Robin Williams

Early life

Williams was born in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Laura (ne Smith, 19222001), was a former model from New Orleans, Louisiana. His father, Robert Fitzgerald Williams (September 10, 1906  October 18, 1987) was a senior executive at Lincoln-Mercury Motorship in charge of the Midwest area. Williams was raised in the Episcopal Church, though his mother practiced Christian Science. He grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he was a student at the Detroit Country Day School, and Marin County, California, where he attended the public Redwood High School. Williams also attended Claremont McKenna College (then called Claremont Men’s College) for four years.

He has two half-brothers: Todd (who died August 14, 2007) and McLaurin.

Williams has 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.

In 1973, Williams was one of only 20 students accepted into the freshman class at the Juilliard School, and one of only two students to be accepted by John Houseman into the Advanced Program at the school that year, the other being Christopher Reeve. In his dialects class, Williams had no trouble mastering all dialects quickly. WIlliams left Juilliard in 1976.

Television career

After appearing in the cast of the short-lived The Richard Pryor Show on NBC, Williams was cast by Garry Marshall as the alien Mork in the hit TV series “Happy Days”. As Mork, Williams improvised much of his dialogue and devised plenty of rapid-fire verbal and physical comedy, speaking in a high, nasal voice. Mork’s appearance was so popular with viewers that it led to a spin-off hit television sitcom, Mork and Mindy, which ran from 1978 to 1982. Although playing the same character as in his appearance in Happy Days, the show was set in the present day, in Boulder, Colorado, instead of late ’50s in Milwaukee. Mork was an extremely popular character, featured on posters, coloring books, lunchboxes, and other merchandise.

Starting in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, Williams began to reach a wider audience with his standup comedy, including three HBO comedy specials, Off The Wall (1978), An Evening with Robin Williams (1982), and Robin Williams: Live at the Met (1986). Also in 1986, Williams reached an ever wider audience to exhibit his style at the 58th Academy Awards show; noting the Hollywood writers strike that year he commented that the Hollywood writer… “is the only man in the world that can blow smoke up his own ass.” As a result, Williams has never hosted the Academy Awards again.

His standup work has been a consistent thread through his career, as is seen by the success of his one-man show (and subsequent DVD) Robin Williams Live on Broadway (2002). He was voted 13th on Comedy Central’s list “100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time” in 2004.

After some encouragement from his friend Whoopi Goldberg, he was set to make a guest appearance in the 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, “A Matter of Time”, but he had to cancel due to a scheduling conflict; Matt Frewer took his place as a time-traveling con man, Professor Berlingoff Rasmussen.

Williams also appeared on an episode of the American version of Whose Line Is It Anyway? (Season 3, Episode 9: November 16, 2000). During a game of “Scenes from a Hat”, the scene “What Robin Williams is thinking right now” was drawn, and Williams stated “I have a career. What the hell am I doing here?”

Cinema career

Most of Williams’ acting career has been in film, although he has given some performances on stage as well (notably as Estragon in a production of Waiting for Godot with Steve Martin). His performance in Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) got Williams nominated for an Academy Award. Many of his roles have been comedies tinged with pathos, for example The Birdcage and Mrs. Doubtfire.

His role as the Genie in the animated film Aladdin was instrumental in establishing the importance of star power in voice actor casting. Williams also used his voice talents in Fern Gully, as the holographic Dr. Know in the 2001 feature A.I. Artificial Intelligence, the 2005 animated feature Robots, the 2006 Academy Award winning Happy Feet, and an uncredited vocal performance in 2006′s Everyone’s Hero. Furthermore, he was the voice of The Timekeeper, a former attraction at the Walt Disney World Resort about a time-traveling robot who encounters Jules Verne and brings him to the future.

Williams has also starred in dramatic films, which got him two subsequent Academy Award nominations: First for playing an English teacher in Dead Poets Society (1989), and later for playing a troubled homeless man in The Fisher King (1991); that same year, he played an adult Peter Pan in the movie Hook. Other acclaimed dramatic films include Awakenings (1990) and What Dreams May Come (1998). In the 2002 dramatic thriller Insomnia, Williams portrays a writer/killer on the run from a sleep-deprived Los Angeles policeman (played by Al Pacino) in rural Alaska. And also in 2002, in the psychological thriller One Hour Photo, Williams played an emotionally disturbed photo development technician who becomes obsessed with a family for whom he has developed pictures for a long time.

