credit:IMDB.com
Overview (4)
| Date of Birth | 21 July 1951 , Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Date of Death | 11 August 2014 , Tiburon, California, USA (apparent suicide) |
| Birth Name | Robin McLaurin Williams |
| Height | 5' 7" (1.7 m) |
Mini Bio (1)
Robin McLaurin Williams was born on July 21, 1951 in Chicago,
Illinois, a great-great-grandson of Mississippi Governor and Senator
Anselm J. McLaurin. Robin briefly studied political science,
before enrolling at Juilliard School to study theatre. After he left
Juilliard, he performed in nightclubs where he was discovered for the
role of Mork on an episode of Happy Days (1974) and the subsequent spin-off Mork & Mindy (1978). Williams' wild comic talent involves a great deal of improvisation, following in the footsteps of his idol Jonathan Winters. Williams has also proven to be an effective dramatic actor and received an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in Good Will Hunting (1997).
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Ray Hamel
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Ray Hamel
Spouse (3)
| Susan Schneider | (22 October 2011 - 11 August 2014) (his death) |
| Marsha Garces Williams | (30 April 1989 - 2010) (divorced) (2 children) |
| Valerie Velardi | (4 June 1978 - 6 December 1988) (divorced) (1 child) |
Trade Mark (7)
Wild improvised stream-of-consciousness comedy dialogue where he
will do cultural references, impersonations and one-liners with rapid
switching.
Unique skill at imitating voices
Frequently plays offbeat and eccentric characters
Frequently plays fathers or family men
Often plays characters lacking in self-awareness
Often plays men who have suffered a trauma or loss
Often plays characters with mental instability and/or a deep capacity for violence (One Hour Photo, Insomnia)
Trivia (83)
Moved to San Francisco, California when he was 16.
Studied acting briefly at Julliard under John Houseman. Houseman told him he was wasting his talent at Juilliard and he should strike out on his own and do stand-up comedy.
Resides with his family in San Francisco's Seacliff neighborhood.
Was set to play Drew Barrymore's father in the film Home Fries (1998) and had the role during production, but pulled out of the part days before his scenes were to be shot.
October 1997: Ranked #63 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.
1997: Voted funniest man alive by Entertainment Weekly.
When he auditioned for the role of Mork from Ork on Happy Days (1974), producer Garry Marshall
told him to sit down. Williams immediately sat on his head on the
chair. Marshall hired him, saying that he was the only alien who
auditioned.
During the making of Mork & Mindy (1978), Williams departed from the scripts and ad libbed so many times and so well, that the producers stop
trying to make him stick to the script and deliberately left gaps in
the later scripts leaving only "Mork can go off here" in those places so
Robin could improvise.
Album: "Reality... What a Concept" on Casablanca Records (1979).
Was set to appear on the Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) episode, Star Trek: The Next Generation: A Matter of Time
(1991), as the time traveler Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen, but a
schedule conflict forced him to drop out (the role eventually went to Matt Frewer). He was inspired to seek a Trek role by his friend, Whoopi Goldberg, who made several appearances on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) as the bartender Guinan.
Is a huge fan of the sport of Rugby Union, and in particular New Zealand All Black star Jonah Lomu,
who flew to San Francisco and gifted him with a signed All Black
jersey. On a recent visit to New Zealand they were reunited on national
television, Williams humbly accepting another All Black jersey, except
this time it had Jonah's number 11 on the back.
Attended Claremont Men's College, where he played soccer.
1998: Listed by Entertainment Weekly as one of the 25 Best Actors.
Is a huge fan of the comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969).
Studied at Julliard with actor Christopher Reeve. The two remained good friends until Reeve's death in 2004.
Enjoys cycling and occasionally trains with Lance Armstrong.
After having won the Academy Award for Good Will Hunting (1997), he sent Peer Augustinski (who is his standard German dubbing voice) a little Oscar replica with a note: "Thank you for making me famous in Germany.".
Graduated from Redwood High School in Larkspur, California, north of San Francisco. Other famous alumni from Redwood include Gabrielle Carteris (Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990)) and Erin Gray (Kate from Silver Spoons (1982)), and Jason Branson, radio talk show guest/therapist and author.
2003: Won Grammy Award for Best Spoken Comedy Album for "Robin Williams - Live 2002".
1980: Hit #104 on the Billboard Singles Charts with "I Yam What I Yam" (Boardwalk 5701).
