Carl Reiner’s ‘Two and a Half Men’ Co-Star Jon Cryer Shares Letter Late Comedy Legend Sent Him in 2009

Two and a Half Men star Jon Cryer has paid tribute to the Carl Reiner, by sharing a letter that the late comedy legend sent him in 2009. The pair worked together on the beloved CBS sitcom, and Cryer explained that one year he stepped up to fill in for Reiner at the Director’s Guild awards. Reiner had hosted the show for many years but had to “take the night off” that year due to health reasons.

In the letter Reiner wrote to Cryer, he joked, “Dear Jon, I thank you for filling in for me tonight. I wish with all my heart that you fail, or if you don’t, that you are no more than adequate. I don’t want to have to compete with you for this non-paying job.” He signed it with his name, and then added, “For 22 years, the best host the DGA ever had.” Cryer added that “working with, and getting to know Carl Reiner were two of the great thrills” of his entire career. “A lovely man who lived a wonderful life and brought joy to literally millions,” he wrote. Cryer then joked that “for what it’s worth,” he “killed at the DGA Awards that night,” because he “started the show by reading [Reiner’s] letter aloud.”

Reiner passed away on June 29 at the age of 98. His son Rob has since issued a statement on the sad news, writing, “Last night my dad passed away. As I write this my heart is hurting. He was my guiding light.” Reiner was a heavyweight in Hollywood, and has been widely respected for his role in bring comedy to the masses vie films and television for many years.

Maybe Reiner’s most notable creative achievement was creating the Dick Van Dyke Show in the 1950s. Notably, Van Dyke has also commented on the death of his friend, tweeting, “My idol, Carl Reiner, wrote about the human comedy. He had a deeper understanding of the human condition, than I think even he was aware of. Kind, gentle, compassionate, empathetic and wise. His scripts were never just funny, they always had something to say about us.”