Hollywood Mourns Williams

63-year-old actor died yesterday morning of an apparent suicide
By Elizabeth Armstrong Moore,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 12, 2014 1:30 AM CDT

Hollywood was quick to react to the news of Robin Williams' death, with Danny DeVito tweeting only the word "heartbroken," and John Krasinski calling Williams "the kindest hearted man," according to the Hollywood Reporter. Pink, who says she only met him once, described it as "one of the most enjoyable moments of my life," while Henry Winkler tweeted: "Robin you are an angel now!!!" and Jason Alexander said, "I'm so sorry the earth couldn't stay worthy of you." Even President Obama chimed in, issuing a statement that included: "He arrived in our lives as an alien—but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit.” Williams is survived by his wife, Susan Schneider, and three children. In a statement, Schneider said she'd lost "my husband and my best friend, while the world lost one of its most beloved artists and beautiful human beings."

Known for a wide range of films and comedy routines, including his breakout role as an alien in Mork & Mindy (1978), comedies like Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), and more serious roles in Good Will Hunting (1997) and Dead Poets Society (1989), Williams made no secret of some of his personal struggles. He had been in and out of rehab for alcohol and cocaine addiction for years, reports Forbes, and had just recently checked in to Hazelden Addiction Treatment Center to "fine-tune and focus on his continued commitment" to sobriety, the New York Times reports. He returned to TV last year in The Crazy Ones on CBS, but it was canceled after its first season. In his final Instagram post two weeks ago, Williams wished his daughter Zelda a happy 25th birthday, saying she'd always be his "baby girl." She tweeted a quote from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry today: "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." (More Robin Williams stories.)

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