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 But behind the boyish exuberance and hyperactive energy was a
sensitive man who lived to perform in front of a crowd, friends
and colleagues of the actor said following his death from an
apparent suicide on Monday.
While the Oscar-winner's death came as a bolt from the blue to
the public, the actor's longtime friend and fellow comedian Bob
Zmuda said he was not "totally shocked" by the news.
Zmuda, the founder of the charity Comic Relief for which the
actor had helped raise more than $70 million, said that Williams
had difficulty connecting with people off-stage and that even
those who knew him well were unaware of how severe his
depression was.
"Sometimes I would meet him one-on-one, he would be so
uncomfortable, he really had no social skills, and that's
probably one of the reasons he needed to be on stage," Zmuda
said. "That was his life blood, that was his psychological
imperative, and without that, he was pretty lost."
Budd Friedman, the founder of The Improv comedy clubs, last saw
Williams about a year ago when the actor dropped by a club to
perform a short routine. Friedman said in the 35 years he had
known Williams, he had never seen any glimpse of his suffering.
"I don't know too many people who were that aware of that
darkness in him," Friedman said.
Hours after Williams died on Monday, his representative Mara
Buxbaum revealed, with unusual candor by Hollywood standards,
that the actor and comedian had suffered from severe depression
in recent months.
Comedy and depression have often been interwined, from Jim
Carrey to Louis C.K., Sarah Silverman and Williams's own idol,
Jonathan Winters, who died last year.
"There are a lot of comedians who come from the background of
tragedy. Comedians have a lot of demons," said Jamie Masada,
founder of The Laugh Factory comedy club where Williams often
performed his stand-up routines.
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After seeing the inner struggles of comedians such as Richard Jeni
and Richard Pryor, Masada hired psychiatrists to provide treatment
for the acts performing at his clubs.
"(Therapy) helps in many ways," said Masada. "It's not the cure, but
at least I'm not sitting back watching them hurt."
Zmuda said Williams appeared upbeat and excited in a new marriage at
their last meeting during Williams's Broadway debut in 2011's
"Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo."
Zmuda said the "Mrs. Doubtfire" star had faced challenges in recent
years as well, especially after undergoing open-heart surgery in
2009 and when his TV comedy "The Crazy Ones" was canceled in May
after one season.
"I think the heart attack and his health, his age, the fact that he
did not have that same ability, the show being canceled, all of that
affected him," Zmuda said.
"The pressure on you when you are rich and famous and you still have
those problems of depression, it's almost like you have no escape,"
he added.
Williams had last visited The Laugh Factory in Hollywood about nine
months ago, Masada said, delivering a half-hour stand-up set.
Williams received not just a standing ovation but also screaming
fans, showing his enduring appeal within the comedy set, Masada
added.
(Additional reporting by Eric Kelsey and Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing
by Mary Milliken and Ken Wills)
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