Robin Williams

[Mr Mystery]

Robin Williams has been found dead :(

[daboarder]

Yeah. ...shame. not normally one for grief over celebrity deaths...but thst one is sad

[Gotthammer]

One of the first comedy albums I was ever given was “Reality… What A Concept.” I loved it. I loved “Mork & Mindy.” I even loved Robert Altman’s “Popeye.” Robin Williams meant a lot to me when I was a kid. I knew nothing of drug use or depression. It never occurred to me that comedians, these magical creatures that I worshiped, ever felt anything other than the serene satisfaction derived from making people laugh.

Eventually, I started doing standup myself, and I very quickly learned that comedians were all too human. There is no less sadness in the comedy community than there is in any other workforce; that is to say, jobs are jobs and people are people and no occupation makes anyone depression-proof. This both comforts and frustrates me.

Robin Williams made me laugh so many times. So many times. When I was a kid, having problems of my own, feeling unpleasantly different from the people who populated my world, I found sanctuary watching this guy on TV who was celebrated for being a weirdo, for being an oddball, for being silly. He was praised for having a mind that produced delightful absurdities with great speed. No one told him to be quiet. No one tried to make him act like everyone else. He was a hero to me.

I had occasion to meet him once, not too long ago, and he could not have been nicer or friendlier or calmer. He was just there to watch the show that was happening that night. He wasn’t trying to get on stage; he just — still — loved comedy.

I didn’t tell him any of the things I just wrote here. No doubt, he heard similar things from countless people over his decades-long career. And it’s a colossal shame that being a meaningful presence in the lives of many people, family, friends and strangers alike, isn’t an impenetrable bulwark against despair. It’s profoundly unfair that, if he couldn’t live forever, he couldn’t at least feel able to keep going for his allotted time. I know something of depression, and how bottomless and relentless and insurmountable it feels, but I have never known the unfathomable despair that Robin Williams must have felt. I can’t even begin to imagine it.

Robin Williams will live on in shadows and light and sound, at least. He will continue to comfort weird little kids (and odd adults, for that matter) with his performances, those who know his work today and those who have yet to be born, who may experience him ten, fifty, a hundred years from now. But this is cold comfort indeed.

There will be much celebration, in the coming weeks and months, of Robin Williams’ life and career. But perhaps the best tribute to him would be if we all reached out to the troubled people in our lives and let them know that we are here for them. Because Robin Williams was there for us.

By Paul F Tompkins

[Mr Mystery]

Indeedy.

Rik and Robin both gone within months of each other.

I'm running out of people I actually consider to be funny. Before you know it, Channel 4 will have flooded the gaps in the market with more smug goons instead of proper comedians.

[CoffeeGrunt]

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned on this little corner of the internet, but I'm sad to say that Robin Williams was found dead today in his home, in a suspected suicide. I think all of us who have seen his works, whether they be his voicing, stand-up or acting, can agree that this is a saddening loss.

[Psychosplodge]

its in the off topic thread

[eldargal]

It's very sad.:(

Glad I'm not the only one who thought this tohugh:
http://31.media.tumblr.com/b2d707c3ddadc167e5da24d945fa2717/tumblr_na6e4hsysH1qzag6to1_1280.png

Can we talk about this post?
Sure, they tried to be cute here.

But it isn’t cute.

Robin Williams was a huge part of my childhood. I always admired him, the quotes from his movies were ones I quoted the most while playing (“Price check on prune juice Bob, price check on prune juice.”)


But he’s not free.

Killing yourself doesn’t make you free. It makes you dead. This whole thing hits way to close to home for me. I’m a person who is always smiling and telling jokes and making other people laugh who also has problems with depression. Everyone who’s so shocked because “he was so funny”. I wasn’t. It doesn’t make the whole thing less sad or less tragic. It also doesn’t make him weak. Those of us who have problems with depression know that it’s a constant battle, and it’s terrifying to think that one day we might lose. Sure there are small battles we lose a lot more often than the big battle. The battle to get out of bed. The battle to go to school or work. The battle to pay the bills, to take or to not take your pills, to eat dinner, to eat breakfast, to clean the house, to go out with friends, to get dressed, to shower. There are so many battles, but the biggest one is if we feel like it’s worth it enough to stick around for another day.

And I would like to honor Robin Williams for lasting this long. I would like to thank him for sticking around long enough to teach us about wishes, and the power of poetry, and about death, and the dangers of animal testing and pollution, and how family is important, and to believe, and so many other lessons. And for me he taught me how to laugh.


But killing yourself doesn’t make you free.
Please believe me.

It ruins your chances of ever being free.

So saying “Genie, you’re free” is an insult to his struggle.

It’s an insult to everyone who has ever lost the big battle’s struggle.

