The Genie is Free: A Tribute to Robin Williams

The Genie is Free

by Mikayla Nelson

            It was the last week of summer before going off to college and I was spending a day of fun at Valley Fair with some friends.  It was around lunch time when one of my friends looked at her phone to catch up on all of the new things happening.  She stops for a second.  I turn to her and ask her what’s wrong.  “Robin Williams died today” she replied.  My heart immediately sank to my stomach.  All I could say was “really?  Wow.”  I got home that night and my parents asked me if I had heard the news and I said I did.  I asked how he died, they said he committed suicide.  It finally hit me.  A comedic genius admired by many, not only thought about suicide, but succeeded.  That was the day, the world had lost a beloved actor, a husband and a friend.

            Robin Williams took on many roles.  He became the well-known alien on the TV show Mork and Mindy, a DJ in Good Morning Vietnam, Mrs. Doubtfire in Mrs. Doubtfire, a doctor in Awakenings, an alternative school teacher in Dead Poet’s Society, a psychologist in Good Will Hunting, and my personal favorite the voice of genie in Disney’s Aladdin.  These are just to name a few.    He not only performed in countless movies and television shows, but he won an Oscar for best supporting actor in his role in Good Will Hunting, and Golden Globes for his roles in Mrs. Doubtfire, The Fisher King, Good Morning Vietnam, Mork and Mindy and Aladdin.  As Steve Chawkins and Steven Zeitchik from the LA Times said, “Williams became one of the world’s most successful entertainers, and actor and comedian whose energy animated characters who, like himself, seemed to be spinning hilariously out of control – sometimes into dark places that only the ‘most humorous’ can understand.” (Chawkins)

            Williams was born on July 21, 1951 in Chicago, Illinois.  His father was a Ford Motor CO. executive and his mother was what he liked to call a “Christian Scientist.” (Chawkins)  Williams said, “my mother played a huge role in comedic upbringing”. (Robin) He would often want his mother’s attention and would try to do so by making her laugh.  He grew up in a huge estate in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he often played alone.  He would give voices to his many toys which he believes was the beginning of the creation of his many voices. (Robin)  Williams’ father was transferred from Detroit to San Francisco.  Williams would finish high school at Red Wood High School in San Francisco.  He would later be voted most humorous and least likely to succeed. Little did they know, the joke was on them.  After high school, Williams attended Claremont Men’s College, where he studied political science.  While he was there he was introduced to an improvisation class and fell in love with it.  Williams said that acting helped him get outside of himself. (Robin)  “The characters can do things that I am too afraid to do myself.” (Robin)  Williams had found his calling.  He then transferred to the College of Marin and was one of two students to be accepted into an acting program at the Julliard School in New York City.  He never got a degree, but it didn’t stop him from acting.

            Though Robin Williams was a successful man, he had his downfalls.  Through many years of his life, Williams struggled with alcohol and cocaine addiction and battled severe depression.  For Williams, alcohol and cocaine were a way of “pulling back.” (Robin)  “Cocaine for me was a place to hide, most people get hyper on coke.  It slowed me down… and I was so crazy back then, working all day and partying most of the night: I needed an excuse not to talk.” (Chawkins)  Williams was a very hyper man; he was always full of energy and charisma.  This was his way of calming down.  He quit drinking and using cocaine for two reasons.  His main reason being that he would soon have a son and he wanted to experience being a father and watching him grow.  He wanted to be present.  The other reason was the death from overdose of his friend Jim Belushi. (Robin)  Having these moments made Williams realize there was “something more than him.” (Robin)  That the world was going to keep going whether he was high or not.  This helped him quit his addiction habits.  He stayed dry for twenty years and returned to rehab in 2006.  “It waits, it lays in wait for the time when you think, ‘It’s fine now, I’m O.K.’ then, the next thing you know, it’s not O.K. Then you realize, ‘Where am I? I didn’t realize I was in Cleveland.’ (Tauber) ” It waits for you to feel better and think that you can conquer anything and that’s when it strikes again.  “It's the same voice that ... you're standing at the precipice and you look down, there's a voice and it's a little quiet voice that goes, 'Jump,' the same voice that goes, 'Just one.' ... And the idea of just one for someone who has no tolerance for it, that's not a possibility.” (Itzkoff)

