Robin Williams

Robin Williams

Background information

Fullname

Robin McLaurin Williams

Born

July 21,1951
Chicago,Illinois,United States

Died

August 11,2014 (aged 63)
Paradise Cay,California, United States

Cause of death

Asphyxiation due to suicide by hanging

Nationality

American

Occupation

Actor, comedian

Years active

1976–2014

Robin McLaurin Williams was an American actor and comedian, who was well-known for his various film roles, such as portraying Armand Goldman inThe Birdcage, Daniel Hillard/Euphegenia Doubtfire inMrs. Doubtfire, an adultAlan Parrish inJumanji, Bob Munro inRunaway Vacation,Theodore Roosevelt in theNight at the Museumfilmtrilogy and Peter Pan/Banning inHook. He also voicedBatty Koda in20th Century Fox'sFernGully: The Last Rainforest,Fender Pinwheeler inBlue Sky'sRobots, andRamón andLovelace inWarner Bros.Happy Feetfilms.

ForDisney, Williams was best known for his voice work as theGenie in the1992Disney animated feature filmAladdin, a role of which he had reprised in later projects.

History[]

Williams was given the role ofAriel's dolphin friendBreaker inThe Little Mermaid. However, when Breaker's role in the film was scrapped, he left the film.

Williams was asked to voice theGenie in the1992Disney animated feature filmAladdin, shortly after the death of lyricistHoward Ashman. In gratitude for his success with the Disney-producedTouchstone filmGood Morning, Vietnam, Williams agreed to take the role for SAG scale pay ($75,000), 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, sinceToys was scheduled for release one month afterAladdin's debut. Additionally, Williams believed the character's voice was his property and did not want it to be imitated.

Out of financial concern, 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.

Williams and Disney had a bitter falling-out, resulting inDan Castellaneta taking over as the voice of Genie inThe Return of Jafar and theAladdin television series. Castellaneta was also hired forAladdin and the King of Thieves and had completed recording all his lines. Disney's Hyperion bookAladdin: 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".

WhenJeffrey Katzenberg was fired from Disney and replaced by former20th 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 theHollywood Pictures filmJack, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, and even agreed to voice Genie again for theKing of Thieves sequel (for considerably more than scale), replacing all of Castellaneta's dialogue.

When Williams re-teamed withDoubtfire director Chris Columbus forTouchstone Pictures'Bicentennial Man in1999, Disney asked that the budget be cut by approximately $20 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 the voice of Genie. The2004 DVD release forAladdin has no involvement whatsoever from Williams in the bonus materials, although some of his original recording sessions can be seen.

Even thoughJim Meskimen had been cast as Genie's new official voice actor in2008, Williams eventually made peace withThe Walt Disney Company again and in2009, he agreed to be inducted into the Disney Hall of Fame, being honored as aDisney Legend.

Death[]

Williams was found unconscious in his home in an unincorporated area just outside Paradise Cay,California, at around 11:55 AM PDT onAugust 11,2014, and was pronounced dead at 12:02 pm. The Coroner Division of Marin County said the death appeared to be a suicide from hanging. This was confirmed in November 2014 with evidence, such as that Williams had used a pocketknife to slice his wrists before the suicide and finally used a belt wrapped around his neck to kill himself. No suicide note has been found.

It was revealed that he had been diagnosed withParkinson's disease in2013 and was suffering from deep paranoia and depression. Six weeks later, it was determined by a toxicology report that the cause of death was a suicide from asphyxiation by hanging. It was also discovered on his death certificate that the very day after his death, Williams was cremated and his ashes were dumped into theSan Francisco Bay as per a request Williams made in his will. An autopsy revealed that Williams had been suffering from "diffuse Lewy body dementia", which had been misdiagnosed as Parkinson's. This may have contributed to his depression.