In 1998, he won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor for his role as a psychologist in Good Will Hunting. However, by the early 2000s, he was thought by some to be typecast in films such as Patch Adams (1998) and Bicentennial Man (1999) that critics complained were excessively maudlin. In 2006 Williams starred in The Night Listener, a thriller about a radio show host who realizes he has developed a friendship with a child who may or may not exist.

He is known for his improvisational skills and impersonations. His performances frequently involve impromptu humor designed and delivered in rapid-fire succession while on stage. According to the Aladdin DVD commentary, most of his dialogue as the Genie was improvised.

In 2006, he starred in five movies including Man of the Year and was the Surprise Guest at the 2006 Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards. He appeared on an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition that aired on January 30, 2006.

At one point, he was in the running to play the Riddler in Batman Forever until director Tim Burton dropped the project. Earlier, Williams had been a strong contender to play the Joker in Batman. He had expressed interest in assuming the role in The Dark Knight, the sequel to 2005′s Batman Begins, although the part of the Joker was played by Heath Ledger, who went on to win, posthumously, the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

He was portrayed by Chris Diamantopoulos in the made-for-TV biopic Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of Mork & Mindy (2005), documenting the actor’s arrival in Hollywood as a struggling comedian.

Disputes with Disney

In gratitude for his success with the Disney/Touchstone film Good Morning, Vietnam, Robin Williams voiced the Genie in the Disney animated film Aladdin for SAG scale pay (,000), on condition that his name or image not be used for marketing, and his (supporting) character not take more than 25% of space on advertising artwork, since Toys was scheduled for release one month after Aladdin’s debut. The studio went back on the deal on both counts, especially in poster art by having the Genie in 25% of the image, but having other major and supporting characters portrayed considerably smaller. Disney’s Hyperion book, Aladdin: The Making Of An Animated Film, listed both of Williams’ characters “The Peddler” and “The Genie” ahead of main characters, but was forced to refer to him only as “the actor signed to play the Genie”.

Williams and Disney had a bitter falling-out, and as a result Dan Castellaneta voiced the Genie in The Return of Jafar, the Aladdin animated television series, and had recorded his voice for Aladdin and the King of Thieves. When Jeffrey Katzenberg was fired from Disney and replaced by former 20th Century Fox production head Joe Roth (whose last act for Fox was greenlighting Williams’ film Mrs. Doubtfire), Roth arranged for a public apology to Williams by Disney. Williams agreed to perform in Hollywood Pictures’ Jack, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, and even agreed to voice the Genie again for the King Of Thieves sequel (for considerably more than scale), replacing all of Castellaneta’s dialogue.

When Williams re-teamed with Doubtfire director Chris Columbus for 1999′s Bicentennial Man, Disney asked that the budget be cut by approximately  million, and when the film was released on Christmas Day, it flopped at the box office. Williams blamed Disney’s marketing and the loss of content the film had suffered due to the budget cuts. As a result, Williams was again on bad terms with Disney, and Castellaneta was once again recruited to replace him as Genie in the Kingdom Hearts video game series and the House of Mouse TV series. The DVD release for Aladdin has no involvement whatsoever from Williams in the bonus materials, although some of his original recording sessions can be seen.

Robin Williams has recently made peace with the Walt Disney Company and in 2009 agreed to be inducted into the Disney hall of fame, designated as a Disney Legend.

Stand-up career

Robin Williams has done a number of stand-up comedy tours since the early 1970s. Some of his most notable tours include An Evening With Robin Williams (1982), Robin Williams: At The Met (1986) and Robin Williams LIVE on Broadway (2002). The latter broke many long held records for a comedy show. In some cases, tickets were sold out within thirty minutes of going on sale.

After a six-year break, in August 2008 Williams announced a brand new 26-city tour titled “Weapons of Self Destruction”. He was quoted as saying that this was his last chance to make cracks at the expense of the current Bush Administration, but by the time the show was staged only a few minutes covered that subject. The tour started at the end of September 2009, finishing in New York on December 3, and was the subject of an HBO special on December 8, 2009.

Controversy

Robin Williams gained a reputation for stealing material from other comics to the extent that David Brenner claims that he confronted Williams personally and threatened him with bodily harm if he heard Williams utter another one of his jokes.