2003: Ranked #7 in Star TV's Top 10 Box Office Stars of the 1990s.
1996: He reached a unique milestone by having two of his films
reach the $100-million mark in the United States exactly the same week: Jumanji (1995) and The Birdcage (1996).
Was voted "Least Likely to Succeed" by his fellow graduates at Larkspur.
Early in his career,
he told a reporter that he was born in Scotland. His original press
releases do indeed list Scotland as his place of birth. He admits now
that he was "under the influence" at the time he said this. He was
really born in Chicago.
He was voted the 50th Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly.
One week after Christopher Reeve's tragic horseriding accident, Robin visited him in the hospital.
However, he was dressed from head to toe in scrubs, spoke with a
Russian accent, and had a surgical mask on. He was acting as if he was a
real doctor and did a bunch of wacky antics. After he took off his
mask, Reeve stated that, "That was the first time he laughed since the
accident!".
When "Blame Canada", a song from South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut
(1999), was nominated for a Best Song Academy Award, it was Williams
who performed the song at the ceremony because the actress who sang the
song in the film, Mary Kay Bergman, had committed suicide a few months prior to the awards show.
Was considered for the role of Joe Miller in Jonathan Demme's Philadelphia (1993), which went to Denzel Washington.
An active supporter of the U.S. Democratic Party, he has been
outspoken about his opposition to the war in Iraq. However, he has
become the most consistent entertainer of U.S. troops since the war
began, leading some to dub him the next Bob Hope.
Has been seen in playing paintball at public reservations near his Northern California residence.
He was a very overweight child. As a result, nobody would play with him. He started talking in different voices to entertain himself.
2004: Dedicated his winning the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globe Awards to his good friend Christopher Reeve.
Most of his dialogue in Aladdin (1992) is ad-libbed.
Was a guest on Johnny Carson's next to last episode of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962), along with Bette Midler.
Has English, French, Greman, Irish, Scottish and Welsh ancestry.
He and his Being Human (1994) and Robots (2005) castmate, Ewan McGregor, have both shared a role with Alec Guinness. McGregor, of course, played the young Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequels. Williams appeared in Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet (1996), as Osric, a part that Guinness had played on stage opposite John Gielgud. Williams also shares that part with another Star Wars series actor, Peter Cushing, who played the same role in the same year in the film, opposite Laurence Olivier.
Co-owns the Rubicon restaurant in San Francisco with Robert De Niro and fellow Bay area resident Francis Ford Coppola.
1993: Wrote the foreword to Gary Larson's book, "The Far Side: Gallery 4".
2002: After a 20-year break from doing stand-up comedy, he came
back with a show live on Broadway. It won a Grammy Award for best spoken
word album in 2003.
Though he is highly regarded for his ability to perform numerous
different voices, he only has lent his voice to six animated features: FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992), Aladdin (1992), Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996), Robots (2005), Happy Feet (2006) and Happy Feet Two (2011). However, he did voice-over work for a cartoon on Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), played a small role in the animated short A Wish for Wings That Work
(1991), and has done narration for different rides and attractions at
Disney World. He has also done the voice for the character Doctor Know
in the movie A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), which is not an animated movie.
Has an older half-brother, Todd Williams.
1976: Performed at the opening of the San Francisco Comedy Competition against Dana Carvey, Harry Anderson and A. Whitney Brown.
Is a huge fan of Doctor Who (1963) and Star Trek (1966).
Invented the curse word "Shazbot", first heard on the situation comedy Mork & Mindy (1978) (in which Mork says the expression during the opening credits). Later, it was used in an episode of The Simpsons
(1989) (Treehouse of Horror VI) with the Production Code 3F04, which
aired on 10/30/95. In 1998, it was used as a voice chat option in the
very popular "Starsiege Tribes" game and was carried over into the
sequels "Tribes 2" and "Tribes: Vengeance". Incidently, "shazbot, nano
nano" also remain the last recorded words of the legendary former singer
of AC/DC Bon Scott (1946-1980), still available on the album "Highway
to Hell".
Was offered the role of The Riddler in Batman Forever (1995), which eventually went to Jim Carrey.
Was considered for the role of Bobby Wheeler in the situation comedy Taxi (1978), which went to Jeff Conaway.
Was the second choice for the role of Frank Ginsberg in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), which went to Steve Carell.
1993: Was turned down for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award nomination in for his performance in Aladdin (1992), because he only voiced The Genie.
