Bistro on the corner

He was always very open with his problems in interviews, subtance abuse and manic-depression, so I thought he'd somehow manage it without the threat of suicide but I guess even not being "aware" of your condition doesn't help.

I don't know the equivalent english expression for it, but in the Netherlands we say that "high mountains have deep valleys" (or in German: "himmel hoch jauchzend und zum Tode betrübt", meaning that people who usually are very energetic, positive and funny can have a completely opposite darker side to them sometimes.

Fighting personal demons like addictions and/or depression is very hard, and sometimes people lose.


-ETA-
I don't know if it's true (it's from tumblr) but I just read that Robin Williams had bipolar disorder. That would explain these 2 sides to him.

The World According To Garp is one of my favourite films and one of his earliest.

I have followed his career since Mork and Mindy and right now I just feel numb.

Today like so many I have lost a piece of my childhood.

I knew he would be gone someday but not this way.

But at least he is no longer suffering.

I just read an article: famous comedians who suffered from depression. Charlie Chaplin, the english actor who played "Mr. Bean", and Jim Carrie. The last two are still living and are open about their condition. 

i think being an actor (especially a famous one) is a lot harder than people think. for them no job is permanent and they have to look for work frequently and face rejections all the time. they are also constantly being judged by the public - both their professional lives and often private ones. even someone who has absolutely not genes for depression can easily get upset when you read about yourself on the internet. only the ones with the toughest skin (like those successful politicians) can survive, yet unlike politicians, a good artist also requires rich emotions and a great deal of sensitivity, not to mention heart and soul. these are the traits that can often subject one to depression when the going gets tough.

It's sometimes easy to forgot that Robin Williams was a Julliard trained actor. He was so well known for his comedy (and I don't think he has an equal) that his ability for dramatic acting took many by surprise.

I've been trying to decide what were my favorite Robin William moments and performances and found it really difficult to narrow it down because he had such an amazing body of work. So here are a few that were particularly meaningful to me.

1) Good Morning Vietnam - This is, for me, the film that shows the best balance and the remarkable range of Robin's talent as an actor. It had moments of nearly manic comedy (with Robin's fantastic improv work), but was balanced by a sensitive treatment of the horrors of war. It had some of the best elements that made a show like M*A*S*H work and Robin well deserved his Golden Globe for this performance. It still ranks as one of my absolute favorites.



2) Aladdin - One of the rare occasions where Robin was able to completely cut loose and the animators just went with it. The Genie made this film and it was a great display of Robin's rapid fire comedy.



3) Inside the Actor's Studio - The whole episode was a complete trip, but what always stood out to me was this set up Robin did when he borrowed a woman's scarf and used it to create a wide range of characters. And look at Lipton in the background, because he was completely losing it.



4) Working with Billy Crystal & Whoopi Goldberg - Robin did a long line of comedy specials for HBO to raise funds for the homeless (Comedy Relief) and there were times when it would be him on stage with Billy and Whoopi (three of the best comedians of their age) and Billy and Whoopi knew well enough to let Robin just cut loose and they just went along for the ride. You could see that he was in total control and they were just going along with whatever he was doing. There were so many times when Billy and Whoopi nearly lost it on stage.



So many amazing moments...

^Thanks for the videos, Wendy.

This is amazing: just now when I tried to find a torrent to download his entire episode on 'Inside the Actor Studio' I discovered that that particular torrent at the moment has more than a hundred seeds and peers (people either uploading or downloading) right now, while all other episodes have 10 at most on the same site. People are looking up his work and re-watching it.
And yesterday Robin Williams Wiki-page was unaccessible because too many people tried to click on it at the same time.

It's indeed hard to decide what movie of him to re-watch first: so many to choose from, and so many genres. At the moment I'm doubting between 'The Birdcage' and 'Dead Poets Society', which are completely different films. And I know my husband will want to watch 'Good Morning, Vietnam' and 'What Dreams May Come', also completely different films.

i heard that he was one Tony short of having EGOT. such a shame.

I grew up watching The Birdcage and Mrs.Doubtfire, but one film that Robin gives out a fabulous performance is the much unnoticed One Hour Photo. A chilling performance.

Sad and shocking news. He will be miss. I have not seen a lot of his performances, but did see Mrs Doubtfire, 'Good Morning, Vietnam',and used to watched reruns of Mork and Mindy. I most likely have seen some of his other stuff. But those come to mind right now.

Personally I never been a fan of Robin Williams,but I appreciate his talent and his ability to put an smile on people. In addition when younger I used to love Jumanji,I wondered how it would be if games turn real; also I remember Mrs Doutbfire,a classic,Hook,Jack and there is a movie he starred in,which plot is about people that had a chip in their head that records everything.Do anyone know the name?

