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Tuesday 12 August 2014

Oscar-Winning Actor, 63, Is Found Dead In Apparent Suicide At His California Home After Enduring A Long Battle Against Depression

Robin Williams
President Obama has led the tributes to Robin Williams after the comic genius was found dead aged 63 from an apparent suicide in his home, police in California said on Monday night. Praising the Oscar winning actor's versatility, the president issued a touching statement, speaking volumes for the comedian and his huge impact on American culture throughout the past 35-years. 'Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan and everything in between. But he was one of a kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien - but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit. Emergency crews were called to the legendary comics house in Marin County, just north of San Francisco at approximately noon on Monday and his third wife, Susan Schneider (left) issued a statement confirming the 63-year-old's death. Speaking of her 'profound grief', Schneider, who Williams married in a Napa Valley ceremony in 2011 said, 'This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken.' The actor posted a picture to Instagram on his birthday on July 21 of himself and his Night at the Museum co-star Crystal the monkey. It is thought to be the last picture (left) of the comedian and came weeks after he checked himself back into rehab. Indeed, Williams, who won an Academy Award for his supporting role as a fatherly therapist in the 1997 drama Good Will Hunting, had been suffering from severe depression recently and had sought treatment for his ongoing alcoholism. Tributes from across the nation poured in (bottom right) for the beloved comedian, who was a part of American public life through five decades.
Dressed in drag for one of his most famous roles as Mrs Doubtfire, Robin Williams brought joy to millions with his performance as the Scottish nanny in the 1993 Hollywood movie smashClose: Mara played Robin's on-screen daughter in 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire. They are pictured centre with Lisa Jakub (L) and Matthew Lawrence (R)

Oscar winning actor and comedian Robin Williams has been found dead at his home in California after apparently killing himself at the age of 63.
The married father of three, who for decades battled depression and an addiction to drugs and alcohol, had been in rehab last month before returning to the San Francisco mansion where he died at noon yesterday. 
Marin County Sheriff's Office said it believed Williams' death was a suicide due to asphyxia, but it remains under investigation.
His distraught wife Susan Schneider revealed her husband had died in a statement last night and said: 'I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one if its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken'.
Friends and colleagues such as Steven Spielberg, Steve Martin and Ben Stiller all took to social media to express their grief and offer condolences to Williams' third wife and three children, son Zachary Pym, 31, Zelda Rae, 25 and Alan, 22.
President Obama issued a touching tribute to the actor and comedian, and thanked him his influence on American culture throughout his 35 year career.
He said: 'Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan and everything in between. But he was one of a kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien - but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit.
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Tragic passing: American actor and comedian Robin Williams poses for a photograph in Sydney in 2011 while he was promoting his voice over work in Happy Feet 2
Tragic passing: American actor and comedian Robin Williams poses for a photograph in Sydney in 2011 while he was promoting his voice over work in Happy Feet 2
On July 21, in what could be the last picture of the comedy giant, Robin Williams posted this photograph to Instagram on his birthday of himself and his Night at the Museum co-star, Crystal the monkey, who will also be familiar to viewers of the Hangover trilogy
On July 21, in what could be the last picture of the comedy giant, Robin Williams posted this photograph to Instagram on his birthday of himself and his Night at the Museum co-star, Crystal the monkey, who will also be familiar to viewers of the Hangover trilogy

'He made us laugh. He made us cry. 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. The Obama family offers our condolences to Robin's family, his friends, and everyone who found their voice and their verse thanks to Robin Williams.'
And Los Angeles' Laugh Factory, issued their own tribute to the Oscar winning actor and entertainer by changing their banner to read 'Robin Williams Rest in Peace. Make God Laugh.'
And in the wake of the Oscar-winning actor's tragic death on Monday, his 25-year-old daughter, Zelda Williams tweeted a poignant quote about her loss.

'UTTERLY HEARTBROKEN' ROBIN WILLIAMS' WIFE PAYS TOUCHING TRIBUTE TO 'MY HUSBAND AND BEST FRIEND'

'This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one if its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken,' she began.

