Reiner Quotes & Sayings

My 3-year-old daughter is somewhat psychic. I hate the abuse of that word, so let's just say ... intuitive. She was born 'in the caul,' meaning my water never broke, and superstition says that makes a child psychic. — Alysia Reiner

The more I give, the more I get. — Alysia Reiner

Usually I don't like to act in movies that I direct because it's kind of confusing. — Rob Reiner

It's like a bird. If he knew what he was doing, he would fall. — Carl Reiner

Id like to acknowledge three people who early on knew Mel Brooks was one of the funniest people in the world: Sid Caesar, me, and Mel Brooks. — Carl Reiner

I was already interested in directing when I was very young. I knew that was something I was going to be doing. — Rob Reiner

I'm currently shooting 'Ava's Possessions,' which is a really fun movie about a woman who gets possessed by a demon. I call it 'Memento' meets 'The Exorcist.' — Alysia Reiner

People have a comic bent or an angularity to their thinking, and those are the people who make jokes. And it's usually people who were in an environment, when they were young, where jokes were at a premium, or at least considered important to a life. My parents always listened to the comedy radio shows, we went to the comedy movies, and my parents appreciated comedy. So kids listen and follow what their parents like. — Carl Reiner

Everybody talks about wanting to change things and help and fix, but ultimately all you can do is fix yourself. And that's a lot. Because if you can fix yourself, it has a ripple effect. — Rob Reiner

You have to give people the pleasure of giving you. — Rob Reiner

I actually love Stephen King's writing. I mean, we, actually, at Castle Rock, we've made seven movies out of Stephen King books. — Rob Reiner

There's not one film that I've ever made that could get made today by a studio, not one - even 'A Few Good Men' because it's an adult courtroom drama, and studios do not make them any more. And so every movie that I make, have made and will make is always going be independently financed. — Rob Reiner

I only please myself. I figure I'm just one of many people. I'm not that different from anybody else and I don't have great language - I'm very ordinary. — Carl Reiner

The absolute truth is the thing that makes people laugh. — Carl Reiner

With the films I've done, I've written on them, I've acted in some of them. And even ones I haven't acted in, I've acted them out just to be sure another actor can do them. — Rob Reiner

My daughter loves to be surprised. And she loves to surprise me. She loves to create games where either one or both of us are surprised, or go away, and then come back. And she loves to play them over and over, and over again. The combo is familiar. Go away. Come back. Surprise! She is only two. I better get used to this. — Alysia Reiner

I'm a charming coward; I fight with words. — Carl Reiner

I think Jews are the smartest people in the world. — Rob Reiner

The marketing costs are insane now. So even if you've got a picture like 'Flipped' which cost under $14 million, or $13.5 million, you're still going to spend on an national basis, if you release with a good national release, you're still going to spend, you know, $30-$40 million. — Rob Reiner

A wonderful acting teacher I love, Josh Pais, has a system I love for being in the moment in acting, but also in life. And one of the things he reminds me of is to take a moment and just be here now. — Alysia Reiner

When you denigrate people, they have two ways to fight back - with their fists and guns, or their mouths. And mouths are seemingly the easiest way to not get hit back. If people are laughing, they're not going to hit you. — Carl Reiner

Comedians are really writers who don't have pens and pencils about them, but they riff. — Carl Reiner

I personally am very active with the women's prison association, and I designed a locket, and 100 percent of the proceeds go to the women's prison association. — Alysia Reiner

I am attached to an incredible script called 'Wonder Drug,' about the DES drug disaster. It's a female-based drama, and I am so proud to be a part of because hopefully it will help evoke change - not only in our industry, but in the battle again corruption in big pharma. — Alysia Reiner

I love you. Really, I do. Now love yourself more and each other a lot more. And please take care of this precious planet. — Alysia Reiner

I have to say I'm very good on a bike. Maybe the last time I was 5 years old. — Alysia Reiner

Make choices that bring love and joy to your body. It's not about perfection; it's about love and gratitude for an amazing body that works hard and deserves your respect. — Alysia Reiner

