Billy Crystal, star of When Harry Met Sally, paid an emotional tribute to director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner at the Academy Awards. Crystal, who was among the first on the scene after the couple were found dead on 14 December, recounted his long friendship with Reiner, which began when Crystal guest-starred on All in the Family.
“I met Mr Rob Reiner when I was cast as his best friend in an episode of All in the Family,” Crystal said. “It went so well that Rob said, ‘It was fun playing your best friend. Why don’t we keep it going?’” Crystal reflected on Reiner’s evolution from comic actor to master storyteller, citing films such as This Is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me and Misery.
Crystal added: “My friend Rob’s movies will last for lifetimes because they were about what makes us laugh and cry and what we aspire to be: far better in his eyes, far kinder, far funnier, and far more human.” He concluded: “All we can say is, buddy, what fun we had storming the castle.”
He was joined on stage by Meg Ryan and stars from The Princess Bride, Stand By Me and This Is Spinal Tap, including Kathy Bates, Demi Moore and Jerry O’Connell. The tribute came after it emerged that the Reiners’ son, Nick, had been charged with two counts of first-degree murder. Oscars host Conan O’Brien had hosted a party the night before the killings, which Rob, Michele and Nick attended.
