R.I.P. Robin Williams

Wow.

I’m not even sure where to begin with this.  I was a huge Robin Williams fan.  I loved the high tempo comedy routines, I was stunned by the depth that he brought to his dramatic roles (comedians can be astounding talents at dramatic roles) and I was very happy to discover that he was a fellow Episcopalian.  Lots of entertainers that I admire have died over the years of my life.  For whatever reason, this one feels different.

It wasn’t always that way.

I remember vividly when “Mork and Mindy” debuted in September of 1978.  There’s was a lot of talk about this show.  I was not impressed.  It sounded like the dumbest idea I’d ever heard and I was (big surprise) quite vocal about what a dumb idea it was.  After watching it for a few episodes I fell for Williams’s quirky style and gentle hearted character.  It also didn’t hurt that Pam Dawber was easy on the eyes.  In the end I was probably right about the concept because it ran it’s course very quickly.  But when the show was good, it could be amazing.

That is the simplest summation of Robin Williams’s career.  Some things just didn’t have the depth to go the distance.  But when he was good?  Oh my.

I’m not sure I can even choose my favorite Robin Williams role.  What a pleasant surprise he was in “The World According to Garp”.  I knew he could be something special after watching him in “Moscow on the Hudson”.  “Good Morning Viet Nam” isn’t a particularly good movie but Williams was amazing.  I have to imagine that it is a favorite especially among radio DJs.  The first half of the movie is mostly about the radio and it’s stunningly funny.  “Dead Poet’s Society”, “Cadillac Man”, “Awakenings”, “The Fisher King”, “Hook”, “Aladdin”, “Mrs. Doubtfire”, “The Birdcage” (THE FREAKING BIRDCAGE!!!!), “Good Will Hunting”, “What Dreams May Come”, “Patch Adams”.  Even in the small role he had as Teddy Roosevelt in the “Night in the Museum” movies he was fun to watch.

Not all of those are great movies.  There were plenty of movies on his filmography which are pretty forgettable.  Curiously his comedy movies tend to fall flat for me.  The general consensus is that his high energy comic style just didn’t translate well.  “Aladdin” was the right vehicle for that style.

Robin Williams always felt like someone who would be a blast to just hang with casually.  It just felt like he would be perfectly comfortable in the backyard with a few friends.  At the end of the night there would be a big hug.  And a fall down funny parting line.  Followed by more hysterical commentary the whole way to the car.  And then a few more tossed out the window as he drove away.

That’s the way it felt to me at least.

Which is probably why the death of this entertainer that I never met feels so personal.

I will miss you Robin.