He likes computer and video-games.
Owns a home and vineyard in Northern California's St. Helena
district, hence the quip, "I love the smell of Napa in the morning.".
Not-too-distant neighbors include football legend Joe Montana (Calistoga) and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola (Rutherford), both of whom run their own vineyards.
Williams and Robert De Niro were the last stars to see John Belushi alive, albeit on separate visits to Bungalow #3 of the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles that fateful day in March 1982.
Asked by James Lipton
about what he would like to God say when he arrives in the heaven,
Williams answered that "There is a seat in the front." in the concert of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Elvis Presley.
Was invited to the party Steve Martin was throwing that turned out to be his wedding.
Is one of the few celebrities to have a segment in Sesame Street
that did not have any puppets or actors playing sesame street regular
characters.
Has played both a fictional president in Man of the Year (2006) and a real-life one in Night at the Museum (2006).
He and his former wife frequently visited Australia during their holidays.
Met second wife Marsha Garces Williams when she was nanny for his and first wife Valerie Velardi's son, Zak Williams.
Lives in San Francisco and Napa, California.
Speaks French fluently.
Was voted "Most Humorous" and "Least likely to succeed" in school.
Filed a lawsuit against Frank and Beans Productions, production
company of a shelved movie called "A Couple of Dicks". Williams claims
that he received $6 million in "fixed compensation", meaning that he
would receive the money whether the film was made or not. [October 2008]
Checked himself into rehab to be treated for alcoholism. He
already overcome a drug and alcohol addiction in the 1980s. He left
rehab in September 2006.
Recovering at the Cleveland Clinic after successful open heart surgery on March 13, 2009 to replace his aortic valve.
His role in August Rush (2007) was modeled after the character of Fagin from Oliver Twist (1948), who was played in David Lean's film by Alec Guinness. Guinness also played Osric in John Gielgud's theatrical production of Hamlet. Williams played the role in Kenneth Branagh's film version.
Was frequently called up by Steven Spielberg when he was filming Schindler's List
(1993). He would put him on speaker phone so he could tell jokes to the
cast and crew to cheer them up. He used his character in Aladdin (1992) most of the time.
During the course of recording the voice of Genie in Aladdin
(1992), Robin improvised so much they had almost 16 hours of material.
He also ad-libbed so many of his lines that the movie's script was
turned down for a Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award nomination.
Studied acting with Michael Howard in New York City.
Became a vegetarian following his open heart surgery.
Close friends with John Travolta and Eric Idle.
Married for the third time to, Susan Schneider, a graphic
designer, on October 23, 2011, at Meadowood Resort in St. Helena,
California, among friends and family.
His great friend, Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, refers to Robin's hairy arms as "Quest for Fire" opera gloves.
Is a huge fan of the Legend of Zelda series since the first game
appeared in 1986, and even named his daughter Zelda, after the eponymous
character. Both Robin and Zelda appeared in a commercial for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011).
Has played the same character (Mork) in three different series: Happy Days (1974), Mork & Mindy (1978) and Out of the Blue (1979).
Became a father for the 1st time at age 31 when his 1st ex-wife Valerie Velardi gave birth to their son Zachary Pym (Zak) Williams on April 11, 1983.
Became a father for the 2nd time at age 38 when his 2nd ex-wife Marsha Garces Williams gave birth to their daughter Zelda Williams on July 31, 1989.
Became a father for the 3rd time at age 40 when his 2nd ex-wife Marsha Garces Williams gave birth to their son Cody Alan Williams on November 25, 1991.
Has appeared with Billy Crystal in four films: In Search of Dr. Seuss (1994), Hamlet (1996), Fathers' Day (1997), Deconstructing Harry (1997) and a cameo on Friends (1994).
Has worked with voice actor Frank Welker in five films: A Wish for Wings That Work (1991), Aladdin (1992), In Search of Dr. Seuss (1994), Jumanji (1995) and Aladdin and the King of Thieves (1996).
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925
Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on December 12, 1990.
As of 2014, has appeared in three films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Dead Poets Society (1989), Awakenings (1990) and Good Will Hunting (1997).
Was the first choice for the role of Bob Wiley in What About Bob?
(1991), but was forced to turn it down because he was finishing filming
The Fisher King (1991), at the same exact time. The part went to Bill
Murray instead.
Personal Quotes (31)
Cocaine is God's way of telling you you are making too much money.