It’s an insult to everyone who is still fighting.


So please, keep fighting. Death isn’t freedom. It’s the end of any hope of freedom.
Source (http://andteaforme.tumblr.com/post/94501517088/can-we-talk-about-this-post-sure-they-tried-to).

[Storm96]

I know this is a gaming forum but we all know Robin Williams has bought fully painted GW armies so I thought this would be ok to post about a fellow collector/gamer.

Last night Robin Williams committed suicide. Apparently he had been battling with severe depression and finally lost. I have spent this morning reading all the articles that has come out and many of the celebrity responses and tweets. Even President Obama issued a statement. Robin was an incredibly kind and generous human being who made millions laugh but behind the crazy antics and hyper states he was obviously hiding something much darker. Yes his addictions have been well documented but he seemed to be on the right path. Depression is a silent killer and its a shame beyond words that this beautiful man who gave so much to all those around him could be suffering so terribly that his only way out was to end his life. I have never shed tears for celebrities who have "issues" and off themselves as Ive found most to not be of Robins caliber of human being. Ive always heard Robin was a gentle soul who gave more and did more for his fellow man (woman) but to hear just how far he would go in those behaviors has really touched me in a way I never though it would. Ive been tearing up for the past 2 hours. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. There will never be another like him. Not on the screen and not in real life. If you haven't been reading about it, or didn't know about who he really was I would urge you to start reading the articles and look at what his fellows in the business have been saying but also the millions of people who loved him and his work. The world lost a great man, actor and above all human being and one of the kindest yet saddest souls ever.

Robin, may you finally find the peace in death, that now obviously, so eluded you in life. You will be missed.

[Mr Mystery]

Yup.

I occasionally get mild depression, but for better or worse, have never had professional help. It's mild enough that I can see it for what it is, and am able to force myself to activate and go do something that day, even if it's just tidy up my flat, and then go have a beer as a reward. I know not to let myself wallow, and again as my depression is very mild, I can cope with that ok on my own.

But depression is unique to everyone. I would never dream of having 'well I can, why can't you?' attitude about anything. It comes from different sources, for different reasons, and in different strengths, even from day to day.

I know that when my friends are having their own downtime, all I can do is ask if they want to come out to play. I shouldn't insist, as that can make them feel worse.

It's horrible having depression, and I'm just glad I can overcome mine most times.

[The Girl]

Please keep this in mind when discussing Robin's death….

Hollis Easter is a 15 year veteran of crisis hotlines. (http://www.holliseaster.com/p/talking-about-suicide-robin-williams/)
How to deal with loss after suicide - information from AAS. (http://www.suicidology.org/suicide-survivors)

Also: please reach out if you're contemplating suicide… National Suicide Prevention Hotline (US) (http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org), Lifeline (AUS) (https://www.lifeline.org.au), Samaritans (UK) (http://www.samaritans.org), CASP (CA) (http://suicideprevention.ca)

[Wolfshade]

Robin Williams was also a keen cyclist: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/12/sport/cycling-robin-williams-armstrong-sky/index.html

http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140812132209-williams-cycling-3-horizontal-gallery.jpg

He seems to have had a postive impact on all the lives he has touched.

[eldargal]

Please keep this in mind when discussing Robin's death….

Hollis Easter is a 15 year veteran of crisis hotlines. (http://www.holliseaster.com/p/talking-about-suicide-robin-williams/)
How to deal with loss after suicide - information from AAS. (http://www.suicidology.org/suicide-survivors)

Also: please reach out if you're contemplating suicide… National Suicide Prevention Hotline (US) (http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org), Lifeline (AUS) (https://www.lifeline.org.au), Samaritans (UK) (http://www.samaritans.org), CASP (CA) (http://suicideprevention.ca)
+1. If you need help, please get it. There is usually a spike in suicides after celebrity suicides.:(

[Maelstorm]

He will be missed...

[Pssyche]

Personally, I never liked his work and I'm not going to say any different now.
But the world sure seems a poorer place for his passing.

[Arkhan Land]

Tonight Gork weeps for the Loss of Mork

[Joe TwoCrows]

One of his films was 'What Dreams May Come', and was an exploration of suicide, and its effect on others. I find it worth noting that the title was from Hamlet's soliloquy, in part

To sleep, perchance to Dream; Aye, there's the rub,
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil

Farewell, Robin. Thank you for your dreams in this mortal coil.

[daboarder]

Robin Williams was also a keen cyclist: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/12/sport/cycling-robin-williams-armstrong-sky/index.html

http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140812132209-williams-cycling-3-horizontal-gallery.jpg

He seems to have had a postive impact on all the lives he has touched.

