at the end of numerous TV shows, including Seinfeld.

In the decades after, Reiner had a couple of hits — The American President (1995), The Bucket List (2007) — but there was something missing in his work as he became increasingly engrossed in partisan politics.

Reiner threw himself into the 2024 presidential election, including producing God & Country, a hyper-partisan documentary warning about the deadly threat of “Christian nationalism.” Then President Trump won reelection, and Reiner chose to retreat from social media entirely.

Earlier this year, he released a sequel to Spinal Tap and, in general, seemed more at peace with himself during interviews and public appearances.

After the murder of Charlie Kirk, the memorable and welcome humanity and grace Reiner displayed was the exact opposite of what we saw from most Democrats and leftists…

RIP, Rob and Michele Reiner.

John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.