Personal life

Robin Williams’ first marriage was to Valerie Velardi on June 4, 1978, with whom he has one child, Zachary Pym (Zak) (born April 11, 1983). During Williams’ first marriage, he was involved in an extramarital relationship with Michelle Tish Carter, a cocktail waitress whom he met in 1984. She sued him in 1986, claiming that he did not tell her he was infected with the herpes simplex virus before he embarked on a sexual relationship with her in the mid-1980s, during which, she said, he transmitted the virus to her. The case was settled out of court.

On April 30, 1989, he married Marsha Garces, his son’s nanny who was already several months pregnant with his child. They have two children, Zelda Rae (born July 31, 1989) and Cody Alan (born November 25, 1991). However, in March 2008, Garces filed for divorce from Williams, citing irreconcilable differences.

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Williams had an addiction to cocaine; he has since quit. Williams was a close friend and frequent partier alongside John Belushi. He says the death of his friend and the birth of his son prompted him to quit drugs: “Was it a wake-up call? Oh yeah, on a huge level. The grand jury helped too.”

On August 9, 2006, Williams checked himself in to a substance-abuse rehabilitation center (located in Newberg, Oregon), later admitting that he was an alcoholic. His publicist delivered the announcement:

“After 20 years of sobriety, Robin Williams found himself drinking again and has decided to take proactive measures to deal with this for his own well-being and the well-being of his family. He asks that you respect his and his family’s privacy during this time. He looks forward to returning to work this fall to support his upcoming film releases.”

On August 20, 2007, Williams’ elder brother, Robert Todd Williams, died of complications from heart surgery performed a month earlier.

Williams is a member of the Episcopal Church. He has described his denomination in a comedy routine as “Catholic Lite ; same rituals, half the guilt.”

While studying at Juilliard, Williams befriended Christopher Reeve. They had several classes together in which they were the only students, and they remained good friends for the rest of Reeve’s life. Williams visited Reeve after the horse riding accident that rendered him a quadriplegic, and cheered him up by pretending to be an eccentric Russian doctor (similar to his role in Nine Months). Williams claimed that he was there to perform a colonoscopy. Reeve stated that he laughed for the first time since the accident and knew that life was going to be okay.

Health

Williams was hospitalized in March 2009 due to heart problems. Williams postponed his one-man tour in order to undergo surgery to replace his aortic valve. The surgery was successfully completed on March 13, 2009, at the Cleveland Clinic.

Other interests

Williams speaking at the 2008 BBC World Debate

Williams is an avid enthusiast of games (even naming his daughter after Princess Zelda from The Legend of Zelda video game series), enjoying pen-and-paper role-playing games and online video games, recently playing Warcraft 3, Day of Defeat, Half-Life, and the first-person shooter Battlefield 2 as a sniper. On January 6, 2006, he performed live at Consumer Electronics Show during Google’s keynote. In the 2006 E3, on the invitation of Will Wright, he demonstrated the creature editor of Spore while simultaneously commenting on the creature’s look: “This will actually make a platypus look good.” He also complimented the game’s versatility, comparing it to Populous and Black & White. Later that year, he was one of several celebrities to participate in the Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day.

Williams has gone on record as a fan of the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion, and incorporated a scene referencing it in One Hour Photo where he purchases a model kit from it as a gift.

A fan of professional road cycling, he was a regular on the US Postal and Discovery Channel Pro Cycling team bus and hotels during the years Lance Armstrong dominated the Tour de France. He owns over 50 bicycles.

He also enjoys rugby union and is a big fan of former All Black, Jonah Lomu.

Williams is a supporter of eco-friendly vehicles. He currently drives a Toyota Prius, but is on the waiting list to be an early adopter of the Aptera 2-series electric vehicle.

Charity work

Williams and his former wife, Marsha, founded the Windfall Foundation, a philanthropic organization to raise money for many different charities. Williams devotes much of his energy doing work for charities, including the Comic Relief fund-raising efforts. In December 1999, he sang in French on the BBC-inspired music video of international celebrities doing a cover of the Rolling Stones’ “It’s Only Rock & Roll” for the charity Children’s Promise.

Williams has performed with the USO for U.S. troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Filmography

Year

Film

Role

Notes

1977

Can I Do It ‘Till I Need Glasses?