*sigh* May have to go to a funeral tomorrow. Just found out that someone who used to be a close friend of the family passed away today. We haven't been in touch with him in several years (since we bought our house and moved). And he's someone that I used to do a lot of activities with (especially attending science fiction conventions, the Renaissance Faire and working with my medieval reenactment group).

Unfortunately I recognized that he was not a good person for me to be around as I got older. He was immature for his age (nearly as old as my father) and while I cared about him, it just wasn't healthy. And he didn't take care of himself physically - it turned out that a few years ago that he had to be hospitalized because he never knew that he was a diabetic and he needed to have his foot and part of his leg amputated because gangrene had set it (and how do you not see that)?

It's sad when someone that you once deeply cared about dies because he just didn't take care of himself. But if the funeral is tomorrow, I'll definitely go to pay my respects to him and to support his brother and niece - they were the only real family he had and this is going to be painful for them (as he and his brother were identical twins).

man, i took a look at the emmy winners this morning, and with a few notable exceptions, it's like the voters don't even watch the shows anymore. i mean, the names just keep repeating year after year. it's getting tiresome. and losing it's importance as a valid award.

not to mention the fact that brilliant shows like hannibal and orphan black and god knows how many more, keep being ignored.

it's just a big party thingy for the celebrities. i really can't get excited over any of these.

Anyone watching Basketball world championship ????

It's Serbia vs. USA for the gold tonight.  

here's hoping that it's title No. 6 for Serbia, after 12 years that were have been terrible at the game.

hmmm, why do "team usa" has that "team terrorist" vibe?  i mean they look so serious. don't kill me. the Serbs are having a party though.

this match is just ....

Look what I got in the mail:



I sent her a letter with a DVD of a concert performed by the 1st national touring cast of Rent that her daughter Carrie was in.  Carol lost her daughter about 12 years ago, and Carol wrote a book about her daughter.  I had the chance to see Carrie in Rent about 10 times, and met her on several occasions.  After reading the book, I decided to write Carol to send her the DVD, and tell her about my experiences with Carrie.  It was a pleasant surprise to arrive home from my vacation to find this note in my mail.

^That's wonderful, Karen!

And how considerate of you to sent her that dvd, that must have been a very nice (although also bittersweet) surprise for her. 

No person should have to lose their child.

Holy smokes. I just got a phone call from Carol Burnett regarding the package I sent her. Wow her voice is distinctive. She was just so appreciative of the DVD and letter I sent her that she wanted to call too. I was just totally shocked! What a classy lady!

She called you personally? U sure it's not a recording? Wow! I bet u left your phone number with her - smart girl!

Yes, she called me personally to thank me again for the DVD and note I sent her. She was just so appreciative that I sent her. I was really shocked when she called since she had already acknowledged the package with the note. It was definitely here--I recognized her voice. She had been in NY for a month performing on Broadway, and she told me that now that she was home, she wanted to call and thank me again.

Wow, that's amazing, Karen! What a nice surprise, and how kind of her. She really must appreciate your video of her daughter: you obviously did her a great pleasure with that.

Lol, I hope you were sitting down when you got the call.

Am starting my Thanksgiving prep. Yes, I know that the holiday isn't until Thursday but I've got a load of stuff to do and I'm always less crazed the more that I'm able to do in advance. And there are just some things that need to be done in advance. Today I'm making my stock - I've been saving chicken bones from the summer (when I cut up whole chickens for smoking) and I've got them simmering away with lots of veggies. I also am making raspberry jam for the lizertorte that I promised my brother to bake. The turkey is on order (we get ours from an Amish farm in Pennsylvania) and I've unclenched enough to let my brother actually cook a few things. It's a good thing that we've got a lot of people coming because we're going to have a ton of food!

Jellyrolls wrote:Yes, she called me personally to thank me again for the DVD and note I sent her.  She was just so appreciative that I sent her.  I was really shocked when she called since she had already acknowledged the package with the note. It was definitely here--I recognized her voice.  She had been in NY for a month performing on Broadway, and she told me that now that she was home, she wanted to call and thank me again.

Wow, that's a really touching story...you were really thoughtful and she was really classy.

Ranwing wrote:Am starting my Thanksgiving prep. Yes, I know that the holiday isn't until Thursday but I've got a load of stuff to do and I'm always less crazed the more that I'm able to do in advance. And there are just some things that need to be done in advance. Today I'm making my stock - I've been saving chicken bones from the summer (when I cut up whole chickens for smoking) and I've got them simmering away with lots of veggies. I also am making raspberry jam for the lizertorte that I promised my brother to bake. The turkey is on order (we get ours from an Amish farm in Pennsylvania) and I've unclenched enough to let my brother actually cook a few things. It's a good thing that we've got a lot of people coming because we're going to have a ton of food!

Sounds like a lot of hard work, hope you have fun too!

I'm probably one whole day ahead of the rest of the world where I'm at, but...