Robin Williams died this morning. I didn't know him personally, but his art was such a part of my life, I feel as if I have lost a friend.
Just this afternoon, I found myself saying "shucks and wazoo" a line from the classic sitcom "Mork and Mindy" I took up the expression in an effort to stop swearing, when I realized that saying "Holy Fuck" was not appropriate in a business setting. I loved Mork and Mindy- the early shows anyway. I think the show "jumped the shark" when they added Jonathan Winters as baby Mirth. I know Williams was a huge fan of Winters, but it just didn't work.
I saw Williams several times in stand-up and other "concert type" performances. One of the very best was a "Survival Sunday" show I was working at the Hollywood Bowl as part of an anti- nuke show. He and John Ritter took the stage and did 20 minutes of pure improv, with the audience calling out scenarios. I never realized what a true comic genius Ritter was as he and Williams played off one another, each trying to make the other laugh. The audience was howling and we would have kept them all night, but there were other acts lined up and sadly they left the stage.
But Williams was more than a comic actor. The film "Good Morning Viet Nam" showed his range in an extraordinary way. In the scene where the cafe blows up and the screen fills with his face, you see the horror of war reflected in his eyes. It remains a very powerful image in my mind.
I hear that he was struggling with depression and had had the disease for many years. We can never know the true depths of his anguish. My heart goes out to his children and his wife, ours is a small loss, theirs is huge hole that can never be filled.
So, thank you, Robin Williams, for making me laugh when I needed it most. I hope your soul is at peace on the other side.
I was at that Survival Sunday event too! Working a summer job during college in the Hollywood Bowl concessions booths. During the event I took a break and headed up to the stage to catch a little of the event and to look out at the crowd. (the view of a filled Bowl from the stage perspective is awesome!). So I'm hanging out in the wing of the stage, the announcer is babbling on about something (they are between acts) and I notice a guy in rainbow suspenders pacing around next to me. When I looked over at him he stopped, made eye contact, nodded and said hello. I was going to say something back when the announcer said "Robin William!" and the guy in suspenders bounced out onto the stage. That was my introduction to Robin Williams. Years later I worked on a couple of the Comic Relief events for HBO. I ran across Robin on a couple of occaisions and in every circumstance he was open and available. From directors and producers to the lowliest production assistant he always had a smile and would say hello. Not like so many celebrities that seem to keep everybody at arms length all the time. Unlike many of those kind of celebrities when he looked at you he saw you. I moun the loss of a great actor, comic genius and compassionate human being.
ReplyDeleteThere is a podcast of the Survival Sunday event available here if you are interested: http://fromthevaultradio.org/home/2014/06/06/ftv-421-survival-sunday-ii-35th-anniversary/
Thank you for the link, do you know if the cd has the entire show on it? The link has "highlights". I do wish there was a dvd available.
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Nice story about Robin at the Hollywood Bowl. I would have loved to have seen that. Thank you!
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Hi
ReplyDeleteAccording to the website, you can call them. They should be able to tell you how much of the show is on the cd.
Thanks Robyn!
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