I have a 6-year-old daughter, and we never look through magazines. But when we're on a plane, that's the one time we have screen-time and magazine-time sometimes. And I do not open a magazine with her without saying: 'Now remind me, are these real pictures?' — Alysia Reiner

Women are more in touch with their feelings, they're more emotionally developed, they know what's important in life, and the men run around like idiots trying to figure that out until they meet a woman that can show them what's important. — Rob Reiner

You - I don't think anybody ever forgets the first person they fell in love with. That's something that everybody remembers, and it doesn't matter what the time period is or where; I mean, those feelings are always the same. — Rob Reiner

Don't push the river. Just go with it. — Alysia Reiner

If you are a creative person, you try to create things that are an extension of yourself. — Rob Reiner

Carl Reiner. He had an entrenched sense of glee; he used humor as a gentle way of speaking difficult truths; — Steve Martin

We are all amazing and magical as we are. Just remember to remind me of that on rough days. — Alysia Reiner

The Mong Kok area in China holds the record for most crowded area, with an estimated population density of 130,000 people per square kilometer. — Luke Reiner

I have as many pairs of sneakers as I have shoes. — Alysia Reiner

As far as getting my start, it was really Norman Lear, even aside from being on 'All in the Family.' He helped me get my start as a director. He was the one who said, 'Let him do 'Spinal Tap.' Let him give it a try,' because I had been trying for years to get that thing off the ground. — Rob Reiner

The best conducting technique is that which achieves the maximum musical result with the minimum effort. The only general rule is to infuse all gestures with precision, clarity, and vitality. — Fritz Reiner

If I know a guy who's a really good improvisational actor, I'd be foolish not to let him because he'll come up with goodies and all kinds of little freebies that you get. — Rob Reiner

I've done everything I've wanted to do. I have three children, I have grandchildren, I have books, I did movies, I've directed movies, I've done almost everything I've wanted to do. — Carl Reiner

Watch out for emergencies. They are your big chance. — Fritz Reiner

I'm an entertainer and I entertain people and they entertain me back by asking questions. And some of them I answer. — Carl Reiner

If you have tapped into something that is real for you, chances are you are going to tap into something that is real for someone else. — Rob Reiner

The script is like music to me. I approach it like it's a musical piece and I hear how it's supposed to sound when people say the words. There's rhythms and there's intonations and things, and so, when somebody comes in and hits the notes that I hear, I go okay. Or, they come close enough, and then I'll say "Well how about you try it like this?" and if they have a good ear and they can pick it up, then I think okay, they've got it. — Rob Reiner

I like writing because you can make things happen and turn out the way they never do in real life. — Rob Reiner

When I was a kid, I wanted to be a scientist or an actress. My daughter really wants to be a scientist. I really want her to be a scientist, not an actress! — Alysia Reiner

Every single person in jail for a violent crime had a nightmare childhood. — Rob Reiner

It's a very slow process - two steps forward, one step back - but I'm inching in the right direction. — Rob Reiner

Martin Scorsese is one of the great filmmakers of all time. — Rob Reiner

Clearly, I'm committed to women's issues and stories and promoting gender equality. I have two incredible role models in Jenji [Kohan] and Shonda [Rhimes]. — Alysia Reiner

I have also heard and read various accounts of why they [Sheldon Leonard and Carl Reiner] liked me. My favorites? I wasn't too good-looking, I walked a little funny, and I was basically kind of average and ordinary. I guess my lack of perfection turned out to be a winning hand. Let that be a lesson for future generations. — Dick Van Dyke

Major Karl von Kronig,"' he reads. '"Oberstleutnant Stefan Fenstermacher, Obergefreiter Lutz Gerber, Gefreiter Manfred Hahn, Gefreiter Reiner Brauer, Panzerfunker Gerhard Meister . . ." Bloody hell. No wonder they didn't win the war with names like that. Take them a year and a half to do the roll call. What the hell's "panzerfunker" when it's at home? — Elly Griffiths

