Disney Bosses Pay Touching Tribute to Robin Williams

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.hollywood.com/news/brief/57252175/disney-bosses-pay-touching-tribute-to-robin-williams?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=hollywood





Twitter/Disney

Disney bosses have paid a touching tribute to their Genie, Robin Williams, by painting an image of his animated Aladdin character in the stars.

The late actor's friends at the Walt Disney Company have released a photo of his magical character cleverly crafted from stars in the night sky. Disney chairman Robert Iger has also offered up a statement about Williams, which was released as the caption for the image.

It reads: "We're deeply saddened by the loss of Robin Williams, a wonderfully gifted man who touched our hearts and never failed to make us laugh. An incredible actor and a comedic genius, Robin will always be remembered for bringing some of the world's favorite characters to life, from his zany alien on ABC's Mork & Mindy to the irascible genie in Disney's Aladdin. He was a true Disney Legend, a beloved member of our family, and he will be sorely missed. We join Robin's friends and fans everywhere in mourning, and offer our thoughts and condolences to his family during this difficult time."

Meanwhile, the organisers of the annual Deauville American Film Festival in France have announced they will pay homage to Williams, who visited the event in 1988 and 1999. Calling the tragic star "an old friend", festival bosses have posted photos of the late actor at the event on Deauville's Twitter.com page. Will Ferrell, Jessica Chastain and James Cameron will he honoured with career awards at the festival, which begins on 5 September (14).

[DirkGently]

1. KNR. n/t

[niyad]

2. k and r

[zappaman]

3. Too bad they treated him poorly on this movie.

On his financial dispute with Disney over Aladdin:
"The only reason Mickey Mouse has four fingers is because he can't pick up a check."

[Omaha Steve]

4. Comedy Legend Robin Williams Battled Disney, Depression, and Picasso

I knew they ended up giving him a pricey Picasso. I didn't know he hated it.

http://news.artnet.com/art-world/comedy-legend-robin-williams-battled-disney-depression-and-picasso-76633

Coline Milliard, Tuesday, August 12, 2014



Robin Williams in Good Morning, Vietnam, 1987


The announcement on August 11 that comedian and actor Robin Williams had committed suicide, at age 63, was greeted by an outpouring of emotion worldwide. Hollywood stars including Mia Farrow and Bill Cosby took to Twitter to express their sadness. Even President Obama released a statement: “He was one-of-a-kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien—but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit. He made us laugh. He made us cry.”

Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1951, Williams studied at the Juilliard School in New York and first came to fame playing an extraterrestrial character in the 1970s TV show Mork and Mindy. He is now best-known for his roles in films such as Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), and the genie’s voice in Disney’s animated blockbuster movie Aladdin (1992). Complications around this production considerably damaged his relationship with Disney, which led the studio to give Williams a painting by Pablo Picasso estimated at the time at $1 million. The comedian, who by then had three children, had agreed to play the genie on the understanding that his voice wouldn’t be used to sell merchandizing.

His role in Aladdin was to be small, and he agreed to be paid $75,000 instead of his usual fee of around $8 million. Once in the studio, he took to his role with so much gusto, improvising all the way, that Disney fleshed out the genie, which became a lynchpin of the entire movie. Aladdin went on to gross over $200 million. The comedian claimed that the studio also used his voice in advertising. “It wasn’t as if we hadn’t set it out,” Williams told New York magazine in 1993. “I don’t want to sell stuff … It’s one thing I don’t do … The voice, that’s me; I gave them my self. When it happened, I said: ‘You know I don’t do that.’ And they apologized; they said it was done by other people.”

FULL story at link.

[zappaman]

5. Wow! I did not know that either!

Thanks for posting that!