Himself

1980

Popeye

Popeye

1982

The World According to Garp

T.S. Garp

1983

The Survivors

Donald Quinelle

1984

Moscow on the Hudson

Vladimir Ivanov

Nominated  Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

1986

Seize the Day

Tommy Wilhelm

Club Paradise

Jack Moniker

The Best of Times

Jack Dundee

1987

Good Morning, Vietnam

Adrian Cronauer

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

Nominated  Academy Award for Best Actor

Nominated  BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role

1988

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

King of the Moon

Credited as Ray D. Tutto

Portrait of a White Marriage

Air Conditioning Salesman

Rabbit Ears: Pecos Bill

Narrator

Voice

1989

Dead Poets Society

John Keating

Nominated  Academy Award for Best Actor

Nominated  BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role

Nominated  Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Drama

I’m from Hollywood

Himself

1990

Awakenings

Dr. Malcolm Sayer

Nominated  Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Drama

Cadillac Man

Joey O’Brien

Back to Neverland

Himself

1991

Hook

Peter Banning / Peter Pan

The Fisher King

Parry

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

Nominated  Academy Award for Best Actor

Dead Again

Doctor Cozy Carlisle

“Rabbit Ears: The Fool and the Flying Ship”

Narrator

Voice

1992

Toys

Leslie Zevo

voice

Aladdin

Genie/Merchant

Voice

The Timekeeper

The Timekeeper

FernGully: The Last Rainforest

Batty Koda

Voice

Shakes the Clown

Mime Class Instructor

1993

Mrs. Doubtfire

Daniel Hillard/Mrs. Doubtfire

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

Being Human

Hector

1994

In Search of Dr. Seuss

Father

1995

Aladdin and the King of Thieves

Genie

Voice

Jumanji

Alan Parrish

To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar

John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt

Nine Months

Dr. Kosevich

1996

Hamlet

Osric

The Secret Agent

The Professor

Jack

Jack Powell

The Birdcage

Armand Goldman

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

1997

Good Will Hunting

Sean Maguire

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor

Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

Nominated  Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor Motion Picture

Nominated  Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

Flubber

Professor Philip Brainard

Deconstructing Harry

Mel/Harry’s Character

Fathers’ Day

Dale Putley

1998

Patch Adams

Hunter “Patch” Adams

Nominated  Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

Junket Whore

Himself

What Dreams May Come

Chris Nielsen

1999

Bicentennial Man

Andrew Martin

Jakob the Liar

Jakob Heym/Narrator

Get Bruce

Himself

2000

Model Behavior

Faremain

2001

A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Dr. Know

voice

2002

The Rutles 2: Can’t Buy Me Lunch

Hans Hnkie

Insomnia

Walter Finch

Death to Smoochy

‘Rainbow’ Randolph Smiley

One Hour Photo

Sy Parrish

2004

Noel

Charlie Boyd/The Priest

House of D

Pappass

The Final Cut

Alan W. Hakman

2005

The Big White

Paul Barnell

Robots

Fender

voice

The Aristocrats

Himself

2006

Man of the Year

Tom Dobbs

Night at the Museum

Theodore Roosevelt

Happy Feet

Ramon/Lovelace

(voice)

Everyone’s Hero

Napoleon Cross

(voice)

RV

Bob Munro

The Night Listener

Gabriel Noone

2007

License to Wed

Reverend Frank

August Rush

Maxwell “Wizard” Wallace

2009

Shrink

Holden

World’s Greatest Dad

Lance Clayton

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Theodore Roosevelt

Old Dogs

Dan Rayburn

2010

Wedding Banned

John Fischer

In development

2011

Happy Feet 2 in 3D

Ramon/Lovelace

Voice role

Filming

Television

Year

Title

Role

Notes

1977

Richard Pryor Show

Himself

Writer

“Man with Bad Arm,” “John Brownstein, Defense Attorney/Archeologist/Shopper,” “Himself,” “Himself/Titanic Survivor/Voice of Gun”

Laugh-In

Eight is Enough

Episode: “The Return of Auntie V”

1978

Happy Days

Mork

Episode: My Favorite Orkan

America 2-Night

Jason Shine

Episodes: “Jason Shine” and “Olfactory Distosis Telethon”

19791982

Mork & Mindy

Mork

Appeared in 92 episodes

1979

Happy Days

Mork

Episode: “Mork Returns”

