You’d be hard pressed to find a comedy legend more accomplished than Carl Reiner, who sadly passed away this week. He was a comedian, writer, director, producer, and creator, only comparable to his life-long best friend Mel Brooks.
His accomplishments range from the writers room of Sid Caesar’s Your Show of Shows to his legendary creation The Dick Van Dyke Show; he directed Steve Martin in The Jerk; he appeared in Ocean’s 11 and its sequels; and his son, Rob Reiner, became a successful director in his own right.
Among his many, many productions, Carl Reiner surprisingly only crossed paths with the Muppets once. In 1979, Jim Henson produced The Muppets Go Hollywood – a star-studded special to promote The Muppet Movie. The special began with celebrities arriving in limousines, and as Dom DeLuise arrived, it’s revealed that he’s been sharing his limo with Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, and their wives Estelle Reiner and Anne Bancroft. Announcer Gary Owens describes Carl Reiner as “looking very confused”, which seems accurate.
You can spot Reiner in the clip below, around the 4:40 mark.
As amazing as it would’ve been to see Reiner interact with the Muppets more, we’re still very grateful to count this comedy legend among those who’ve been involved with a Jim Henson production.
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by Joe Hennes – Joe@ToughPigs.com