...And now that you have a child you have to clean up your act,
'cause you can't drink anymore. You can't come home drunk and go, "Hey,
here's a little switch: Daddy's gonna throw up on you!".
Ah, yes, divorce, from the Latin word meaning to rip out a man's genitals through his wallet.
See, the problem is that God gives men a brain and a penis, and only enough blood to run one at a time.
Ballet: Men wearing pants so tight that you can tell what religion they are.
You can start any Monty Python routine and people finish it for you. Everyone knows it like shorthand.
[about Canada] Canada is like a loft apartment over a really great party.
Comedy is acting out optimism.
[to troops in Iraq] I'm looking at a group of heavily armed people
here. I'm telling myself "If you're not funny, it's a problem.".
[about Popeye (1980)] If you watch it backwards, it has a plot.
Everyone has these two visions when they hold their child for the
first time. The first is your child as an adult saying "I want to thank
the Nobel Committee for this award." The other is "You want fries with
that?".
A woman would never make a nuclear bomb. They would never make a
weapon that kills, no, no. They'd make a weapon that makes you feel bad
for a while.
About comic lines written by Mark Shaiman being removed for
innuendo (i.e. "Chip 'n Dale are both strippers") the week before for
his presenting of Best Animated Film at the 77th Academy Awards: For a
while you get mad, then you get over it. They're afraid of saying Olive
Oyl is anorexic. It tells you about the state of humor. It's strange to
think: how afraid are you? We thought that they got the irony of it. I
guess not.
You're only given one little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it.
They're talking about partial nuclear disarmament, which is also
like talking about partial circumcision - you either go all the way or
forget it.
Countering the complaint that the juiciest roles go to younger
actors: They (the roles) may not be financially enriching, but
personally enriching? Yes. You are no longer under pressure. You don't
have to prove yourself on some levels, but you do have to [creatively]
push yourself.
I started doing comedy because that was the only stage that I
could find. It was the pure idea of being on stage. That was the only
thing that interested me, along with learning the craft and working, and
just being in productions with people.
[on his acting career]: All the new people you meet, it's pretty
amazing. The vampire needs new blood. And there is still a lot to learn
and there is always great stuff out there. Even mistakes can be
wonderful.
Okra is the closest thing to nylon I've ever eaten. It's like they
bred cotton with a green bean. Okra, tastes like snot. The more you
cook it, the more it turns into string.
I believe I could do dance on ice, or play in a musical of Freud's
life called "It's Your Mother" - or maybe one for the symbolists: "Jung
at Heart". There's always the one about India: "The Gandhi Man Can".
[While accepting the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Good Will Hunting
(1997)] Most of all, I want to thank my father, up there, the man who
when I said I wanted to be an actor, he said, "Wonderful. Just have a
back-up profession like welding.".
Australians are basically English rednecks. If Darwin had landed in Australia, he would have gone: "I'm wrong".
I'd play the Riddler in the next Batman, although it'd be hard to top Heath Ledger
as the villain, and I'm a little hairy for tights. Plus, the Batman
films have screwed me twice before: years ago they offered me the Joker
and then gave it to Jack Nicholson, then they offered me the Riddler and gave it to Jim Carrey.
[on entertaining the troops on USO tours] I enjoy it. I enjoy
performing for heavily armed people. It's easier than going to Georgia.
There's so much to talk about. The fact that Donald Trump wants to
see Obama's birth certificate. I want to see his hairline first.
I was once walking in an airport and a woman came up to me and
said, "Be zany!". That'd be like walking up to Baryshikov and going,
"Plie! Just do a plie! Do it! Do a releve right now! Lift my wife!".
I went to rehab in wine country just to keep my options open.
Men can't fake an orgasm, who wants to look that dumb, you know what I'm saying?
Stand-up is the place where you can do things that you could never
do in public. Once you step on stage you're licensed to do that. It's
an understood relationship. You walk on stage - it's your job.
[on Jonathan Winters] Jonathan taught me that the world is open for play, that everything and everybody is mockable, in a wonderful way.
Jonathan Winters was my mentor. I told him that and he said, "Please, I prefer idol.".
Salary (7)
| Mork & Mindy (1978) | $35,000 per 1/2 hour episode | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Popeye (1980) | $500,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aladdin (1992) | $100,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jumanji (1995) | $15,000,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bicentennial Man (1999) | $20,000,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Night Listener (2006) | $65,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Man of the Year (2006) | $1,000,000 |
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