A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITOR'S CHOICE
A SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
A VULTURE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
A generous, appreciative biography of Robin Williams by a New York
Times culture reporter. The author, who had access to Williams and
members of the comedian's family, is an unabashed fan but doesn't shy
away from the abundant messiness in his subject's personal life.--The
New York Times Book Review
From New York Times culture reporter Dave Itzkoff, the definitive
biography of Robin Williams - a compelling portrait of one of America's
most beloved and misunderstood entertainers.
From his rapid-fire stand-up comedy riffs to his breakout role in Mork
& Mindy and his Academy Award-winning performance in Good Will
Hunting, Robin Williams was a singularly innovative and beloved
entertainer. He often came across as a man possessed, holding forth on
culture and politics while mixing in personal revelations - all with
mercurial, tongue-twisting intensity as he inhabited and shed one
character after another with lightning speed.
But as Dave Itzkoff shows in this revelatory biography, Williams's comic
brilliance masked a deep well of conflicting emotions and self-doubt,
which he drew upon in his comedy and in celebrated films like Dead
Poets Society; Good Morning, Vietnam; The Fisher King; Aladdin;
and Mrs. Doubtfire, where he showcased his limitless gift for
improvisation to bring to life a wide range of characters. And in Good
Will Hunting he gave an intense and controlled performance that
revealed the true range of his talent.
Itzkoff also shows how Williams struggled mightily with addiction and
depression - topics he discussed openly while performing and during
interviews - and with a debilitating condition at the end of his life
that affected him in ways his fans never knew. Drawing on more than a
hundred original interviews with family, friends, and colleagues, as
well as extensive archival research, Robin is a fresh and original
look at a man whose work touched so many lives.