Williams' wife Susan Schneider said, "I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken." Fellow Disney Legend,Steve Martin, tweeted, "I could not be more stunned by the loss of Robin Williams, mensch, great talent, acting partner, genuine soul."U.S. PresidentBarack Obama said Williams was "one of a kind," and someone who "ended up touching every element of the human spirit." Scottish comedianBilly Connolly, who was a personal friend of Williams, said that Williams had called him the night before the suicide and had given him a subtle goodbye.Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb was dedicated to his memory, along withMickey Rooney.

On his death, Disney CEORobert Iger released the statement:^[1]

Before the first performance of the Broadway showAladdin after Williams' death,James Monroe Iglehart, the actor who played the Genie led the audience into singing "Friend Like Me" in tribute.

Shortly after his death,Disney Channel and its sister channelsDisney Jr. andDisney XD all aired the originalAladdin over the course of a week, with a dedicated drawing of the Genie at the end of each airing before the credits.

At the2015 Disney Legends ceremony, Ne-Yo sung a cover of "Friend Like Me" in tribute.

Awards and nominations for Robin Williams' roles in Disney films[]

Filmography[]

• Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) - Airman Second Class Adrian Cronauer
• Aladdin (1992) -Genie/ThePeddler
• Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996) - Genie
• Great Minds Think 4 Themselves (1996) - Genie
• Flubber (1997) -Philip Brainard
• Old Dogs (2009) -Dan Rayburn
• Back to Never Land (1989) - Himself/Lost Boy
• The Timekeeper -The Timekeeper
• Dead Poets Society - John Keating
• Jack - Jack Powell
• Good Will Hunting - Sean Maguire
• Bicentennial Man - Andrew Martin
• Insomnia - Walter Finch (Insomnia was released under the Warner Bros. logo in America and theTouchstone Pictures logo in other countries).
• Life with Bonnie - Kevin Powalski
• Old Dogs - Dan Rayburn

Roles[]

Popeye
(Popeye)

Genie
(Aladdin franchise)

Peddler
(Aladdin)

The Timekeeper
(The Timekeeper)

John Keating
(Dead Poets Society)

Jack Powell
(Jack)

Philip Brainard
(Flubber)

Dan Rayburn
(Old Dogs)

Andrew Martin
(Bicentennial Man)

Back To Never Land (1989)

Himself/Lost Boy
(Back to Never Land)

Gallery[]

Robin Williams withJim Varney asErnest P. Worrell.

Robin Williams behind the scenes ofAladdin.

Williams presenting a Special Achievement Oscar toJohn Lasseter forToy Story.

Robin Williams behind the scenes ofAladdin and the King of Thieves.

Robin Williams with Genie on the cover ofDisney Adventures (September 1996).

Robin Williams withUrsula on the cover ofDisney Adventures (December 1997).

Robin Williams and his daughter Zelda at the premiere ofOld Dogs in November 2009.

Robin Williams visitingLate Night with Jimmy Fallon in November 2009.

Robin Williams visitingJimmy Kimmel Live! in November 2013.

A memorial for Robin Williams inSan Francisco.

Trivia[]

• He was once considered to voiceWoody inToy Story, butTom Hanks was cast in the end.^[2]
• He was also considered to voiceJames P. Sullivan inMonsters, Inc., along withBill Murray,George Wendt,Steve Martin, andDan Aykroyd, before the role was ultimately given toJohn Goodman.^{[citation needed]}
• He was also originally considered for the role ofChicken Little inthe 2005 film of the same name, along withMichael J. Fox,Dave Foley,D.B. Sweeney,Drake Bell,Josh Peck,Nathan Lane,Jack Black,Tom Kenny,Paul Walker,Matthew Broderick,Steve Carell,Justin Long, Matt Damon,Jason Lee,John Travolta,Shia LaBeouf,Jon Heder, andDavid Spade, butZach Braff was ultimately cast.
• He was indirectly referenced as the Genie in aOnce Upon a Time episode, whenAladdin tellsJasmine that the genie is free and has been gone for a while, referencing Williams' death.

References[]

External links[]

• Robin Williams onWikipedia
• Robin Williams onIMDb