I was thrilled to work opposite Carl Reiner and Robert De Niro. Mr. Reiner was very chatty and delightful, but I learned that if you want Robert De Niro to like you, don't speak at all, and he'll be friendly to you. — Janeane Garofalo

I acted when I was young, but at 19, I had my own theater company where I acted but also directed. I also did some theater in Los Angeles. So I was always wanting to direct, even before I became an established actor. — Rob Reiner

I remember once, years ago, I met Sting, and he told me that he had seen 'Spinal Tap' 50 times. He said: 'Every time I watch it, I don't know whether to laugh or cry.' — Rob Reiner

I once dressed up, very badly timed as Steve Irwin's daughter. And I didn't realize he had passed because I hadn't been following the news. I love Bindi Irwin, just the timing was in poor taste. — Alysia Reiner

They make three types of movies, and if you don't make one of those three, you have to find independent financing: It's either big-action superhero tent-pole thing, or it's an animated film, or it's an R-rated, raunchy sex comedy. They don't make movies about real people. — Rob Reiner

Under the current system, all children under 17 are treated equally. However, while some films may be appropriate for older children to see with parental accompaniment, some are inappropriate for younger children under any circumstances. This problem needs to be addressed. — Rob Reiner

My family made it through Hurricane Sandy. We have water, power, and a roof, but the survivor's guilt makes me want to hide. Sneak away from the brilliance of life. It shouts at me: 'Don't enjoy anything too much; people are suffering.' I feel childlike somehow. — Alysia Reiner

When we love the planet, we love ourselves, and when we love ourselves, we love the planet. — Alysia Reiner

For me, I am a really tall woman, and I am really tall in heels, and I feel bigger, and I like being bigger. I think I was a king in a past life. — Alysia Reiner

We must help each other to be present and compassionate. Remember that we have no idea what the person next to us is going through; compassion is the only choice. — Alysia Reiner

To me, acting is like a party. It's like a fun thing to do. You don't have to worry. You don't have to agonize about anything. — Rob Reiner

My father was a watchmaker and an inventor. I saw him working in the house every day. The work ethic, I got from him. He worked hard and he never complained about it. — Carl Reiner

If they gave a Nobel Peace Prize for work against big tobacco, not just in the industry, but also with the California tax initiative, Rob Reiner really deserves one. — Joe Eszterhas

Post-war filmmakers gave us the documentary, Rob Reiner gave us the mockumentary and Moore initiated a third genre, the crockumentary. — Michael Moore

I've known Alan Zweibel since 1975, and I've always had this sneaking suspicion that he might possess a sense of humor. After reading CLOTHING OPTIONAL, I'm almost sure he does. — Rob Reiner

In a 1999 paper, Reiner indicates that his data show that with time and age, children may well know what their gender is, regardless of any and all information and child-rearing to the contrary. They seem to be quite capable of telling us who they are, and we can observe how they act and function even before they tell us. — Deborah Rudacille

I was always a big fan of Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner's '2000-Year-Old Man' sketch. I think it's one of the biggest influences on the podcast, definitely. You'd never say Carl Reiner was the funniest dude on there, because he's just teeing it up, but he knows what questions to ask to lead to great improv. — Scott Aukerman

When I found out I could write I was shocked! I didn't know I could write. — Carl Reiner

You'd only write what you know and what you know is what you do and the people you know. So you'd write about them or the people you have met casually. It's part of your life. — Carl Reiner

Working out for me really depends on my shoot schedule, but I try to move my body every day. I really believe in exercise as an anti-depressant. It's a great way to feel better. — Alysia Reiner

A fellow who has a funny bone can learn to hone his skills, but I don't think you can develop a funny bone - you either have it or you don't. And by the way - when you get it, we don't know it. — Carl Reiner

Give yourself an impossible task and solve it - then you've got a really good story. — Carl Reiner

Power isn't about doing something terrible to someone who's weaker than you, Reiner. It's having the strength to do something terrible, and choosing not to. — Jodi Picoult

I'd say Rob Reiner's 'When Harry Met Sally' is my all-time favorite. It made me realize there's a way of telling a story where the audience is so in love with the characters that they forget you're even telling a story. — Tim Story