Played a good game of golf too. My mate thought he was a really good down to earth guy after a tournament with him

[Wolfshade]

One of his films was 'What Dreams May Come', and was an exploration of suicide, and its effect on others. I find it worth noting that the title was from Hamlet's soliloquy, in part

To sleep, perchance to Dream; Aye, there's the rub,
For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil

Farewell, Robin. Thank you for your dreams in this mortal coil.

That is a great film, sometimes when you lose you win.

[Darren Richardson]

Yeah it's a shame he finally let his Depression overcome him, I grew up watching Mork and Mindy and I loved his turn as Genie in Dsney's Aladdin, to this day I'm still amazed at how many ad-libs of his they kept in that film.

But yes Depression is a nasty sod, and it effects people in many ways, I suffer from it myself, have done for years, but something inside me has always kept me from going over the edge during my roughest patches, I just wish I knew what it was that stops me and I wish I could pass it on to others who sorely need that strength.

So rest in peace Robin, you'll be missed mate. :(

[Kirsten]

one of my favourite comic creators, Erika Moen, created this today which I think is absolutely beautiful, about depression.

https://medium.com/the-nib/i-want-to-live-6a40fbc76ef4

[CoffeeGrunt]

one of my favourite comic creators, Erika Moen, created this today which I think is absolutely beautiful, about depression.

https://medium.com/the-nib/i-want-to-live-6a40fbc76ef4

That was genuinely touching. Thanks for sharing. :)

[Deadlift]

That was genuinely touching. Thanks for sharing. :)

Kirsten posted a link to Erika's comics awhile ago and I got into reading them. Not usually my thing to be honest, but I loved them. This is another great read.

[Wolfshade]

On a note, it is quite staggering how many people seem to be touched by his passing, another comic strip author

http://www.leasticoulddo.com/comic/20140813-2/

[Mr Mystery]

There's a letter doing the rounds on Facebook, where someone has written to GW, asking them to do a Robin Williams tribute type sculpt, with proceeds going to mental health charities.

I think this is a really nice idea :)

And it's also got my thinking - I'm going to paint up one of my Ork Boyz in red dungarees, so he can be Mork.

[daboarder]

There's a letter doing the rounds on Facebook, where someone has written to GW, asking them to do a Robin Williams tribute type sculpt, with proceeds going to mental health charities.

I think this is a really nice idea :)

And it's also got my thinking - I'm going to paint up one of my Ork Boyz in red dungarees, so he can be Mork.

http://www.news.com.au/technology/gaming/robin-williams-fans-petition-for-character-in-the-legend-of-zelda/story-e6frfrt9-1227024741155

So thats Wow and Nintendo, Blizz being awesome are likely to do it, hopefully so does nintendo....But GW...Highly doubt it, they are far to selfish (see its not ALWAYS about profit)

[Mr Mystery]

That and it's a lot easier to drop someone into a computer game than create a model. Lot cheaperer too.

I wouldn't rule GW out of doing it just yet.

[daboarder]

Throw down rules/Fluff, Hell even just a world store event, plenty of ways they could do this, I just dont expect it.

Either way, do you have a link to the petition?

[Mr Mystery]

Not at the mo.

Wasn't a petition so much, just a single letter.

Can't get onto Facebook at work, will endeavour to remember to do it tonight once I'm home.

[Psychosplodge]

http://i57.tinypic.com/sb5xqx.jpg

[Kirsten]

That was genuinely touching. Thanks for sharing. :)


Kirsten posted a link to Erika's comics awhile ago and I got into reading them. Not usually my thing to be honest, but I loved them. This is another great read.

yeah I am such a huge fan, and that latest comic struck a real chord.

[Mr Mystery]

His wife has now 'revealed' that Robin had just been diagnosed with Parkinsons, and his sobriety was fine.

[eldargal]

Which is a good cautionary tale of making assumptions based on early media reports.

[Mr Mystery]

Well indeed. Would that we lived in a world where early media reports themselves served as caution against forming opinions based on whatever a media hack has reported at all.

[Gotthammer]

“Robin Williams didn’t die from suicide. I only just heard the sad, sad news of Robin Williams’s death. My wife sent me a message to tell me he had died, and, when I asked her what he died from, she told me something that nobody in the news seems to be talking about.
When people die from cancer, their cause of death can be various horrible things – seizure, stroke, pneumonia – and when someone dies after battling cancer, and people ask “How did they die?”, you never hear anyone say “pulmonary embolism”, the answer is always “cancer”. A Pulmonary Embolism can be the final cause of death with some cancers, but when a friend of mine died from cancer, he died from cancer. That was it. And when I asked my wife what Robin Williams died from, she, very wisely, replied “Depression”.

