Robin Williams

From Yahoo:
"Robin Williams Dead of Apparent Suicide at 63"

Robin Williams, the manic comic genius who morphed from TV's Mork from Ork to Oscar-winning glory, is dead of an apparent suicide. He was 63. Emergency personnel were called to Williams's home in Tiburon, California, at 11:55 a.m. local time, per the Marin County Sheriff's Office. Williams was found unconscious and pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities are investigating the death, and an autopsy is forthcoming, but initial evidence points to "a suicide due to asphyxia," according to Marin Sheriff's Lt. Keith Boyle. In a brief statement, publicist Mara Buxbaum said Williams had been "battling severe depression of late. This is a tragic and sudden loss. The family respectfully asks for their privacy as they grieve during this very difficult time.""This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend," said Williams's wife, Susan Schneider. "While the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken. On behalf of Robin's family, we are asking for privacy during our time of profound grief. As he is remembered, it is our hope the focus will not be on Robin's death, but on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions." Williams reportedly spent a few weeks at Hazelden Addiction Treatment Center in Minnesota.  The actor spoke publicly about his battle with substance abuse. In 2006, he sought treatment for alcoholism after 20 years of sobriety. A rep for the actor said in a statement that Robin "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." The actor admitted he also struggled with cocaine abuse in the early 1980s while starring in the sitcom Mork and Mindy, but quit cold turkey after his friend John Belushi's fatal overdose in 1982. A Chicago native, Williams spent time at Juilliard, where he was briefly classmates with Christopher Reeve. 
After an appearance on NBC's Richard Pryor Show, he got his big break, playing the wacky alien Mork in what was supposed to be a one-off guest role on ABC's Happy Days. "We started rehearsing and I realized that I was in the presence of greatness," star Henry Winkler recalled on CNN Monday night. "No matter what you said to him, no matter what line you gave to him, he took it in he processed it and it flew out of his mouth never the same way twice and it was incredibly funny every time."  The character proved so popular that he commanded his own spinoff. Mork & Mindy, costarring Pam Dawber and Jonathan Winters, became a phenomenon, spiking sales of rainbow-colored suspenders and adding "nanu-nanu" and "shazbot" to the lexicon. The sitcom ran from 1978 to 1982. "I am completely and totally devastated," Dawber said in a statement Monday afternoon. "What more can be said?!" Williams made the leap to film with a string of wildly successful movies, showcasing a range beyond the motor-mouthed improvisation he built his standup career on: The World According to Garp, Moscow on the Hudson, Awakenings, The Birdcage, Mrs. Doubtfire, Patch Adams, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, and Insomnia

He carved out a rich career as a voice-over actor in such animated features as Aladdin, Happy Feet, Robots, and FernGully.  He earned Oscar nods for Dead Poets Society, The Fisher King, and Good Morning, Vietnam, before finally capturing the elusive statuette by upstaging Matt Damon and Ben Affleck with a touching supporting role in Good Will Hunting. Among the films he completed before his death were May's The Angriest Man in Brooklyn, with Peter Dinklage and Mila Kunis, and the upcoming Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, where he reprised his role of Teddy Roosevelt in the Ben Stiller-led franchise. The latter is slated to open in December.  He returned to television in last season's CBS comedy series The Crazy Ones opposite Sarah Michelle Gellar. The show was canceled in May. In addition to his Academy Award, Williams won two Emmys, five Grammys, and six Golden Globes (including the career-capping Cecil B. DeMille Award). He also won the admiration of generations of top comedic talent. He is survived by Schneider and three adult children from two earlier marriages, daughter Zelda, and sons Zachary, 31, and Cody, 22.

 

 ^ Robin Williams was pretty funny. While I didn't care for him in "Mork and Mindy" I did like him in things like "Mrs. Doubtfire", etc. ^


 https://celebrity.yahoo.com/blogs/celeb-news/robin-williams-dead-of-apparent-suicide-at-63-231414092.html