I haven't ridden a bike in a while because I'm so scared I'll get hit and die. — Alysia Reiner

I really do believe when you're in a ton of pain, you tend to take it out on other people. If you deal with your stuff, you don't take it out on everybody else. — Alysia Reiner

After we did [All In The Family], that ended up being a real love fest all around. Me and Norman, Norman [Lear] and me, Rob Reiner, everybody liked everybody. So about six or seven months later I moved out to L.A. and I got a call that Norman wanted to see me. I came in and he said "ABC has given me a property that they just optioned to make into a TV series. It's from a play called Hot L Baltimore, and I want you to be in it." — Richard Masur

I'm one of those girls that cries at the drop of a hat. I'm oversensitive, if anything. I'm a mom. I'm very earthy, crunchy granola. I compost. — Alysia Reiner

I write books that way - I put a first line down and say, "Where does this go?" — Carl Reiner

It's the only way I really know how to tell the story is to be able to kind of live through the characters. So when I find something that resonates with me, it's usually because it cuts to something very real inside of me; something that I've gone through or experienced. — Rob Reiner

I have been asked so many times why I live a green life, why water conservation, why getting wells in places, why work with water organizations, why conserve water at home with double-flush toilets, why I tell my daughters, "Turn off the tap" so much. Sometimes I want to say, "I wish I knew the answer." My answer really is: I don't understand why everyone doesn't feel this way. — Alysia Reiner

People can be ignorant and still have loving, human qualities. — Rob Reiner

An attitude will give you heft. — Carl Reiner

Inviting people to laugh with you while you are laughing at yourself is a good thing to do. You may be a fool but you're the fool in charge. — Carl Reiner

My horses are my friends, not my slaves. — Reiner Klimke

Be here now. It keeps us in a place of love, not fear. — Alysia Reiner

The more I am able to deeply love and accept my flaws and imperfections, the more I am able to do that with my fellows. — Alysia Reiner

The problem is that I'm Josef Weber's friend. but Reiner Hartmann is my enemy. So what do I do, now that they are the same man? — Jodi Picoult

I know how sobering and exhausting parenthood is. But the reality is that our children's future depends on us as parents. Because we know that the first years truly last forever. — Rob Reiner

A high heel makes you feel different than a non-high heel. I love a high bootie because they are so high but comfortable, so I feel strong and powerful. That's the best. — Alysia Reiner

Writing is the basis of all, because creating something that didn't even exist before is like taking an empty canvass. It is a wonderful thing to make something out of nothing. You've got an empty page, you've got an idea, and then you start typing and that is the most thrilling thing of all. And then if it becomes a movie or something else that's a plus, but the original writing of it is what's very exciting. — Carl Reiner

I'm not a fruity girl. I don't like licorice. I'm chocolate all the way. — Alysia Reiner

I call my ring Procter and Gamble, because David paid for it through his first commercial from Head & Shoulders. When I met David, he was waiting tables. He was below broke, in deep debt, but I followed my heart. When you're looking for a mate, don't look at his current status, but his present potential that will become a part of his future. — Alysia Reiner

I love tweeting. I tweet every day. I stay in contact, I tell them what I'm doing. I've posted pictures of my books on there and they buy the books. It's a very good way to communicate with people, but I can't go to bed without tweeting something. I have to tweet something. — Carl Reiner

A lot of times I'll make films that are mostly character-driven films - stories that involve people. Like, I make the joke: I like to make movies about human beings that live on Earth. — Rob Reiner

When I read 'Stand By Me,' it was like, 'This is a look back at the same time period when I was growing up, and it was about kids, but it really felt like what it was like to have those powerful feelings of friendship at age 12.' That's what got to me. — Rob Reiner

This is about the daily ins and outs of a marriage. I don't want to give away the ending, but they are trying either to make the marriage work or make the separation work. Our job is to make that interesting. — Rob Reiner

Something is wrong here, and it's more than easy access to guns or violence on TV. It's about lack of love and attachment to loving people early in life. — Rob Reiner