'On behalf of Robin's family, we are asking for privacy during our time of profound grief. As he is remembered, it is our hope that the focus will not be on Robin's death but on the countless moments of joy and laughter he gave to millions.'
She posted a exerpt from Antoine De Saint-Exupery's novella The Little Prince which read: 'You - you alone will have the stars as no one else has them... In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night... You - only you will have stars that can laugh.'
She finished the post with the words: 'I love you. I miss you. I'll try to keep looking up, Z.'
Emergency crews were called to the legendary comic's house in Marin County, just north of San Francisco at approximately noon on Monday and his third wife, Susan Schneider issued a statement confirming the 63-year-old's death.
Speaking of her ‘profound grief’, Schneider, who Williams married in a Napa Valley ceremony in 2011 said, 'This morning, I lost my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings. I am utterly heartbroken.' 
Williams, who won an Academy Award for his supporting role as a fatherly therapist in the 1997 drama Good Will Hunting, had been suffering from severe depression recently and had sought treatment for his ongoing alcoholism.
'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,' said Schneider.
Close: Mara played Robin's on-screen daughter in 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire. They are pictured centre with Lisa Jakub (L) and Matthew Lawrence (R)
Poignant tweet: Zelda Williams posted an Antoine De Saint-Exupery quote from The Little Prince on Monday after news broke of her father Robin Williams's death
Poignant tweet: Zelda Williams posted an Antoine De Saint-Exupery quote from The Little Prince on Monday following her father Robin Williams's death
Final post: Robin Williams celebrated his daughter Zelda Rae's 25th birthday on July 31, posting a touching black and white photo of himself cradling his baby girl

Final post: Williams celebrated his daughter Zelda Rae's 25th birthday on July 31, posting a touching black and white photo of himself cradling his baby girl

A statement by the Marin County Sheriff's Department in California said: 'On August 11, 2014, at approximately 11:55 am, Marin County Communications received a 9-1-1 telephone call reporting a male adult had been located unconscious and not breathing inside his residence in unincorporated Tiburon, California. The male subject, pronounced deceased at 12:02 pm has been identified as Robin McLaurin Williams.'
‘The Sheriff’s Office, as well as the Tiburon Fire Department and Southern Marin Fire Protection District were dispatched to the incident with emergency personnel arriving on scene at 12pm. 
Outside the family home in a neighborhood of low-slung houses with water views, people left flowers and talked about the man who rode his bike around and had a smile and a wave for children on the street.
'It wasn't like having a celebrity,' said Sonja Conti who said the actor would often ask about her dog and nicknamed him 'Dude.' 'He was just a normal, nice guy. People left him alone.'
Another neighbor, Kelly Cook, 50, described Williams as a 'private man' who would often be seen cycling around the area.
She said her children would call him 'the funny man' and he would often speak to them when he was out walking his pug called Lenny.
Tragic loss: Zelda tweeted on Monday following the loss of her famous father, pictured together in 2011
Tragic loss: Zelda tweeted on Monday following the loss of her famous father, pictured together in 2011
Devastating: Robin Williams with his wife, Susan Schneider, who he married in 2011. She released a statement on Monday after his tragic death
Devastating: Robin Williams with his wife, Susan Schneider, who he married in 2011. She released a statement on Monday after his tragic death
Devastating: Robin Williams with his third wife, Susan Schneider, who he married in 2011. She released a statement on Monday after his tragic death
Patrol: A Marin County sheriff drives by the home of actor and comedian Robin Williams on August 11, 2014 in Tiburon, California after the Academy Award-winning actor and comedian was found dead in his home on Monday
Patrol: A Marin County sheriff drives by the home of actor and comedian Robin Williams on August 11, 2014 in Tiburon, California after the Academy Award-winning actor and comedian was found dead in his home on Monday
Thank you for the laughter: A woman leaves flowers outside the home of actor and comedian Robin Williams in Tiburon, California August 11, 2014
Thank you for the laughter: A woman leaves flowers outside the home of actor and comedian Robin Williams in Tiburon, California August 11, 2014
Memorial: A boy leaves flowers at the home of Robin Williams a brilliant shapeshifter who could channel his frenetic energy into delightful comic characters like Mrs. Doubtfire or harness it into richly nuanced work like his Oscar-winning turn in Good Will Hunting,
Memorial: A boy leaves flowers at the home of Robin Williams a brilliant shapeshifter who could channel his frenetic energy into delightful comic characters like Mrs. Doubtfire or harness it into richly nuanced work like his Oscar-winning turn in Good Will Hunting,
Goodbye: A neighbor brings flowers to place at the front gate of US actor Robin Williams house on 11 August 2014. Oscar-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams was found dead of an apparent suicide in his Tiburon home, near San Francisco on Monday
Goodbye: A neighbor brings flowers to place at the front gate of US actor Robin Williams house on 11 August 2014. Oscar-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams was found dead of an apparent suicide in his Tiburon home, near San Francisco on Monday
Goodbye: A neighbor brings flowers to place at the front gate of US actor Robin Williams house on 11 August 2014. Oscar-winning actor and comedian Robin Williams was found dead of an apparent suicide in his Tiburon home, near San Francisco on Monday
Flowers for the 'Funny Man': Mikalya Cook, 12, of the neighborhood, prepares to place flowers at the front gate of US actor Robin Williams, where he was found dead in Tiburon, California on Monday
Flowers for the 'Funny Man': Mikalya Cook, 12, of the neighborhood, prepares to place flowers at the front gate of US actor Robin Williams, where he was found dead in Tiburon, California on Monday

