# R.I.P. Robin Williams **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** celebrity-death\ **Created:** [August 11, 2014, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333 "2014-08-11T23:04:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/241 "2014-08-12T23:21:25Z")
> [@](#): > > NPR replayed a Terry Gross interview with Robin Williams today in which she asked him directly if he suffered from, or was ever treated for, clinical depression. His answer was a rather emphatic NO. just listening to that - he also said he “acted” manic. my theory is he was bipolar and could never face that. the addictions he could name and face, the mental illness he could not. just my guess. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/242 "2014-08-12T23:27:13Z")
> [@Sarabellum1976](#): > > I think my favorite Robin Williams role was in **Good Will Hunting**. The “It’s not your fault” scene. Man, that one moves me to tears every time. > > I also loved him in **The Birdcage** , which is the only example that I can think of where a French farce film was actually improved by an American remake. A damn shame that they never filmed any of the existing sequels to that, because they were all pretty funny. > > **Mrs. Doubtfire** was pretty good fare, but I’m glad they didn’t try to make a sequel to that! Coincidentally, **Good Will Hunting** has been on Encore for a couple of weeks now and is available on demand. There are some scenes in there that make you wince. ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/243 "2014-08-12T23:32:13Z")
> [@JackieLikesVariety](#): > > just listening to that - he also said he “acted” manic. > > my theory is he was bipolar and could never face that. the addictions he could name and face, the mental illness he could not. > > just my guess. Yes and that is somewhat institutionlized. It is OK, expected even, for celebrities to be open and lauded for their honesty about addiction. About mental illness, not so much. There is still a lot of stigma on that issue. And Robin Williams was of a generation that typically shamed mental illness. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/244 "2014-08-12T23:41:30Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Slight hijack: news of how he died was reported very shortly after the discovery of his body. I think the Sheriff’s department was going to call a news conference today to talk about it, and usually in such cases we may even have doctors talking about the cause of death. > > Isn’t such a thing private? Like it violates some law? Or does the fact that he was a public figure mean that his doctors or the cops investigating the death are allowed to disclose stuff to the public that a regular person could sue over? Police investigations aren’t private as a general rule. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/245 "2014-08-12T23:54:14Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Coincidentally, **Good Will Hunting** has been on Encore for a couple of weeks now and is available on demand. There are some scenes in there that make you wince. That movie quite literally changed my life. I was, er, 14 when I saw it, I think. It was the ‘‘Catcher in the Rye’’ of my era. I was still in high school. I went home from the theater and I started writing a novel, which I finished a couple of years later. It’s a terrible novel, because I was 14. But the point is that movie compelled me to write it. It didn’t matter if it was terrible because it was helping me deal with my own shit. I really can’t think of a higher compliment for a movie. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/246 "2014-08-12T23:59:12Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Robin Williams is an actor I always respected but never thought too much about. I would love his awesome films individually but if you asked who my favorite actor was, I would not say Robin Williams. > > However, now that he is dead every article about him makes some attempt to encapsulate his life’s work. But the thing is, they can’t. I am only now realizing this, but he was in so many goddamn amazing movies (including my favorite, Goodwill Hunting) that every time I think I’m remembering them all, someone mentions another one. > > Good Morning Vietnam > Goodwill Hunting > Dead Poet’s Society > What Dreams May Come > Aladdin > The Birdcage > > We lost a fucking legend. > > And I am really happy this has gotten people to start talking about suicide and depression. I think that is the best possible thing that could come out of this tragedy. Well said, and I’d add Awakenings to that list. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/247 "2014-08-13T00:07:35Z")
> [@chiroptera](#): > > Yes and that is somewhat institutionlized. It is OK, expected even, for celebrities to be open and lauded for their honesty about addiction. About mental illness, not so much. There is still a lot of stigma on that issue. And Robin Williams was of a generation that typically shamed mental illness. That is very interesting, because I’ve always considered addiction a type of mental illness. It’s amazing to me that in 2014 we are still battling this stigma. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/248 "2014-08-13T00:14:42Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > No, I’m not high. > Are you suffering from hypoxia or its after-effects? > > _ **The Crazy Ones** _ was not that bad consider that _ **Big Bang Theory** _ is a paradise for halfwits. Perhaps if people had watched the program more, we wouldn’t be online expressing sympathy for its star, who according to interview he gave beforehand, only starred in it because he needed the money. > > I see a contradiction. > If you don’t, then that’s you. A massively successful career with awards, check 4 movies in production, check wealth, check beautiful wife and kids, check An adoring public, check the ability to pick and choose career and hobbies, check I doubt this tiny set back from a nothing network was his undoing. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/249 "2014-08-13T00:21:07Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > No, I’m not high. > Are you suffering from hypoxia or its after-effects? > > _ **The Crazy Ones** _ was not that bad consider that _ **Big Bang Theory** _ is a paradise for halfwits. Perhaps if people had watched the program more, we wouldn’t be online expressing sympathy for its star, who according to interview he gave beforehand, only starred in it because he needed the money. > > I see a contradiction. > If you don’t, then that’s you. > [@Magiver](#): > > A massively successful career with awards, check > 4 movies in production, check > wealth, check > beautiful wife and kids, check > An adoring public, check > the ability to pick and choose career and hobbies, check > > I doubt this tiny set back from a nothing network was his undoing. Dammit, nevadaexile, you make me note that Magiver has a good point. Now I’ll have to reconsider the usefulness of the super duper double monkey punch. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/250 "2014-08-13T00:23:45Z")
Leave it to Fox News’ Shepard Smith to open mouth, [insert both feet.](https://tv.yahoo.com/news/foxs-smith-expresses-regret-over-williams-214521000.html) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/251 "2014-08-13T00:33:08Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > When I heard “death by asphyxiation,” I envisioned a plastic bag over the head, a la _House of Sand and Fog_. I was thinking of something more autoerotic. :o Robin could have done something with that, too! ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/252 "2014-08-13T00:34:15Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > Leave it to Fox News’ Shepard Smith to open mouth, [insert both feet.](https://tv.yahoo.com/news/foxs-smith-expresses-regret-over-williams-214521000.html) I’m delighted that he felt the need to backpedal so quickly. That means people got pissed off. I’m delighted that people got pissed off. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/253 "2014-08-13T00:36:26Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > I was thinking of something more autoerotic. :o > > Robin could have done something with that, too! ☹ Have you seen [World’s Greatest Dad](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1262981/)? It was not a super mainstream movie and is not for the faint of heart, but I thought it was pretty great. I have to admit when I first heard the cause of death was asphyxiation and that he had apparently left a note… ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/254 "2014-08-13T00:39:32Z")
[May have been money problems.](http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2014/08/robin-williams-had-serious-money-troubles-in-months-before-his-death-claims-friend-was-the-pressure-too-much/) He was [selling his house to downsize](http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/09/16/robin-williams-downsizing-after-divorces-has-to-sell-house/) so there is some validity to the claim. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/255 "2014-08-13T00:44:42Z")
I mean, I know it’s normal to speculate on why someone would commit suicide. I guess. But what I wish more people understood is that there doesn’t have to be a why. The why is depression. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/256 "2014-08-13T00:48:18Z")
Wait a minute – Robin Williams was a comic genius, so quick, so sharp, so smart, and did I say how quick his wit was? But… was he high on coke for some or many of his performances? Or, not? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/257 "2014-08-13T00:58:23Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > [May have been money problems.](http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2014/08/robin-williams-had-serious-money-troubles-in-months-before-his-death-claims-friend-was-the-pressure-too-much/) > > He was [selling his house to downsize](http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2013/09/16/robin-williams-downsizing-after-divorces-has-to-sell-house/) so there is some validity to the claim. That sounds about right. Divorces can bankrupt you, especially a star like Robin Williams. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/258 "2014-08-13T01:08:54Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Have you seen [World’s Greatest Dad](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1262981/)? It was not a super mainstream movie and is not for the faint of heart, but I thought it was pretty great. I have to admit when I first heard the cause of death was asphyxiation and that he had apparently left a note… Crossed my mind too. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/259 "2014-08-13T01:25:38Z")
I always imagined he would make the perfect Lech Walesa of Poland’s Solidarity Movement. ---
**Author:** ![Raygun99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Raygun99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raygun99)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333/260 "2014-08-13T01:31:35Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > That sounds about right. Divorces can bankrupt you, especially a star like Robin Williams. Per an interview from a couple of years ago, he was not paying any alimony from his most recent divorce. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/r-i-p-robin-williams/695333.md?page=14)