            On August 11^th, 2014 that little voice won.  That little voice took the life of a man of many voices that inspired the world.  Many people were inspired and looked up to Robin Williams.  He was an iconic man to many and gave us all many laughs and smiles.  He was someone you would never figure would be depressed.  “He was always in character – you never saw the real Robin, I knew him for 35 years, and I never knew him.” (Chawkins)  It was hard to see his true feelings, because he was always in character.  He leaves behind a wife, Susan Schneider and his three children Zachary, Zelda and Cody.  After his death his wife says, “This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings.  As he is remembered, it is our hope the focus will not be on Robin’s death, but on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions.” (Itzkoff)  That he did.  Not only does he leave family and friends behind, but a legacy that will always be remembered by millions across the globe.  President Obama says, “He gave his immeasurable talent freely and generously to those who needed it most — from our troops stationed abroad to the marginalized on our own streets.” (Itzkoff)

            Some may argue that committing suicide is the easy way out.  However, I have experienced depression and know countless people who experience it and I understand the darkness it brings upon people.  There comes a time where you are sick and tired of being sad, a time where you can’t move or force yourself to get out of bed.  There is a time where the darkness floods over you like waves and you can’t help but let it drift you away.  The time where you hear “that little voice that tells you to jump.” (Itzkoff)  You’re tired and you can’t help but give in to it.  It saddens me that a wonderful, talented and joyous man, and countless other people of the world today feel this sadness.  And countless people give in to that little voice because they’ve lost sight of it all.  Suicide isn’t the easy way out, it’s the hardest thing in the world.  It happens when you see nothing but darkness, and you’ve lost sight of your own existence.

            Did Williams live out his vocation?  Yes, I believe he did.  Though he may have lost his battle with addiction, depression, and the battle of his own life; he inspired many, did wonderful things for his community and the world and brought countless smiles and laughs to people across the world.  He did what he loved to do, and while he did, he changed many lives.  Some may argue that suicide gave his life no meaning, but his vocation isn’t about his death, it’s about his life.  Williams says in the movie Jack, “Please don’t worry so much. Because in the end, none of us have very long on this Earth. Life is fleeting. And if you’re ever distressed, cast your eyes to the summer sky, when the stars are strung across the velvety night, and when shooting star streaks through the blackness, turning night into day, make a wish. Think of me. Make your life spectacular. I know I did.” (Jack)  I couldn’t have said this better myself.

The death of the beloved actor, father and friend will be grieved throughout the world.  His inspiration and legacy will be remembered always.  His countless jokes, movies, talents, voices and characters he brought to life will go down in acting and comedy history.  His depression had him locked up, his wish was to be free from it; like his character the genie once said, “But oh, to be free. Not to have to go Poof! What do you need? Poof! What do you need? Poof! What do you need?  To be my own master. Such a thing would be greater than all the magic and all the treasures in all the world.” (Aladdin)  You are now free from the chains that bound you.  “Carpe Diem!” (Dead)  Genie, you’re free.

Works Cited

Aladdin. Dir. John Musker and Ron Clements. Prod. John Musker and Ron Clements. By John Musker, Ron Clements, Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, Tim Rice, Scott Weinger, Robin Williams, and Linda Larkin. Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc., 1992. DVD.

Chawkins, Steve, and Steven Zeitchik. "Robin Williams Dies at 63; Oscar-winning Actor, Comic Genius." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2014. Web. 04 Oct. 2014.

Dead Poets Society. Dir. Peter Weir. Perf. Robin Williams. Touchstone, 1989. DVD.

Itzkoff, Dave. "Robin Williams, Oscar-Winning Comedian, Dies at 63." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 Aug. 2014. Web. 04 Oct. 2014.

Jack. Dir. Francis Ford Coppola. By James DeMonaco and Gary Nadeau. Perf. Robin Williams, Diane Lane, Brian Kerwin. Hollywood Pictures Home Entertainment, 1996. DVD.

Robin Williams - Inside the Actors Stuido. Perf. Robin Williams, James Lipton. Bravo Cable Television Network, 2001. DVD.

Tauber, Michelle. "How Robin Williams Fought, and Lost, His Battles with Addiction and Depression." PEOPLE.com. People Magazine, 13 Aug. 2014. Web. 04 Oct. 2014.

Williams, Robin. "Robin Williams Interviewed by Kerry O'Brien on The 7.30 Report." Interview by Kerry O'Brien. ABC News. ABC. 3 Nov. 2010. Television.