Robin Williams

Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951 – August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Born in Chicago, Williams began performing stand-up comedy in San Francisco and Los Angeles during the mid-1970s. After rising to fame playing the alien Mork in the sitcom Mork & Mindy, Williams established a career in both stand-up comedy and feature film acting. He was known for his improvisation skills and the wide variety of memorable character voices he created. Many critics have lauded Williams as one of the funniest comedians of all time. After his first starring film role in Popeye (1980), Williams starred in numerous films that achieved critical and commercial success, including The World According to Garp (1982); Moscow on the Hudson (1984); Good Morning, Vietnam (1987); Dead Poets Society (1989); Awakenings (1990); The Fisher King (1991); Patch Adams (1998); One Hour Photo (2002) and World's Greatest Dad (2009); as well as box office hits such as Hook (1991), Aladdin (1992), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Jumanji (1995), The Birdcage (1996), Good Will Hunting (1997) and the Night at the Museum trilogy (2006–2014). Williams was nominated four times for Academy Awards, winning Best Supporting Actor for his performance as psychologist Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting. He also received two Primetime Emmy Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and four Grammy Awards. Williams committed suicide in 2014 at his home in Paradise Cay, California, at the age of 63. His wife attributed his suicide to his struggle with Lewy body disease.