My Anecdotal Life: A Memoir

by Carl Reiner

More than once, Carl Reiner has had friends say, “Hey, Reiner, you ought to write those things down.” And at eighty, he finally has.

In this funny and engaging memoir, one of the best raconteurs on the planet recalls his life in show business in short comic takes. Reiner tells of how, after answering an ad for free acting classes on his brother Charlie’s advice, he forsakes a budding career as a machinist for an acting career. In “Sidney Bechet and His Jazz Band Meet Franz Kafka,” he captivates the legendary jazz man and his band with an unusual reading of The Metamorphosis , during a thunderstorm at a Catskills resort in 1942.

Reiner also recalls the highlights of the succeeding his first sweaty audition, impersonating a dog impersonating movie stars; his forays into the theater; his work on Your Show of Shows and The Dick Van Dyke Show during TV’s golden days; and his long friendship and collaboration with Mel Brooks which gave birth to the Two Thousand Year Old Man.

In “A Recipe to Remember,” he recites a recipe for cream cheese cookies to a star-studded audience that includes Paul Newman, Leonard Bernstein, and Barbra Streisand. In “The Gourmet Eating Club,” he gives an insider’s take on the now-legendary group that included Mario Puzo, Joseph Heller, Zero Mostel, and other luminaries.

Mary Tyler Moore, Sid Caesar, Mickey Rooney, Johnny Carson, Cary Grant, Dinah Shore, Ann Bancroft, Jean Renoir – the list goes on and on – also appear in what Reiner calls the “literary variety show” that captures the highs and lows of his extraordinary life. Through it all, Reiner displays the wit and warmth that have made him one of the most beloved figures in the entertainment business. This charming memoir will delight anyone who wants a behind-the-scenes look at five decades of Hollywood and television history.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Memoir, Humor, Biography Memoir, Audiobook, Autobiography

256 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2003

About the author

Carl Reiner was an American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian. He has won nine Emmy Awards and one Grammy Award during his career. He has the distinction of being the only person to appear on all five incarnations of The Tonight Show. He is best known for his work in Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve, and Ocean's Thirteen.

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a 3.5, but he's quite likable, so I'll bump it up. I knew him best & Rob Petri's boss on the Dick Van Dyke show, so not very well at all. I'm not sure why I decided to read this autobiography, but I'm glad I did. It was a lot of fun & filled with a lot of well known & memorable characters.

I liked the format which wasn't completely restricted by chronology. It wasn't stiff or formal, either. Just a bunch of events that were especially memorable to him & he felt summed up his life pretty well. It ended very abruptly with the death of his brother, though. While I'm sure he was important, I wonder if I didn't miss downloading a last part. It's a shame GR doesn't allow for minutes as pages. That's one of the few irritations I have with this site.

It was worth the time spent. Neat guy.

[Brian Eshleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, so my five-star review shows that I'm a sucker for the category and would sooner award such accolades to a self-deprecating, insightful, and hard-working entertainer from a gentler culture than to an author who bleeds all over the page to render a classic and wants to make sure the reader knows it.

This memoir, not surprisingly like Dick Van Dyke's fits all of the above descriptions. Carl Reiner can write, he can think, he can joke, and he can convey the joy of the life he has gotten to live.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this....! I laughed out loud many, many times! A great talent...so many movies to love...and of course the ultimate...The 2000 Year Old Man with Mel Brooks.

[Regina Mastrogiacomo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful account of Carl Reiner's life. Mr. Reiner talks about his upbringing, how he got into show business and all the interesting people he was able to meet. He also keeps most of the book light, but there are a few sad moments.
It was wonderful finding out all the funny moments of Mr. Reiner's life and he always made me laugh. He was one of the few that when he was on TV I would stop and see what he had to say.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Caught him a few podcasts before he passed. It made me want to hear more of his stories. Luckily, he wrote this around 2009. Great lol stories.

What a life.

