Police investigate deaths of filmmaker Rob Reiner and wife as apparent homicide

LOS ANGELES, USA – Actor-director and political activist Rob Reiner and his wife were found dead in their Los Angeles home on Sunday, and police detectives are investigating the circumstances as an apparent homicide, city officials said.

While police declined to publicly identify the two people found deceased, Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom each released statements confirming that Reiner, 78, and his wife, Michele, 68, had died.

“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,” the mayor wrote.

Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton on Sunday evening told reporters that LAPD patrol officers called to the home late afternoon on Sunday, December 14, discovered two bodies inside the residence.

Detectives of the LAPD’s robbery-homicide unit were waiting for a search warrant before entering the home to conduct a thorough search and investigation of the premises, Hamilton said.

The LAPD issued a statement on social media earlier in the evening calling the case an investigation of an “apparent homicide,” although Hamilton said police had not identified a suspect as of Sunday night.

A cause of death will be made public by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office, Hamilton said.

Reiner, 78, co-starred in the 1970s hit CBS television comedy All in the Family and directed several well-known movies, including The Princess Bride, This is Spinal Tap, When Harry Met Sally, Stand by Me, and The American President.

His wife, Michele, 68, was at one time a photographer who took the photo of Donald Trump that appears on the cover of his book Trump: The Art of the Deal.

Aside from his Hollywood career, Rob Reiner, a native of New York City and son of the late comedy writer and actor Carl Reiner, was well known for his political activism.

He featured in advertisements taking aim at George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential election and supported then-Democratic candidate John Kerry. He also showed support for Democratic presidential hopefuls Al Gore and Hillary Clinton.

Reiner was first married to Penny Marshall, who played Laverne in Laverne & Shirley and was also a producer and director. He later married actor Michele Singer, with whom he has three children. – Rappler.com