Throwback Thursday - Robin Williams

By Jen

When my sister lived in Europe in the 1980s, no one believed her when she said Robin Williams got his start playing a goofy alien on a television sitcom. Apparently the show that introduced so many of us to Williams’ comedic genius didn’t get much airplay on the Continent - but from 1978 to 1982, it brightened the television screens of countless American homes and lives.

Those are my earliest memories of Robin Williams - playing Mork from Ork, the silly alien banished to our planet under the guise of studying humanity because his sense of humor was not appreciated in his native culture. I think I even had a set of rainbow suspenders back then - or possibly I stole them from one of my teenage siblings, because I wanted to be like Mork.

As I grew and matured, I learned to appreciate the many facets of Williams’ talent – he wasn’t just funny, though the 1978 HBO special Off the Wall will always be one of my all-time favorite stand-up performances. Dead Poets Society, which came out in 1989, was enthralling to me because its teen star (Robert Sean Leonard) was the doppelganger of the love of my teenage life - but even my pheromone-fogged brain could recognize that the true centerpiece of the film was Williams’ performance as John Keating. And that was just one of many stunning dramatic performances - too many to list here - though I would want to be sure that Awakenings, Good Will Hunting, What Dreams May Come, and Good Morning Vietnam, were included the list - not to mention darker flicks like One Hour Photo and Insomnia.

He made us laugh and cry, sometimes in the same movie. From The Birdcage to Jumanji, Hook to Mrs. Doubtfire, Williams had a gift for making characters that might otherwise seem shallow or insincere come to life with a depth that must have made writers and directors weep with joy.

Even movies that never got much love from critics or fans (Toys comes to mind) were better than they might have been because of Williams’ performances.

And then there was his voice work – the astonishing genius that was the Genie in Disney’s Aladdin is entirely unforgettable, but let’s also not forget Robots and Happy Feet! Williams didn’t have to appear on screen to mesmerize audiences with his humor and flawless timing; his voice alone was more than enough.

A light was extinguished this week, one that touched countless lives in countless different ways. There has been talk in my social circle of having a Robin Williams movie marathon this weekend in remembrance of this man, who was one of a kind - but honestly, we’d need more than a weekend to even begin to do justice to his body of work. For me, getting to know and appreciate Robin Williams has taken the better part of my lifetime, and I will never forget him - and never stop letting his work move me to laughter, or tears, or both.