Out of the Blue

Episode: “Random’s Arrival”

1981

Saturday Night Live

Himself

Host/Various

1982

The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour

Himself

Episode: #1.1

Faerie Tale Theatre

Frog/Prince Robin

Episode: “Tale of the Frog Prince”

SCTV Network 90

Various

Episode: “Jane Eyrehead”

1984

Saturday Night Live

Himself

Host/Various

Pryor’s Place

Gaby

Episode: “Sax Education”

1986

Saturday Night Live

Himself

Host/Various

The Max Headroom Show

Himself

Episode: “Max Headroom’s Giant Christmas Turkey”

1988

Saturday Night Live

Himself

Host/Various

Wogan

Himself

1991

Wogan

Himself

1992

The Larry Sanders Show

Himself

Episode: “Hank’s Contract”

1994

Homicide: Life on the Streets

Robert Ellison

Episode: “Bop Gun”

Live & Kicking

Himself

The Larry Sanders Show

Himself

Episode: “Montana”

Nyhetsmorgon

Himself

Episode: “Filmen ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ svensk premir”

In the Wild

Himself

Episode: “In the Wild: Dolphins with Robin Williams”

1995

Primer Plano

Himself

1996

American Masters

Himself

Episode: “Take Two: Mike Nichols and Elaine May”

Primer Plano

1996

Friends

Tomas

Uncredited

HBO First Look

Himself

Episode: “Fathers Day”

1998

Nyhetsmorgon

Himself/Sean Maguire

Episode: “Filmen ‘Good Will Hunting”

Hollywood Squares

Himself

Guest appearance

Noel’s House Party

Himself

Episode: #8.10

1999

L.A. Doctors

Hugo Kinsley

Episode: “Just Duet”

2000

Whose Line Is It Anyways?

Himself

Episodes: #3.4 and #3.9

2002

Comedy Central Canned Ham

Himself

Episode: “Death to Smoochy”

Leute heute

Himself

Supermarket Sweep

Himself

2003

Player$

Himself

Episodes: “E3 03, Playa;” “Players Halloweenie Televizzie”

Freedoom: A History of Us

Josiah Quincy/Ulysses S. Grant/Missouri Farmer/Wilbur Wright/Orville Wright

Episodes: “Wake Up America,” “A War to End Slavery,” “Liberty for All,” and “Safe for Democracy”

Life With Bonnie

Kevin Powalski

Episode: “Psychic”

2004

This Hour Has 22 Minutes

Himself

2005

Just For Laughs

Himself

2006

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Himself

Mind of Mencia

Himself

Episode: “That’s F**king Historical”

Getaway

Himself

Episode: #15.15

2008

American Idol: The Search for a New Superstar

Ivan “Bob” Poppanoff the “Russian Idol”/Himself

Episodes: “Idol Gives Back” and “Live Results Show: One Contestant Eliminated”

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Merrit Rook

Episode: “Authority”

2009

SpongeBob SquarePants

Himself

Episode: “Truth or Square”

TV Land Moguls

Himself

Episode: “The 80s”

Discography

Williams sings a version of “Come Together” with Bobby McFerrin on In My Life, a Beatles tribute album produced by George Martin. He also sings “A Mi Manera (My Way)”, on the Happy Feet soundtrack. For the 1993 soundtrack of Mrs. Doubtfire, and the film, he sings a rendition of a fragment of Gioachino Rossini’s “Largo al factotum” from The Barber of Seville.

Williams appeared in the music video of Bobby McFerrin’s hit song “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”.

Reality…What a Concept (1979)

Throbbing Python of Love (1983)

A Night at the Met (1986)

Pecos Bill (1988)

Live 2002 (2002)

DVDs and videos

An Evening with Robin Williams (1982, VHS)

Robin Williams: Live at the Met (1986, VHS)

Robin Williams: Live on Broadway (2002)

Robin Williams: Raul’s House 2 (2009)[citation needed]

Robin Williams: Weapons of Self Destruction (TBA)

References

^ Thomas, Mike (2002-02-24). “A nose for laughs”. Chicago Sun-Times. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F360C3C1592F9AE&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 2009-12-14. 

^ McMullen, Marion (2002-10-05). “Article: WEEKEND TV: STAR PROFILE.(Features)”. Coventry Evening Telegraph. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-92577025.html. Retrieved 2009-12-14. 

