The National Comedy Center has acquired the extensive career archives of legendary comedian and actor Carl Reiner, who died in June at age 98.
The archives include thousands of pages of creative papers; unpublished comedy material; rare photographs and footage; and multiple industry awards from Reiner’s seven-decade career.
Among the pages are annotated drafts of scripts he wrote - including all 158 “Dick Van Dyke Show” scripts, “Your Show of Shows” sketches and his film screenplays, including "Oh, God!" starring George Burns and "The Jerk" starring Steve Martin.
Born in the Bronx on March 20, 1922, Reiner would have turned 99 Saturday. He is the father of actor and filmmaker Rob Reiner.
“I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this tremendous honor. Carl Reiner deserves to be celebrated every day, and now he will be, within the halls of this museum dedicated to the art form that Carl loved most – comedy,” said Van Dyke.
Among his awards are nearly a dozen Emmys, the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and induction into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame.
“There will never be another Carl Reiner," said comedian Mel Brooks. "I’m thrilled that the Comedy Center is preserving his archives and naming their work in his honor – no one deserves it more than my best friend. Carl’s comedy was timeless and now his name will live on for generations with this wonderful tribute.”
Brooks and Reiner long-performed the classic comedy sketch, "The 2000 Year Old Man," which won a Grammy and became a television movie in 1975.