[Kay Hommedieu · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a delightful romp through the career of actor, writer, and director Carl Reiner. I first heard of him as the boss on the Dick Van Dyke show though he didn't show up often. It's been just recently that I realized that he also wrote for the Dick Van Dyke TV show and wrote and directed several other television shows and movies as well as Broadway plays and feature films. Now his son, Rob Reiner is following in his footsteps as the writer and director of several movies in the last thirty years. I enjoyed the references to his father, mother, brother, Charlie, his wife Estelle and their children as they followed Carl throughout his showbiz life.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking a significant section of it would include tales from the Dick Van Dyke years. I finished it learning much more about this genius of American comedy. The only thing better would be a co-narration by Mel Brooks, with a couple of 2,000 year old man interviews thrown in for good measure...

[Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew for sure this would be a great book, since I knew how funny and creative he was. I started reading it last night, I could not put it down. (Literally its 7am now!)

So many interesting stories. Some funny, some shocking, and some sad. Mostly funny.

Highly recommended to anyone that knows anything about Carl Reiner or wants to.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I laughed out loud on multiple occasions in this book!

[Mike Kowis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carl Reiner's memoir reads like a collection of short stories and events that happened throughout Carl's lifetime. While most of the stories and events are amusing, they appear to be arranged in no particular order (which is a bit of a turn-off to me). Despite that small short-coming, I enjoyed reading about Carl's successful Hollywood career as a talented comedian and actor, plus a few of his personal life stories as well. The book also includes a few touching moments, such as the time his brother Charlie temporarily fought back late-stage cancer long enough to attend the presentation of the Mark Twain Award to his brother at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.

For what it's worth, Carl's career was before my time. However, I did grow up watching his famous son (Rob Reiner) on TV and the many Hollywood blockbusters that he directed. From this book, it is easy to see where Rob got his sense of humor and film-making talent. This book is a good read, and I give it two thumbs up!

[Laura Muellner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carl Reiner has a great sense of humor, and narrated his own audiobook, which I enjoyed. It truly was what the title says, just anecdotes from his life in show business, told in no particular order. I laughed, I cried, I would recommend it if you enjoy his era of film/television.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book on a library shelf on audiobook, read by the author. I have read a few bad reviews on Amazon, but having Mr. Reiner himself tell me these stories makes them come to life. This book is exactly what it sounds like: anecdotes and stories that Reiner tells his friends, non sequiturs and all.

He even impersonates the people in his delivery, adding to the feeling you are sitting across a table from him, as he recounts some of the most memorable moments of his life. This isn't quite an autobiography, but it's still a great read.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who goes back in time to the early days of television, it was a real pleasure to read these stories of the great comics of the ‘50s. It also sent me to YouTube to enjoy some of the routines and interviews included here. I really liked the laughs, but I especially appreciated the basic decency of Carl Reiner as he shared stories about his colleagues and family. It made a great respite from the news of the day.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the ideal subway read! Lighthearted, funny standalone chapters. Reiner is not writing a traditional memoir. Instead, he is writing down engaging anecdotes from his long-lived career. He comes across as a lovely man with no big dramatic negative events in his life. Actually, his life seemed pretty charmed. Sometimes I just want to read a positive non-stressful book and this the bill perfectly.

[Gdansk19 · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I'm too young for some of Reiner's contributions to cinema, I'm aware of the legacy many attribute to him. With such a lengthy career these short stories allow you to feel like you're sitting after a meal or over a coffee in the same manner of listening to an old family friend or family member share stories. It allows one to skip over much of the name dropping involved in such a long career and get a taste of some of the things that happened personally & professionally.

[Nancy Thomsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five Giant Stars AND A Good Recipe!

As an old, and I do mean old, devotee of Your Show of Shows back in the 50s, I was excited to read this book. And so I have been devouring it for this entire day. Mr. Reiner is delightfully entertaining and brings back many wonderful memories. And the people he lists as friends are who you would expect. Get it!

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was an absolute delight to listen to. What a treat to have Carl Reiner himself relate so many of the stories from his early career up until the present. I would have loved to have heard some stories from behind the scenes of the Dick Van Dyke show, but enjoyed everything he offered. Such a prolific, brilliant, and well-loved writer and entertainer.