^ Sources conflict. The print biographies The Life and Humor of Robin Williams: A Biography and Robin Williams: A Biography give his birth year as 1952. The Robin Williams Scrapbook also gives a birth year as 1952, as does Encyclopedia Britannica. Williams refers to himself as being “55″ in an interview published July 4, 2007. Monk, Katherine (2007-07-04). “Marriage 101 with Robin Williams”. StarPhoenix. http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/lifestyle/news/lifestyle/story.html?id=8b777192-8e77-464d-b8da-0cb90be40901&k=1045.  He also verifies his date of birth as July 21, 1951 in a fansite interview: Stuurman, Linda. RWF talks with Robin Williams: Proost!, May 25, 2008.

^ “If Robin Williams’ comedies are inspired by his life no wonder he’s been in therapy”. Sunday Herald. 1999-03-14. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/smgpubs/access/70123882.html?dids=70123882:70123882&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+14,+1999&author;=&pub=Sunday+Herald&desc=If+Robin+Williams’+comedies+are+inspired+by+his+life+no+wonder+he’s+been+in+therapy&pqatl=google. Retrieved 2009-12-14. 

^ Gristwood, Sarah (1998-06-18). “Bobbin’ Robin”. Mail & Guardian Online. http://www.chico.mweb.co.za/mg/art/film/9806/980618-robin.html. Retrieved 2007-12-26. 

^ Topel, Fred (2007-07-03). “Robin Williams on License to Wed”. CanMag. http://www.canmag.com/nw/8218-license-to-wed-robin-williams. Retrieved 2007-12-26. 

^ Detroit Country Day: Frequently Asked Questions

^ McLellan, Dennis (2007-08-18). “R. Todd Williams, 69; winery founder, comic’s brother” (pdf). Los Angeles Times. http://www.toadhollow.com/pdf/memorial/ToddLATimesObit.pdf. Retrieved 2008-02-10. 

^ “Robin Williams: ‘The Night Listener’”. Terry Gross (host). Fresh Air from WHYY. National Public Radio. 2006-08-03.

^ a b Reeve, Christopher (1998). Still Me. New York: Random House. pp. 167172. ISBN 978-067945235-5. 

^ YouTube – Happy Days – Richie Meets Mork

^ “Comedy Central Presents: 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time”. Internet Movie Database. http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0429332/. Retrieved 2007-12-26. 

^ “Biography for Robin Williams”. Internet Movie Database. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000245/bio. Retrieved 2008-04-13. 

^ “Episode 9″. Whose Line Is It Anyway?. 2000-11-16.

^ a b c “Robin Williams”. James Lipton (host). Inside the Actors Studio. Bravo. 2001-06-10. No. 710, season 7.

^ Otto, Jeff (2006-06-26). “Robin Williams, Joker?”. IGN. http://au.movies.ign.com/articles/714/714752p1.html. Retrieved 2007-12-26. 

^ “DISNEY’S GOT A BRAND-NEW BAGHDAD”. Entertainment Weekly. 1992-09-04. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,312562,00.html. Retrieved 2007-03-16. 

^ Hill, Jim (April 2000). “Be Careful What You Wish For”. Jim Hill Media. http://jimhillmedia.com/blogs/jim_hill/archive/2000/12/31/312.aspx. Retrieved 2008-03-15. 

^ “2009 Disney Legends Award Recipients to Be Honored During D23 Expo in Anaheim”. PR Newswire. 2009-09-01. http://news.prnewswire.com/ViewContent.aspx?ACCT=109&STORY;=/www/story/09-01-2009/0005086237. Retrieved 2009-09-01. 

^ robinwilliams.com

^ Richard Zoglin (2008). Comedy at the Edge. Bloomsbury USA. ISBN 978-1582346243. 

^ Hoffman, Jan (1992-08-09). “THE SEXES; Pillow Talk”. The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE2DF153FF93AA3575BC0A964958260. Retrieved 2007-12-26. 

^ Robin Williams’ wife files for divorce after nearly 19 years

^ http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=2515796

^ “Robin Williams Enters Rehab for Alcohol”. People. August 9, 2005. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,26334,1224730,00.html. Retrieved 2007-04-28. 

^ http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre5247lm-us-williams/

^ Johnson, Caitlin A. (2007-07-03). “A “License” to Laugh”. CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/03/earlyshow/leisure/boxoffice/main3011495.shtml. Retrieved 2009-03-27. 

