I am devastated by the passing of Robin Williams.

Book Riot is celebrating some of his greatest bookish performances here.

This post isn’t strictly literary, but it’s necessary for me. Robin Williams has always been an iconic figure in my life. My best friend and I spent many of our high school Saturdays on the couch, watching his films. He called me Monday so that we could talk about this. We NEVER talk on the phone. We text. That’s how huge this was for us.

My favorite of Williams’ movies that I’ve seen is ‘The Birdcage’ – an underrated gem – and it isn’t just my favorite Robin Williams film, it is my one of my favorite films of all time. Williams stars as part of an ensemble cast that included Nathan Lane, Hank Azaria, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest, Callista Flockhart, Christine Baranski, and Dan Futterman.

In the movie, Williams plays Armand Goldman, a drag club owner and partner of Nathan Lane’s Albert, who stars in the drag show. They live above the club. Armand’s son, who he conceived experimenting with Catherine, is getting married to the daughter of a socially conservative U.S. Senator. The son and his fiance invite her parents to dinner. Hilarity ensues. It’s based on a French play.

And of course, there’s all his other work. Sitcoms, films, voice work, drama, comedy, you name it, he did it. The Genie is still one of my favorite Disney characters.

As sports commentator Mike Greenberg said on Twitter, “I never met the man in my life, and I feel like I’ve lost a very dear friend.” It speaks to how transcendent he was that nobody has said a bad word about him since the news broke yesterday that he’d committed suicide. Colleagues, fans, everyone has wonderful things to say about him. I really haven’t seen any negative comments, and I’ve been looking for them. Well, actually, Rush Limbaugh and that crowd were pretty insensitive, but I don’t really count that group as “people.” I’d say they were more like animals with thumbs, but that’s insulting to animals.

There’s a lot to say about mental illness and the stigma it still has, but I don’t know enough about it to really make any kind of definitive statement. Did his disorder help him seamlessly transition from comedy to drama? Who knows. But going from wildly funny to entirely vulnerable isn’t easy, and yet he did it so well. Marilyn Monroe was able to pull off something similar. And some of his greatest roles were dramatic, rather than comedic.

Still, whenever I need a fail safe comedy, I pull out ‘The Birdcage.’ It still makes me laugh and the first time I saw it was 15 years ago. I’ve seen it a million times.

Robin Williams spent his entire career entertaining us, and I guess the only promise I can make to the legacy of a person I never met but who still managed to give me so much is that I will never stop being entertained. I will never stop laughing, crying, and being inspired by his performances.

Rest in peace, soul companion. I hope you’re happy now.

Tagged: robin williams, the birdcage