[Robert Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this book today and I'll probably finish it up within a day or so. It's not that hard of a read and should only take the average reader a few days to finish.

What attracted me to this book is that I grew up on the 2000 Year Old Man (where Reiner was the straight man to Mel Brooks) and the Dick Van Dyke Show (where he played the boss, Alan Brady). I also know that he wrote, directed or acted in some of the best comedies of his day (The Princess Bride for one), so I expected a pretty funny book.

That's not what this is. There are parts of it that are humorous but nothing that is "bust a gut" funny. Instead it's a memoir but not the usual type of memoir. It's more snippets of memory that don't have any particular order. He literately jumps from WW2 to the 1980's then back to something that happened in 1938.

Each chapter is a true event in his life. Or a memory of that event. The best memory so far is also a very simple one in my opinion. Reiner strikes up a conversation with a lovely women at one of his shows, mostly because she has a beautiful set of legs...only to later realize that she was stricken with polio. He vows never to make fun of some one's ability or appearance.

A rule he later modifies on the Dick Van Dyke show with endless jokes about his baldness.

The fact that he recalls the girl, their conversation and it's aftermath speaks to the type of man Reiner is. He generally enjoys people.

The other "memory" that is really enjoyable is how he and Mel Brooks came up with the now classic 2000 year old man routine, and that was basically an old comic adage "Yes, and..." His admiration for Mel Brooks is telling and their interplay as described in the book must of been something to see in the day.

However the rest of the memories are sort of hit and miss. Maybe a little more organization would help make this a better book. Maybe most of the people and places mentioned were before my time.

If your a fan of classic TV or comedy in general there are parts of this memoir that are really entertaining. Other parts....not so much. Overall, it's an entertaining book but is more uneven than it should be.

[JoeK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Four and a half stars.

This book was only in my to-read stack for about a month, but with Carl Reiner's recent death, both my wife and I moved it up to the top.

I'm not new to celebrity autobiographies. I've read Mel Blanc's and a few by George Burns, and Carl Reiner's bio was on par. He doesn't go through the minutiae of his life in chronological order. His attitude, like others, is to tell interesting stories of his life as they occur to him while writing. Things other people would find funny or interesting. I found this book funny and interesting, and enlightening, because there's a lot that Reiner did in his life that I never new about.

If there's anything bad to say about it, it's that it wasn't long enough to include vignettes about his work with Steve Martin or more about Your Show of Shows and the Dick Van Dyke show.

The minus half star was because he ended the book on such a down note. I loved the book, but now I'm a bit depressed.

[Jan C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny! I'll have to look for his other books.

Some stories were so reminiscent of The Dick Van Dyke Show - it even used his old address! He was a great raconteur. Frequently seen on The Tonight Show - with every host they had.

Loved his honoring his brother who he credits with getting him in to show business. When Carl received the Mark Twain Prize for humor, his brother was able to attend the ceremony and meet President Clinton with the rest of the family and friends. Reiner was quite impressed with how Clinton was able to discuss with his brother his landing on Utah Beach at D-Day +4.

And I'll always remember his wife, Estelle, from her cameo in When Harry Met Sally, directed by son Rob Reiner.

Also included some reminiscenses from Your Show of Shows with Sid Caesar and Mel Brooks and how the "2000-year-old man" came about.

This certainly lightened my mood during this pandemic.

[Clint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this book off my shelf to read only days after the comedian/writer/actor/director’s death and was expecting a collection of funny stories about “The Dick Van Dyke Show” and funny moments from other shows and movies. That’s not what this is. It’s a largely chronological series of stories about his life, but instead of ho-ho-ho funny, they’re personal, touching and poignant, displaying his love for family, his good-guy reputation and his ability to make fun of himself. This is not Tiny Fay-Amy Poehler-David Sedans humor but situational, timeless and warm humor. If you admired Reiner, you’ll appreciate the stories.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Carl Reiner and am so happy that his son, Rob, is also a wonderful comic character and talent that follows in the same footsteps as his dad. His anecdotes are very casual and conversational - they are not in time sequence so it's like having drinks with friends and each comes up with a story that kind of goes with the preceding one. As funny as he is as a writer and comic, his writing isn't as thigh slapping as I hoped but really, who can be equally funny in all venues? I would love to have been a fly on the wall with some of his friends like Mel Brookes, Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore, et al. Those would be thigh slapping moments!