^ “Robin Williams in South Florida hospital”. The Miami Herald. 2009-03-04. http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking-news/story/933065.html. Retrieved 2009-03-04. 

^ Jones, Kenneth.”Robin Williams’ Spring Broadway Bow Postponed Due to Heart Surgery”,playbill.com, March 5, 2009

^ “Robin Williams’s Heart Surgery Called a Success”. http://www.peop/le.com/people/article/0,,20267281,00.html. 

^ “Robin Williams’ heart surgery goes ‘extremely well’”. http://edition.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Movies/03/23/robin.williams.health/. 

^ http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3177150

^ Interview at Pro-HL.com

^ “Mork & Me”. The Archies. 2005-12-05. http://thearchies.blogspot.com/2005/12/mork-me.html. 

^ Engadget.com

^ Robin Williams plays Spore

^ Dungeons and Dragons Game Day at London Dungeon, ViewLondon.co.uk

^ Murphy, Brian. “Tour de Lance: 100 percent pure”. ESPN. http://espn.go.com/page2/s/murphy/020729.html. Retrieved 2007-06-29. 

^ http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-10161.html

^ http://www.ticketsnow.com/Robin-Williams-Tickets.html

^ http://www.granvilleonline.ca/gr/features/2008/11/12/toyota-prius-hybrid-2009

^ http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp?section_id=10&article_id=7651

^ “Stones cover enters festive race”. BBC NEWS. 1999-12-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/558252.stm. 

^ “Good Morning, Iraq”. San Francisco Chronicle. 2005-02-09. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/02/09/DDG5AB3TBJ38.DTL. Retrieved 2009-09-04. 

^ World Entertainment News Network. “Williams rekindles failed marriage on film”, San Francisco Chronicle, August 28, 2009. Retrieved August 29, 2009.

^ Bobby McFerrin Homepage

“Road Trip with Robin”

“Robin Williams mimic ends ‘fraud’” (BBC News)

“Robin Williams’ impersonator stopped” (AskMen.com)

“Robin Williams Enters Rehab”, August 9, 2006 (Access Hollywood)

Lovece, Frank, New York Newsday (April 27, 2006)

Bibliography

Jay David (1999). The Life and Humor of Robin Williams: A Biography. New York: Quill. ISBN 978-068815245-1. 

Andy Dougan (1999). Robin Williams: A Biography. Thunder’s Mouth Press. ISBN 978-156025213-9. 

Stephen J. Spignesi (1997). The Robin Williams Scrapbook. Secaucus, NJ: Carol Pub.. ISBN 978-080651891-6. 

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Robin Williams

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Robin Williams

Robin Williams at the Internet Broadway Database

Robin Williams at the Internet Movie Database

Robin Williams at the TCM Movie Database

Robin Williams at TV.com

Robin Williams at Yahoo! Movies

 

Awards for Robin Williams

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Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor

John Gielgud (1981)  Louis Gossett, Jr. (1982)  Jack Nicholson (1983)  Haing S. Ngor (1984)  Don Ameche (1985)  Michael Caine (1986)  Sean Connery (1987)  Kevin Kline (1988)  Denzel Washington (1989)  Joe Pesci (1990)  Jack Palance (1991)  Gene Hackman (1992)  Tommy Lee Jones (1993)  Martin Landau (1994)  Kevin Spacey (1995)  Cuba Gooding, Jr. (1996)  Robin Williams (1997)  James Coburn (1998)  Michael Caine (1999)  Benicio del Toro (2000)

Complete list  (19361940)  (19411960)  (19611980)  (19812000)  (2001-present)

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Primetime Emmy Award for Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program

Harvey Korman / Brenda Vaccaro (1974)  Jack Albertson / Cloris Leachman (1975)  Chevy Chase / Vicki Lawrence (1976)  Tim Conway / Rita Moreno (1977)  Tim Conway / Gilda Radner (1978)  George Hearn (1985)  Whitney Houston (1986)  Robin Williams (1987)  Robin Williams (1988)  Linda Ronstadt (1989)  Tracey Ullman (1990)  Billy Crystal (1991)  Billy Crystal (1992)  Dana Carvey (1993)  Tracey Ullman (1994)  Barbra Streisand (1995)  Tony Bennett (1996)  Bette Midler (1997)  Billy Crystal (1998)  John Leguizamo (1999)  Eddie Izzard (2000)

