Showbiz bigs mourn ‘angel’

Rob Reiner’s tweet was brief, and from the heart.

“Last night my dad passed away,” the actor and director tweeted Tuesday. “As I write this my heart is hurting. He was my guiding light.”

Carl Reiner, a comedy giant who died of natural causes Monday night at 98, had three children, including Rob. But in his 70-year-plus career, he also served as a father figure and mentor to generations of writers, actors, producers and directors.

Some of the biggest names in showbiz mourned Tuesday the death of the man who made the world laugh from “Your Show of Shows” in the early 1950s to “Ocean’s Thirteen” in 2017.

“When I helped present him with the Mark Twain prize,” tweeted Jerry Seinfeld, “I said, ‘Mark Twain was pretty funny, but I think he’d be more excited to receive the Carl Reiner prize.’ We lost an angel today.” Others concurred. “Goodbye to my greatest mentor in life,” Steve Martin tweeted. “Thank you, dear Carl.”

Reiner directed Martin’s films “The Jerk,” “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid,” “The Man With Two Brains” and “All of Me.”

Reiner’s comic highlights include his early TV work with Sid Caesar; “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” which he created, wrote produced and occasionally starred in; the Martin films; “Oh, God!” with George Burns, and his long collaboration with best friend Mel Brooks. They recorded a series of albums with Reiner playing the straight man interviewing Brooks’ “2000 Year Old Man.”

“Carl was a giant, unmatched in his contribution to entertainment,” tweeted Brooks, who added, “I met him in 1950 when he joined Sid Caesar on Your Show of Shows, and we’ve been best friends ever since. I loved him.”

Reiner attended Brooks’ 94th birthday party Sunday. The two were both products of New York.

Of all Reiner’s successes, perhaps the biggest is “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” which ran from 1961-66 but is seen to this day.

Van Dyke, who Reiner turned from a respected Broadway actor into a TV superstar, posted an Instagram photo with himself, his wife and his mentor. Van Dyke wrote, “100% pure mensch. We love you so much. More tributes to follow.”

Ron Howard, a 60-year veteran of showbiz despite being just 66, saluted Reiner’s incredible comedic contributions. “RIP #Carl Reiner — A brilliant comedy talent w/heart & intellect whether writing, directing, producing or performing,”