I’m usually not one for bemoaning the passing of celebrities and the subsequent hot topic of the day to do with the manner of their passing that insidiously rages through social media thereafter.
Even though blogging is very much part of social media, I like to think that I still have the common sense I developed as a maturing adult – this being about 15 minutes ago. Mentioned common sense runs along the lines of, ‘Never met the person; their actions and behaviour have little or no bearing on my life and if they choose to sway back and forth on a wrecking ball, more power (aha aha) to them’.
On occasion though, when certain famous people die, I find that it does affect me. Case in point is the death this week of Robin Williams.
I’ve always thought that Robin Williams is funny. Not just funny, but no-holds barred, laugh-out loud, clever funny. When I looked a list of the movies that he was in, it’s actually quite daunting how prolific his career has been. Out of those numerous movies, I’ve probably seen a good 60% of them. More than that, I constantly quote his lines in my everyday life, because I think they’re that funny, that clever or that they spark something in me whether it’s to do with word association or ‘idea’ association. Add to this his physical humour and I just think he’s the bomb.
From: ‘Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary’, from Dead Poet’s Society; ‘…what’s the 0 stand for? Oh my God, it’s early!’ of Good Morning, Vietnam through to ‘… Martha Graham! Martha Graham! Martha Graham! …’ from The Birdcage to his genius ad-libbing in just about every single public performance, his effect on me has been quite something.
I also remember from many of his performances how much he used to sweat. I was going to politely say perspire, but that would just be untrue – Robin Williams sweated. I remember thinking that he reminded me of a rather cuddly bear – but not a bear that you’d pick a fight with. Ever.
I think it made me realise too why you would always see stand-up comedians chugging water on stage. Bright, hot stage lights, level of nervousness keeping you at the precipice of flight mode, throat drying out as you frenetically charge through your act – if I really think about, I’m surprised said comedians didn’t have a whole bank of water coolers behind them! Possibly because, if their gig wasn’t going well they could smash the water coolers as part of their act? Hmmm.
Anyhow, let me not get too far off the beaten path. All I really meant to say was, ’Thank you, Robin Williams, very much. For all that you gave, all that you were and your great, big, fat life’.
“If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates,” host James Lipton asks.
Robin responds, “If Heaven exists, to know that there’s laughter. That’d be a great thing.”
