While Rob Reiner‘s home in Brentwood, California, will forever be linked to the grisly murders of the iconic filmmaker and his wife, Michele, the house has a storied history that precedes the crimes committed inside.
While Reiner and his family called the estate in the affluent Los Angeles neighborhood home for decades, its ties to Hollywood go back to its creation.
Actor Henry Fonda, best known for classic films like “12 Angry Men” and “On Golden Pond,” originally had the house built in 1936. Then, it was a Pennsylvania-style farmhouse, complete with a farm, situated on nine acres of land.
Henry tended the farm himself so much that Jane Fonda once told Time magazine that she didn’t even know her father was an actor until she asked him why he occasionally had a beard.
She and her brother, Peter Fonda, would often play with other children in the neighborhood while their fathers — including John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart — would work on the property.
“Sometimes we did improvisations with our governesses,” Peter told Time in a 1962 interview. Jane added, “We lived pretty much the same life my father lived on the screen. It was all a big act.”
Henry sold the home in 1947 to “Casablanca” star Paul Henreid. Peter would later try to buy it back, but he was unsuccessful.
In 1972, the home changed hands again when Henreid sold it to legendary screenwriter and producer Norman Lear. By that time, Lear was already acquainted with Rob — the two worked together on “All in the Family,” where Lear was a writer and producer. The show ran from 1971 to 1979.
Rob left the show in 1978 to pursue creative endeavors behind the camera. The 1980s saw him release some of his most iconic films, including “Stand by Me” and “The Princess Bride.” Lear was a producer on both.
During a 2015 conversation with PBS, Rob recalled going over to Lear’s house to play tennis while they were working on “All in the Family.”
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“I used to say, ‘Boy, if ever I get money, if ever I have some money to buy a house … this is the kind of house that I would like,’” he said. “I mean, it has this kind of New England charm, and it’s kind of got this great, you know, classic look to it.”
In 1991, he was able to purchase the home from Lear for $4.75 million, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Rob told PBS that Michele, whom he married in 1989, had been shopping around for a house for the couple. She liked the Brentwood home, but hesitated to tell Rob about it when she learned that it was owned by Lear, thinking it might have been “weird” for him.
“I said, ‘Honey, this is exactly the kind of house that I’ve always wanted,'” he recalled.
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While the house itself has been owned by Hollywood royalty for nearly a century, the neighborhood of Brentwood has had its fair share of darkness.
Marilyn Monroe’s home was also located in Brentwood. In 1962, she was found dead in her bedroom from an apparent overdose. Her death was ruled a probable suicide, though conspiracy theories surround the case to this day.
In 1994, a crime that took place in the neighborhood captured the entire country’s attention. It was in Brentwood that Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman were murdered.
Nicole’s ex-husband, O.J. Simpson, became the prime suspect. He was charged with the murders, but was ultimately found not guilty after a high-profile trial.
Now, the murders of Rob and Michele have added to Brentwood’s dark history.
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On Dec. 14, the two were found dead in their bedroom from apparent knife wounds. Hours later, their son, Nick, was arrested on suspicion of committing the murders.
After being held in custody for two days, Nick was officially charged with two counts of first-degree murder. He appeared in court for the first time on Dec. 17, wearing a blue suicide-prevention vest, and he only spoke once when he agreed to waive his right to a speedy arraignment.
His next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 7.
If found guilty, Nick faces the maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. There’s also the possibility that prosecutors will seek the death penalty, though California Gov. Gavin Newsom imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019.
