“If women ran the world we wouldn’t have wars, just intense negotiations every 28 days.”
Last year, I wrote a short article about the sadness I felt after the passing of Robin Williams. Comedy doesn’t come easy to many but when Williams was on both stage and screen you could have believed he had an entire skeleton made out of funny bones.
“Beer commercials usually show big men, manly men, doing manly things: ‘You’ve just killed a small animal. It’s time for a light beer.’ Why not have a realistic beer commercial, with a realistic thing about beer, where someone goes, ‘It’s 5 o’clock in the morning. You’ve just pissed on a dumpster. It’s Miller time.”
Growing up I had seen Williams’ children’s movies, Mrs Doubtfire and Flubber being childhood favourites of mine, but it wasn’t until I was in my teens that I encountered the stage presence that would become a personal favourite of mine.
“Cocaine is God’s way of saying that you’re making too much money.”
I picked up Weapons of Self Destruction, a later stand up from the hairy comic, in a second hand shop for £1.40; I was unaware that it would be the best £1.40 I had ever spent. I’d purchased it intending to use it as background noise, to drown out the silence as I worked on University work. This wasn’t the case; I sat for the entirety of the DVD transfixed by what was happening on the screen.
“Cricket is basically baseball on Valium.”
It was an eye-opener. A development. A crazy trip. I was there in the audience. It was from this moment on I developed a new sense of humour. It was amazing. I had been bogged down by University work for so long that I’d forgotten how to laugh and within 20 minutes I had rekindled the fire that was my joke epicentre.
“The Second Amendment: It says you have the right to bear arms, or the right to arm bears, whatever the hell you want to do!”
Whether it was political or just plain silliness, William’s would make you crack a smile. It is a great pity that the man’s wonderful light was extinguished far too early.
I urge you to go out and watch any of his live shows. Let him make you laugh and cry in one of his serious roles. You could even introduce your kids to Mork and Mindy or the Genie from Aladdin.
“Death is nature’s way of saying, ‘Your table’s ready.’ ”
Just don’t touch Mr Happy.
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