Rob Reiner's Son Nick is Arrested for the Murder of His Parents, as TMZ Reports They'd Had 'a Very Loud Argument' at Conan O'Brien's Christmas Party
This interview with Rob and Nick Reiner has resurfaced in the wake of the son being formally charged with murdering his father and his mother Michele. And while I agree completely with what Chris Klemmer said late last night:
... about how it's awful when someone is remembered for the manner in which they die, it's necessary to watch this in light of what took place. As the two of them discuss filming a movie that Nick wrote and Rob directed, which is about an adult son of a famous person going to rehab to battle addiction, they could be any father and son. A relationship that is both loving and contentious. Supportive, yet at times in conflict. Devoted, but strained. When you bring sons into this world, that dynamic is part of bargain. What you sign up for when you're trying to raise a boy into a productive, independent man.
The difference between them and most being the addiction. Whatever demons the younger Reiner has been dealing with appear to have driven him to this madness. And the details get worse by the hour:
Source - Rob Reiner, his wife Michele, and their son Nick attended Conan O'Brien's Christmas party Saturday night. At the party, Rob and Nick got into a "very loud argument," loud enough for many others to hear … Reiner family sources tell TMZ. We're told Rob and Michele then left the party. We do not know if Nick left as well.
TMZ is the first to report the argument between Rob and Nick before the murders.
Our family sources add … Michele had been anguishing to friends over the last few months that she and Rob were at their wits' end over Nick's mental illness and alleged substance abuse issues, and did not know what to do with their son Nick … saying, "We've tried everything."
As you know … the legendary actor-director and his wife were found in their L.A.-area house Sunday with their throats slit. Nick was arrested Monday morning and booked for murder … he's held on $4 million bail.
Jesus wept.
As is the case with any great artist - and objectively speaking, that description fits Rob Reiner to a tee - their life and death can become personal to you.
This is Spinal Tap is not only one of my Top 3 comedies at least, it was a Litmus Test movie for this girl I used to date. If she didn't love it, I'd have questioned where the relationship is going. She loved it. And we celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary last September.
When my younger son was about 9 years old home with the flu, I went to CVS for medicine. And found the DVD of Princess Bride. The idea of a movie about a kid sick in bed getting a story was just too perfect. And seconds before Fred Savage objects to his grandfather reading "a kissing story, my boy hit the pause button to object to this being a kissing movie. I swear that's true. But by the time we got to the end where Peter Falk says, "As you wish," Reiner's masterpiece had added at least a dozen catch phrases to our household conversations.
And there's a largely forgotten early '80s movie I've been looking for that I can't find streaming anywhere. The Sure Thing is a
gem. John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga are traveling across the country on break from the college they go to, and to catch a ride, pretend they're a couple and she's expecting a baby. And I'm not kidding when I say this scene inspired the name of my first born son:
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That is also true, as my friends and family will confirm. Only now does it give me a sick feeling, since the name is Nick.
More recently, I listened to an entire podcast series Rob co-hosted with Soledad O'Brien about the JFK Assassination, and his theories were among the most interesting I've heard from anyone. And yet, even someone with a mind capable of being a good actor, a great director, the head of a major studio that produced Seinfeld among other things, and an expert on the biggest true crime story in American history, can struggle to find a cure for the horrors of addiction.
If you're someone faced with a situation like this, trying to find a solution to a loved one dealing with this plague that's tearing the American family apart, you're in my prayers. If you're the one suffering from it, I hope this story is the wake up call that inspires you to get all the help you need and change. If you're like me and one of the lucky ones, tell your family you love them and hope it never affects anyone you care about.
Requiescat in pace.
TED SOQUI. Shutterstock Images.