My little tribute to Robin Williams
It was during a busy day
(yesterday) when I heard about the death of one of my favorite actors Robin Williams
from a colleague who casually asked me through Skype if I knew him. Apparently,
she had heard from a client too about the news and googled Robin Williams and
then recalled who he was.
Me, I didn’t need to google him
because I knew him. I felt like I grew up seeing his movies, both laughing and
crying to them as well. And like I normally am during deaths, I cried.
I then
went to google and saw news about his death which I didn’t really pay much attention
to because my eyes were clouded in tears just seeing pictures of Robin Williams
flashing on the screen.
I wanted to write a tribute to
him but since I was too busy and too distracted, I couldn’t make one.
I was planning to just re-blog an
old post Great
Movies to Watch but I just needed to make a more personalized one and something
that really required some effort. After all, it was technically my last
farewell to him and his final hurrah!
So here it is....
Robin McLaurin Williams (July
21, 1951 – August 11, 2014) was an American actor, comedian, film producer, and
screenwriter.
Rising to fame with his role as
the alien Mork in the TV series Mork
& Mindy (1978–82), Williams went on to establish a successful
career in both stand-up comedy and feature film acting. His film career
included such acclaimed films as The World According to Garp (1982), Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989), Awakenings (1990), The
Fisher King (1991), andGood
Will Hunting (1997), as well as financial successes such as Popeye (1980), Hook (1991),Aladdin (1992), Mrs.
Doubtfire (1993), Jumanji (1995), The
Birdcage (1996), Night at the Museum (2006), and Happy Feet (2006).
He also appeared in the video "Don't Worry, Be Happy" by Bobby
McFerrin.
Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor three
times, Williams received the Academy Award for Best
Supporting Actor for his performance in Good Will Hunting.
He also received twoEmmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and five Grammy
Awards.[5][6]
On August 11, 2014, Williams was
found unresponsive at his residence in Marin County, California, and was
pronounced dead at the scene. According to the Marin County Sheriff's Office,
he hanged himself and died of asphyxiation.
Early life and education
Robin McLaurin Williams[7][8] was
born in Chicago, Illinois, on July 21, 1951.[9] His
mother, Laurie McLaurin (c. 1923 – September 4, 2001), was a former model from Jackson, Mississippi, and a
great-granddaughter of Mississippi senator and governor Anselm J. McLaurin.[10][11] His
father, Robert Fitzgerald Williams (September 10, 1906 – October 18, 1987), was
a senior executive atFord Motor Company in charge of the Midwest
region. Williams had English, Welsh, Irish, Scottish, German,
and French ancestry.[12][13][14]He
was raised in the Episcopal Church (while
his mother practiced Christian
Science),[15][16] and
later authored the comedic list, "Top Ten Reasons to be an
Episcopalian."[17]
When Williams' father was
transferred to Detroit, the family moved from Chicago to a 40-room farm house
in suburban Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he was
a student at the Detroit Country Day School.[18] In
middle school, Williams was bullied and would seek out new routes home to avoid
his tormentors.[19] He
told jokes to his mother to make her laugh and pay attention to him.[20] Williams
spent much of his time alone in the family's large home, playing with his 2,000
toy soldiers. "My only companions, my only friends as a child were my
imagination," he said.[21]
Williams' father was away much of
the time and, when he was home, Williams found him "frightening". His
mother worked too, leaving Williams to be attended to by the maids they
employed. Williams claimed his upbringing left him with an acute fear of
abandonment and a condition he described as "Love Me Syndrome."[22]
When Williams was 16, his father
took early retirement and the family moved to Woodacre, Marin
County, California, where he attended the public Redwood High School in
nearby Larkspur. When he graduated in 1969, the
senior class voted him both "Most Likely Not to Succeed" and
"Funniest."[23]
Williams studied at Claremont McKenna College (then
called Claremont Men's College) in Claremont, California.[24] Williams
left Claremont and attained a full scholarship to the esteemed Juilliard
School in New York City. In between Claremont and Juilliard, he
attended the College of Marin for theatre.[25] He
had two brothers: Robert Todd Williams (June 14, 1938 – August 14, 2007) and
McLaurin Smith.[26]
Williams described himself as a
quiet child whose first imitation was of his grandmother to his mother. He did
not overcome his shyness until he became involved with his high school drama
department.[27] In
1973, Williams was one of only 20 students accepted into the freshman class at
Juilliard and one of only two students to be accepted by John
Houseman into the Advanced Program at the school that year; the other
was Christopher Reeve.[28] In
his dialects class, Williams had no trouble quickly mastering dialects. Williams
left Juilliard in 1976.[29]
~ ~ ~
Also, here are some funny and
memorable lines from him:
And here are pictures with some
of his great lines:
May your next life be happier than the
one you lived here and thank you for the laughs (and tears) you've left us
during your journey here.
You will be missed!
nmed 08/13/14 @ 1:06pm
While watching a video on a post in my musicology blog, I realized Robin William was actually in the video of the song Don't Worry Be Happy... I wish he had seen this video before he decided to take his own life. I wonder if it made a difference... https://rastafari369.wordpress.com/
ReplyDeleteWell, his parents neglect and religious upbringing ultimately made him crazy, resulting in a long, drawn out death. Clearly you aren't gonna fix being abandoned by your parents. He had money, access to education, talent, and success and it all it did was delay the inevitable. His parents, dead or alive, should be publicly rebuked.
ReplyDeleteTrue..the parents always have the biggest influence on children and it is a make or break deal. However, it still depends on the person itself, some people have the worst upbringing and family experience yet can still live happy and normal lives...you still chose what you do to your life ultimately...
DeleteAnd apparently appearances can still be deceiving, those who seem to live seemingly happy lives are possible those with the biggest of problems....(but that is just my opinion...)