[Glen Berger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Raggedly edited (lost count at two dozen typos), and slapdash writing from Reiner, as if he thought that if he didn't get at least something down right now, he'll never have the energy to get these stories down.
But the stories themselves are charming, and it's hard not to shake the head amazed at what a charmed life he seems to have had. He comes across as an earnest worker, a loyal friend, a good-natured, kind mensch, who spoke on behalf of civil rights, charities, and against Vietnam War.
A little window into such a life (and this was only a little window) is always kinda interesting.
A very quick read.

[Michele Gardiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the sort of stories people tell at dinner parties--stories that make people sit forward, gasp, or laugh... better yet, both! There were some good stories here. Many of Reiner's tales made me laugh. A few got me to gasp. Sadly, there were quite a few typos. All the more frustrating for a writer, like myself, who has published my own book (and working on another), knowing that independently published books are said to be sloppier than professionally published books.

Neil Simon's bio was also a mess of typos. I would think writers of this caliber should be given the respect of polished books.

Still, I enjoyed these stories.

[Sharon Nale · Rating 4 out of 5]

I basically grew up with this comedian, through the magic of newly invented televisions (I was 8 years old when I saw TV for the first time). I laughed at his jokes, his sketches on various TV shows in the 50's 60's 70's 80's 90's, and enjoyed his movies, too.

A nice trip down memory lane, but interesting stories of his childhood memories and how his culture and growing up impacted his comedy. Comedy was certainly very different in those days. Cleaner. More family-oriented.

What a life he had, though. Enjoyable to read.

[Lisa Brandt · Rating 5 out of 5]

You might have to be of a certain age to get all of the references in this book. For one thing, it was written 20 years ago. For another, the stories date back to well before my time! But it's an amusing, if brief, account of some of Carl Reiner's more memorable moments. Several of them involve him making a fool of himself quite by accident. I've always admired the man and his work (and his son Rob and HIS work) so I loved this book. My only quibble is that it's so short.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

As it promises with its title, this is a book of anecdotes from Carl Reiner. So if you don't care about Carl Reiner's life or what this guy might have to say if you met him at the Friar's Club or some such other location, this isn't going to be the book for you. But if you wanted to hear stories from a warm old man who had happened to live a fascinating life involved with some of the best sitcoms of the 50s & 60s, this book captures that vibe completely.

[Rob Pruden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having rediscovered the Dick van Dyke Show recently I was particularly intrigued to read this autobiography and learn that Reiner did in fact live in New Rochelle and used the names of two of his real friends for characters in the TV show. Reiner does a wonderful job sharing many marvelous anecdotes and touching many emotions in this readers experience, especially the wonderful tribute to his older brother, Charlie in the final chapter.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

GREAT narration by Carl Reiner!
Side Note: One of two teachers I could stomach in high school was Mr. Schley, history teacher, the other being my english teacher, Mrs. Kukla.
One day in history class, Mr. Schley let us listen to the 2,000 Year Old Man, which, in the beginning wasn't made for public consumption.
The 2,000 Year Old Man by Mel Brooks & Carl Reiner were originally after dinner parties, hourly improvisations with Brooks and Reiner.
Raised to 4.5 stars.

[Alex Simons · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just loved this audiobook! Wonderful stories told by the author himself, bringing the funny throughout. Reiner seems to be having a lot of fun recounting these tales, and the addition of accents and other dialects really adds to the ambiance. I laughed a lot! (Warning: don't read if you have trouble with incontinence. TMI? I know.) A lovely audio experience.