In his final interview, Carl Reiner revealed what mattered most to him

Christie D'Zurilla
·2 min read

In Carl Reiner's final interview, the comedy legend spoke fondly of his late wife and proudly of his three children.

Reiner, who was 98, died Monday of natural causes at his Beverly Hills home. The interview, done for the Reboot-produced web series "Dispatches From Quarantine," was posted just over a week ago on the Silver Screen Studios YouTube channel.

"The only thing that really matters in life is your progeny, the people who come after you, the people you send out to the world," Reiner said. "They're either toxic or nontoxic."

"Estelle and I raised three children and she was around to see how good they were. But ... since she's left, these three kids have become icons."

Estelle Reiner, who delivered the famous line "I'll have what she's having" in "When Harry Met Sally," died in 2008. One could argue that the couple's firstborn son, actor and filmmaker Rob Reiner, had reached icon status well before that time, having acted in "All in the Family" and directed "The Princess Bride," "When Harry Met Sally" and "This Is Spinal Tap" by then.

Daughter Annie Reiner is a psychoanalyst, author, poet, playwright and painter, while youngest child Lucas Reiner is an actor, writer and painter. Carl Reiner also had six grandchildren.

The comedian crossed paths with his future wife, who was then Estelle Lebost, when they were both on the social staff at a vacation resort in the Adirondacks.

"We met, fell in love, and I was 20 at the time and she was 28, and people said this is not a match," he told "Dispatches." "It only worked for 65 years, and if she didn't pass on we'd still be working on it."

In another gesture just days before he died, Reiner expressed his feelings about his family on social media, tweeting, "Nothing pleases me more than knowing that I have lived the best life possible" by meeting his wife and, with her, bringing his kids into "this needy & evolving world."

Other "Dispatches From Quarantine" videos feature interviews with Norman Lear, Tommy Chong, Ellen Burstyn and Larry King.