The word “suicide” gives many people the impression that “it was his own decision,” or “he chose to die, whereas most people with cancer fight to live.” And, because Depression is still such a misunderstood condition, you can hardly blame people for not really understanding. Just a quick search on Twitter will show how many people have little sympathy for those who commit suicide…


Kara Seymour @kara_michelle01
@TateLovett thank u for being right😂✊I love robin Williams but I think the way he died was his own stupidity. It's sad but his own fault


Darnell @Thathigga
Idk why everyone is so sympathetic towards Robin Williams. Yea he was a good actor and all but the dude killed himself. His own damn fault


Robin Williams dieing is sad but it was his choice What about the 1000′s of children dieing in Palestine that dont want to die thats sad too — TerryCrosbie (@Terry_Crosbie)

But, just as a Pulmonary Embolism is a fatal symptom of cancer, suicide is a fatal symptom of Depression. Depression is an illness, not a choice of lifestyle. You can’t just “cheer up” with depression, just as you can’t choose not to have cancer. When someone commits suicide as a result of Depression, they die from Depression – an illness that kills millions each year. It is hard to know exactly how many people actually die from Depression each year because the figures and statistics only seem to show how many people die from “suicide” each year (and you don’t necessarily have to suffer Depression to commit suicide, it’s usually just implied). But considering that one person commits suicide every 14 minutes in the US alone, we clearly need to do more to battle this illness, and the stigmas that continue to surround it. Perhaps Depression might lose some its “it was his own fault” stigma, if we start focussing on the illness, rather than the symptom. Robin Williams didn’t die from suicide. He died from Depression. It wasn’t his choice to suffer that.”

— Tom Clempsom (http://www.tomclempson.com/2014/08/robin-williams-did-not-die-from-suicide/)

[Kirsten]

so very true, it is tragic that suicide is still viewed in such a way. friends of friends, when confronted with the massive suicide rate in the US simply dismissed it out of hand saying people had a right to kill themselves if they wanted and nobody should interfere. they had no interest in the cause, or any one of the simple steps that could cut suicide rates, it was just something people did, and was the suicidal person's problem, no need for anyone else to care.

[CoffeeGrunt]

I have to agree with them. I mean, after all, we all know that an inflamed appendix is lethal, but if you really wanted to avoid that sort of thing, you'd have studied medicine and learned to fix it with surgery, right? It's utterly shameful to seek help when your lungs are being devoured by cancer, for example, that's just something your body's doing and really it's your own problem.

[swoods]

I happened to be in my local pub on tuesday night, enjoying curry and a pint or 3. Anyway. One of the regulars, who was inebriated (don't get me wrong I like a good drink too) was discussing, rather loudly, robin williams' demise and then started spouting off about how depression/mental illness isn't real, it's all fake blah blah. Well... as a long term sufferer of acute depressive disorder I very nearly got up and stabbed the silly c**t with my fork. I, along with a number of others were so disgusted with him that we got up and walked out after explaining to him that at least three of us had a similar condition. Now I know we all do /say silly things when we're drunk, but even his little clique of "friends" were mortified.

I suppose the point I'm trying to make is that Robin Williams may have suffered from depression (and parkinson's-another disease I'm quite familiar with), but there are still ignorant arseholes out there who refuse to recognise it.

[Wolfshade]

I fear my view on suicide will not be terribly popular. If someone wants to end it all then they should do, they should not be guilt tripped into living, after all they have enough pressures on them that they cannot cope with how cruel it is to heap more upon that.

Certainly, be supportive and kind and listen to them. Talk with them and maybe they will choose to live, but ultimately it is their choice and they need to decide to live for themselves.

[Psychosplodge]

Exactly.
And while sad, it's certainly not the cowardly thing to do. It must take a certain amount of courage to end it all not knowing if that is it or if something more awaits or even worse, we've all seen beetlejuice right?

[CoffeeGrunt]

I think the aim is to try and divert people from that course if possible, by making them feel a bit better about life.

[Wolfshade]

A petition calling for an in-game tribute to Robin Williams in World of Warcraft was met with enthusiasm by Blizzard, which quickly announced on Twitter that it was "taking care of it." And it really wasn't kidding.

World of Warcraft fan site Wowhead recently discovered the presence of an NPC named "Robin The Entertainer" in the code for the upcoming Warlords of Draenor expansion. The model attached to the NPC, a blue-skinned Djinn, is from an earlier expansion, but the connection to Williams' role as the Genie in the 1992 film Aladdin is obvious.

There are two other NPCs bearing the same name but with different models, a human male wearing suspenders similar to the ones he wore in Mork and Mindy, and a grey-haired human female, apparently with a male voice, a likely reference to Mrs. Doubtfire. Wowhead theorized that the character may change forms as part of his in-game routine.

http://media.pcgamer.com/files/2014/08/417776.jpg
http://media.pcgamer.com/files/2014/08/r3.jpg

[Psychosplodge]

Absolutely brilliant.