I'm surprised by this. Normally celeb deaths don't bother me but this one does. I lived and breathed jumanji, ms doubtfire, and aladdin as a kid. I loved this guy.
Someone told me over the phone this morning and I legitimately shed a tear. I was completely shocked. I absolutely loved Robin Williams throughout my entire life.
"... and so I close, realizing that perhaps the ending has not yet been written."
I was already having a bad couple of days and then this news comes along. I don't know if it's because I'm feeling fragile right now or what, but hearing the news hit me way harder than I would have expected. Ask me 24 hours if there are any celebrities I'd be broken up about and yeah, I could name some, but I doubt I'd have called Robin Williams to mind. Now though... damn.
You made so, so many people laugh, and you performed some truly amazing work in serious roles as well. There are actors as good, a few but not many. I suspect it'll always be a little bittersweet to watching a movie like Aladdin from now on, but the best way to honor the man is, I think, to do as his wife Susan Schneider requests and "focus... on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions."
On the topic of depression and suicide though, it's hard as a sufferer of it to see a person of his age succumb. You sort of hope that if you get through your youth, you've figured things out well enough to get by. To be driven to suicide is a tragedy, and I hope this tragedy does help improve the debate about mental healthcare at least a little. There might be some small silver lining in that.
I've been watching episodes of the Critic, and twice since hearing this news the show had done impressions of Characters Williams had played.
That was just bizarre.
I loved his films growing up like many here. He seemed like a great guy. Was sad upon hearing this. R.I.P.
Str8 Pimpin'
Last edited by Depression Moon; 08-12-2014 at 08:16 PM.
I'm still processing this. It's hit me a lot harder than I would have expected it to and I think part of that is because he succumbed to depression, which is an illness I've been suffering from for quite some time myself. I guess I sort of assumed that it would get less severe over time and for that reason it's almost devastating to see such a universally beloved figure succumb to it at age sixty-three.
I could discuss his film legacy - Dead Poets Society, Good Morning Vietnam, Aladdin, Hook, Good Will Hunting, list goes on - or his stand-up work but I suspect there are other people better qualified to do that. I do think it's worth noting how much he excelled both in comedic and serious roles, though, which is no easy feat. As someone who has performed in the past, I can safely vouch that being good at one is no guarantee of being good at the other.
Mainly, though, I feel horribly for his family, and hope that if nothing else this can serve as a national wake-up call about mental disorders. Anyone and everyone can suffer from them, even successful sixty-something actors with families and friends, and people can get very good at pretending that everything's all right when it isn't. Maybe if someone around him had had a conversation with him about his depression, this could have been prevented. But as a fellow sufferer I know how difficult it is to talk about.
Just terrible news all around, and I feel like I don't really have adequate words for it. I'm way more broken up about this than I'd have expected to be.
I haven't seen everything he acted in, but these are the roles I remember: The little boy who was bullied and then got sucked into a frightening jungle of horrors before being spat out into the world again, twenty-six years later; the ten year old who appears to be forty and tries to fit in with his peers; the enslaved, friendless djinn; the robot who tries to become like his human peers; the lonely photo technician; the lonely single dad who just wants to see his children; the boy-child who finally made the mistake of growing up - so much loneliness amidst all of these laughs and family films.
My favorite Robin Williams movies are:
What Dreams May Come
Hook
The Birdcage
Mrs. Doubtfire
Dead Poets Society
Jumanji
Strangely enough, I don't care much for Aladdin. It's never been a favorite of mine. And I think Robin Williams was much more effective as a dramatic actor than a comedic actor.
I don't see either type of role as more impacting than the other. The fact that he was enough of a talented artist to seamlessly flow between the realms of both tragedy and comedy, often within moments of each other, speaks for itself.
What It Was Like to Do Improv with Robin Williams
Robin Williams may not care about any of the rules, but he absolutely cares about the people. He cares about the people onstage with him having a good experience, and you can sense that pouring out of him alongside his sweat. He cares about making sure we all could look him in the eye and know we are in it together, and he cares about making every single person in that basement theater have a good time. He doesn't ooze confidence — not at all. He seemed nervous until the second he got onstage. What he oozes is empathy — an empathy that gives him both the need and ability to make people have a better time than they were having before he got onstage.
In case you're interested, he apparently did an AMA not too long ago on the Reddits.
If you can stomach reading the place, the link is here: Robin Williams. It's time for a convoluted stream of consciousness. Ask Me Anything! : reddit.com
He had excellent taste in literature:
Also:Originally Posted by Robin Williams
“Good Will Hunting” Bench in Boston Public Garden Becomes Robin Williams Memorial - News - Boston.com
This Inside the Actors Studio episode will probably also be of interest.
Fresh Air had and awesome interview from 2006 with him on today. Was great to listen to on the drive home. A coworker also mentioned she met him once years ago and asked to shake his hand he replied "snobby hollywood people shake hands, real people hug!" and gave her a huge hug.
A couple of very sweet remembrances by celebrities and people that knew him.
http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/n...omage-20140811
Apparently he was an avid World of Warcraft player who enjoyed trolling people in general chat. So blizzard is making him into a NPC in honor.