Complete list: (19742000)  (2001resent)

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Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy

Dudley Moore (1981)  Dustin Hoffman (1982)  Michael Caine (1983)  Dudley Moore (1984)  Jack Nicholson (1985)  Paul Hogan (1986)  Robin Williams (1987)  Tom Hanks (1988)  Morgan Freeman (1989)  Grard Depardieu (1990)  Robin Williams (1991)  Tim Robbins (1992)  Robin Williams (1993)  Hugh Grant (1994)  John Travolta (1995)  Tom Cruise (1996)  Jack Nicholson (1997)  Michael Caine (1998)  Jim Carrey (1999)  George Clooney (2000)

Complete List  (19501960)  (19611980)  (19812000)  (2001resent)

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Golden Globe Award for Best Actor Television Series Musical or Comedy

Flip Wilson (1970)  Carroll O’Connor (1971)  Redd Foxx (1972)  Jack Klugman (1973)  Alan Alda (1974)  Alan Alda (1975)  Henry Winkler (1976)  Henry Winkler (1977)  Robin Williams (1978)  Alan Alda (1979)  Alan Alda (1980)  Alan Alda (1981)  Alan Alda (1982)  John Ritter (1983)  Bill Cosby (1984)  Bill Cosby (1985)  Bruce Willis (1986)  Dabney Coleman (1987)  Michael J. Fox/Judd Hirsch/Richard Mulligan (1988)  Ted Danson (1989)

Complete List  (1970-1989)  (1990resent)

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Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

Martin Landau (1994)  Ed Harris (1995)  Cuba Gooding, Jr. (1996)  Robin Williams (1997)  Robert Duvall (1998)  Michael Caine (1999)  Albert Finney (2000)

Complete list  (1994-2000)  (2001-present)

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MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance

Billy Crystal (1992) Robin Williams (1993) Jim Carrey (1994) Jim Carrey (1995) Jim Carrey (1996) Jim Carrey (1997) Jim Carrey (1998) Adam Sandler (1999) Adam Sandler (2000) Ben Stiller (2001) Reese Witherspoon (2002) Mike Myers (2003) Jack Black (2004) Dustin Hoffman (2005) Steve Carell (2006) Sacha Baron Cohen (2007) Johnny Depp (2008) Jim Carrey (2009)

v  d  e

Hosts of the Academy Awards ceremonies

Johnny Carson (1981)  Johnny Carson (1982)  Liza Minnelli / Dudley Moore / Richard Pryor / Walter Matthau (1983)  Johnny Carson (1984)  Jack Lemmon (1985)  Alan Alda / Jane Fonda / Robin Williams (1986)  Chevy Chase / Goldie Hawn / Paul Hogan (1987)  Chevy Chase (1988)  None (1989)  Billy Crystal (1990)  Billy Crystal (1991)  Billy Crystal (1992)  Billy Crystal (1993)  Whoopi Goldberg (1994)  David Letterman (1995)  Whoopi Goldberg (1996)  Billy Crystal (1997)  Billy Crystal (1998)  Whoopi Goldberg (1999)  Billy Crystal (2000)

Complete List  (19291940)  (19411960)  (19611980)  (19812000)  (2001-present)

Persondata

NAME

Williams, Robin

ALTERNATIVE NAMES

Williams, Robin McLaurim

SHORT DESCRIPTION

Academy Award-winning American actor and comedian

DATE OF BIRTH

1952-7-21

PLACE OF BIRTH

Chicago, Illinois, United States

DATE OF DEATH

PLACE OF DEATH

Categories: 1951 births | Living people | Actors from California | Actors from Chicago, Illinois | 20th-century American Episcopalians | 21st-century American Episcopalians | American film actors | American impressionists (entertainers) | American stand-up comedians | American television actors | American voice actors | Best Musical or Comedy Actor Golden Globe (film) winners | Best Musical or Comedy Actor Golden Globe (television) winners | Best Supporting Actor Academy Award winners | MTV Movie Award winners | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners | California Democrats | People self-identifying as alcoholics | Grammy Award winners | Juilliard School alumni | People from Marin County, CaliforniaHidden categories: Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected biographies of living people | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements from November 2009