Often dubbed 'the funniest man alive', Williams fought drug and alcohol problems from the time he was still appearing in Mork & Mindy--right at the start of his fame.
As recently as this past July, Williams would reconnect with the 12-step program he's so often championed, this time during a brief stay at a Minnesota facility. 
One of his last photographs: This photograph of Robin Williams was taken in July at a local Dairy Queen in Minnesota during his stay at a rehabilitation facility which he checked himself into for treatment for alcohol addiction
One of his last photographs: This photograph of Robin Williams was taken in July at a local Dairy Queen in Minnesota during his stay at a rehabilitation facility which he checked himself into for treatment for alcohol addiction
He was pictured meeting a worker at a local Diary Queen near the facility
Publicist Mara Buxbaum said at the time that Williams had not fallen off the wagon, but was 'taking the opportunity to fine-tune and focus on his continued commitment, of which he remains extremely proud.'
Indeed, behind the laughter on and off stage and camera, Williams endured a struggle with personal demons that manifested themselves in well publicized drug and alcohol problems.
Williams was a close friend of Blues Brothers and Saturday Night Live star John Belushi and was one of the last people to see the actor alive before his death by drugs overdose at the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles in 1982.
The star of Good Morning Vietnam said that experience forced him to evaluate his own wild lifestyle and led to him seeking help for his addictions to alcohol and cocaine.
'Was it a wake-up call? Oh yeah, on a huge level,' he once said.
Williams managed to maintain his sobriety for two decades but in 2006, relapsed and sought treatment.
Williams described his family's reaction to this relapse in a September 2013 Parade Magazine interview:
Watch Video Here: 
'It was not an intervention so much as an ultimatum. Everyone kind of said, 'You’ve got to do this.' And I went, 'Yeah, you’re right.'
His divorce from his wife of 19 years and mother of two of his three children, film producer Marsha Garces, came a couple of years later and many outside his family's inner circle opening suspected his substance abuse struggles were to blame.
The relapses, it seems, had happened before. In that same Parade interview, Williams described a 2003 relapse, which came after 20 years of sobriety, to the magazine:
'One day I walked into a store and saw a little bottle of Jack Daniel’s. And then that voice—I call it the lower power—goes, "Hey. Just a taste." Just one.’ I drank it, and there was that brief moment of "Oh, I’m okay!" But it escalated so quickly. Within a week I was buying so many bottles I sounded like a wind chime walking down the street. I knew it was really bad one Thanksgiving when I was so drunk they had to take me upstairs.'
He described feelings of loneliness and fear that pushed him back towards alcohol at the time he was filming Christopher Nolan's Insomnia in Alaska with Al Pacino.
Inside: These real estate pictures show the interior of the home in Tiburon, California which is owned by Robin Williams and his family and where the comedy legend was found dead on Monday (pictures date from before Williams purchased the home)
Inside: These real estate pictures show the interior of the home in Tiburon, California which is owned by Robin Williams and his family and where the comedy legend was found dead on Monday (pictures date from before Williams purchased the home)
Luxury: The pool inside the San Francisco area home owned by Robin Williams taken by realtors before the legendary comic purchased the home
Luxury: The pool inside the San Francisco area home owned by Robin Williams taken by realtors before the legendary comic purchased the home
Dearest wish: A shot of the marquee at the Laugh Factory in West Hollywood paying tribute to the late Robin Williams on August 11, 2014 in Los Angeles, California
Dearest wish: A shot of the marquee at the Laugh Factory in West Hollywood paying tribute to the late Robin Williams on August 11, 2014 in Los Angeles, California
Touching: AJ Polis leaves a flower alongside a placard and a photo of the late actor Robin Williams as Mork from Ork, as people pay their respects at the home where the 80's TV series "Mork & Mindy",was set, in Boulder, Colorado
Touching: AJ Polis leaves a flower alongside a placard and a photo of the late actor Robin Williams as Mork from Ork, as people pay their respects at the home where the 80's TV series "Mork & Mindy",was set, in Boulder, Colorado
Sure to grow: A bouquet of flowers and a mock Oscar statue lay on Robin Williams star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles on Monday
Sure to grow: A bouquet of flowers and a mock Oscar statue lay on Robin Williams star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles on Monday
Commemoration: Flowers are placed in memory of actor/comedian Robin Williams' Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles on Monday
Commemoration: Flowers are placed in memory of actor/comedian Robin Williams' Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles on Monday
Commemoration: Flowers are placed in memory of actor/comedian Robin Williams' Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles on Monday
You will be missed: Flowers are placed in memory of Robin Williams, the Academy Award winner and comic supernova whose explosions of pop culture riffs and impressions dazzled audiences for decades and made him a gleamy-eyed laureate for the Information Age
You will be missed: Flowers are placed in memory of Robin Williams, the Academy Award winner and comic supernova whose explosions of pop culture riffs and impressions dazzled audiences for decades and made him a gleamy-eyed laureate for the Information Age
Public thanks: Flowers are placed in memory of actor/comedian Robin Williams on his Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles
Public thanks: Flowers are placed in memory of actor/comedian Robin Williams on his Walk of Fame star in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles

