Robin Williams Passed Away and I'll Miss Him

Who was not shocked to hear about the death of Robin Williams on Monday afternoon, August 11?  It was so unexpected.  One of the funniest men on earth and I thought someone who also enjoyed life.  My thought was that someone who can see the funny side of life and makes us see it should be able to deal with his own demons better.  I guess not.  Still, I don't want to remember Robin Williams as a troubled soul.  I want to remember him as someone who was unexpectedly funny and sweet.  As a child who watched Happy Days who can forget when we first saw Mork?  Who didn't laugh when Mork first sat down in Mork & Mindy?  Robin Williams' comedy was refreshing and sweet.  His humor was never mean.  It always spotlighted those odd things that people think are normal.

As for his movies, I will never forget him in Good Morning Vietnam.   He played a DJ who cheered up the troops with his morning radio show.  The way he said, "Good Morning Vietnam!" woke you up happy to be hearing him first thing in the morning.  His rapid fire delivery and quixotic jumps of comedic vignettes was a wonder.  My next favorite Robin Williams movie was Mrs. Doubtfire.  Enough said.  But I think one of the best scenes in a Robin Williams movie was the waltz scene in The Fisher King where all the commuters in Grand Central danced.  In the movie, Robin played Parry, a homeless man who fell in love and follows her through Times Square.  The scene was magical.

His verbal virtuosity was sublime as the voice of the Genie in Walt Disney's Aladdin.  You could just listen to him for hours.  Any one who listened to him as a stand-up comedian is amazed.  Of course, as a performer, he challenged himself with other roles and not just in comedies but also in more dramatic pieces.  I could never sit through those movies.  I thought there's so many people who can do a dramatic role.  I preferred him in funny scenes, comedy was where he shined.  Not many people can do comedy well.  One savors his comedic performances.

There are very few artists where I experienced a feeling of loss at their passing.  Jim Henson, the creator of The Muppets was one.  Robin Williams is now the second.  These two were such original, creative beings.  You know that the world had lost something when they moved on to the afterlife.