Bucks County Playhouse (Credit: Bucks County Playhouse)
Long before his rise to fame in film and television, Rob Reiner spent part of his formative years in Bucks County, working as a teenage apprentice at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope.
The Bucks County Herald reported that Reiner was just 17 when he trained there in 1964, an experience the playhouse said he later credited as influential in shaping his career.
According to producing director Alex Fraser in the feature, Reiner often spoke with pride about his time on the New Hope stage and the lessons he learned while working alongside established performers during a season that included Alan Alda, Liza Minnelli, Shelly Berman and other well-known figures.
Reiner’s connection to Bucks County resurfaced in the wake of tragic news out of California. Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, were found dead Sunday at their Los Angeles home in what authorities have described as an apparent double homicide.
Their son, Nick Reiner, was arrested and charged in the case, according to Los Angeles police.
In a statement, the Bucks County Playhouse reflected on Reiner’s lasting affection for New Hope and the historic theater, noting that he frequently expressed gratitude for the training he received there as a teenager.
More details on Reiner’s local ties can be found at the Bucks County Herald.
Nick Reiner made his first court appearance Wednesday in Los Angeles but did not enter a plea, a day after prosecutors charged him with murdering his parents, according to The New York Times.
Reiner, 32, appeared briefly before a judge wearing protective clothing, with his attorney requesting that the arraignment be postponed. The court agreed to delay the plea hearing until Jan. 7, according to the article.
Authorities also released additional details about the case, confirming that the Reiners died Sunday from multiple stab wounds and their throats slit. Police said the couple was found in the master bedroom area of their Los Angeles home after family members were alerted by a massage therapist who arrived for a scheduled appointment.
Investigators said suspicion quickly centered on the couple’s younger son, who was arrested later that night without incident roughly 15 miles from the home.
Prosecutors have charged Nick Reiner with two counts of first-degree murder and are seeking special circumstances, a legal designation that could allow for a sentence of life in prison without parole or the death penalty if he is convicted.
Officials outlined a developing timeline that included surveillance video from a gas station showing Reiner shortly before his arrest, according to the Times.
Family members, including siblings Jake and Romy Reiner, released a statement asking for privacy as they mourned the loss of their parents.