'I was in a small town where it's not the edge of the world, but you can see it from there, and then I thought: drinking. I just thought, hey, maybe drinking will help. Because I felt alone and afraid. It was that thing of working so much, and going f***, maybe that will help. And it was the worst thing in the world.'
In a revealing interview with ABC News' Diane Sawyer in 2006, the legendary comic opened up about drinking again and said that his descent back into alcoholism was 'very gradual'.
'It's the same voice thought that … you're standing at a precipice and you look down, there's a voice and it's a little quiet voice that goes, 'Jump,' Williams told Sawyer.  
With trademark humor, Williams attempted to make some light of his battle with the bottle during his interview with Sawyer, calling addiction a predator that lies in wait and is always present.
'It's fine now, I'm OK. Then, the next thing you know, it's not OK. Then you realize, 'Where am I? I didn't realize I was in Cleveland'.
While he recently sought help in Minnesota, in 2006, Williams spent two months in Orgeon's Hazelden Springbrook treatment center.
In 2006, he said that he was only drinking, having kicked his well-documented problems with cocaine.
Williams often seemed at odds with his public persona, struggling to be seen as something more than just a man with a gift to make people laugh.
'It's hard because people want to know you're a certain thing,' he told The LA Times in 1991. 
Watch Video Here: 
'They still say, 'That's the little manic guy. He's the little adrenaline guy. Oh, yeah, he touches himself. He doesn't do that anymore. But wait a minute. He's the little manic guy who played the really quiet guy and then the really scary guy. Oh, no, wait....' 
Others often saw his manic need to tell jokes as a classic shield to hide his real feelings.
'He was always in character — you never saw the real Robin,' said Jamie Masada, founder and chief executive of the Laugh Factory to The LA Times.
'I knew him 35 years, and I never knew him.'
'He was a wonderful guy,' Masada said to The LA Times. 
'I remember John Belushi and Robin, both of them always complained to me — no matter where they were people would recognize them. 
'They sold their privacy to the public. They could be in the middle of talking in the street and someone would come up for an autograph.... he didn't realize how much he sold his privacy to people.'
Williams' last tweet and Instagram came on July 31, - 11 days before his apparent suicide - in which he wished his daughter, Zelda Rae, a happy 25th birthday, posting a picture of himself with her as a child. 'Quarter of a century old today but always my baby girl,' he captioned the photo.
Robin Williams’ half-brother has paid tribute to the star, saying he meant a ‘very great deal’ to him.
McLaurin Smith-Williams, 67, shared a mother, Laura McLaurin, with the tragic comic - who was found dead from apparent suicide at his home in Tiburon, California, earlier today - and is still coming to terms with the shocking news.
Father and daughter: Actress Zelda Williams and father actor Robin Williams attend the House Of D film premiere at Loews Lincoln Square in New York in 2005 and (right)
Father and daughter: Actress Zelda Williams and father actor Robin Williams attend the House Of D film premiere at Loews Lincoln Square in New York in 2005 and (right) Zelda seen in November, 2013
Father and daughter: Actress Zelda Williams and father actor Robin Williams attend the House Of D film premiere at Loews Lincoln Square in New York in 2005 and (right) Zelda seen in November, 2013

'VERY SAD, VERY UPSET': COMEDY LEGEND's ONSCREEN MRS. DOUBTFIRE DAUGHTER MARA WILSON LEADS TRIBUTES

Tributes were pouring in after the shocking news of Robin Williams' death broke on Monday.
Two decades on: Mara Wilson was six-years-old when she starred with Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire and took to Twitter on Monday to express her grief at Robin Williams' death
Two decades on: Mara Wilson was six-years-old when she starred with Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire and took to Twitter on Monday to express her grief at Robin Williams' death
Mara Wilson, who played his on-screen daughter in Mrs Doubtfire, was amongst the first to pay their respects to the late actor, whose tragic death aged 63 at his Tiburon, California home is being treated as suspected suicide.
The actress, who is now 27, was devastated. She tweeted: 'Very sad, very upset, very glad I did not have to hear about this though Twitter. Probably going to be taking some time off it for a while.'
Sally Field, who also starred in the movie, said in a statement: 'I feel stunned and so sad about Robin. I'm sad for the world of comedy. And so very sad for his family. And I'm sad for Robin.
'He always lit up when he was able to make people laugh, and he made them laugh his whole life long.... tirelessly. He was one of a kind. There will not be another. Please God, let him now rest in peace
Robin's representative told MailOnline: 'Robin Williams passed away this morning. He has been battling severe depression of late.
'This is a tragic and sudden loss. The family respectfully asks for their privacy as they grieve during this very difficult time.'

Sadness: The Matilda actress, 27, said she'd need some time away from the social network
Sadness: The Matilda actress, 27, said she'd need some time away from the social network
Close: Mara played Robin's on-screen daughter in 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire. They are pictured centre with Lisa Jakub (L) and Matthew Lawrence (R)
Close: Mara played Robin's on-screen daughter in 1993's Mrs. Doubtfire. They are pictured centre with Lisa Jakub (L) and Matthew Lawrence (R)

When contacted at his home in Memphis, Tennessee, he exclusively told MailOnline: ‘I would very much not like to talk 
about this right now. He means a very great deal to me. Thank you.’
McLaurin has previously talked about how Robin and his other half brother Todd – who had the same father as the funnyman, but who passed away in 2007 – used to meet up with their families every year. 
He told the Chicago Tribune in 1991: ‘All three of us grew up as only children - Todd, myself and Robin. I was adopted by my mother’s parents after her divorce from her first marriage. Todd grew up with his mother.
‘We all get along famously. Todd is no blood relation to me, but we’re real close.’
Robin’s first two wives, Valerie Velardi, whom he was wed to from 1978 to 1988 and Marsha Garces Williams, whom he was married to from 1989 to 2008, have yet to comment on his passing.


Via - Dailymail.

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