Robin Williams found dead in his Bay Area Home...

[Napoléon]

It's kind of strange how much we care about celebrities. I don't mean to sound cold or anything, but this is somebody that literally none of us knew at all.

People will not know them personally but for many of us they do impact on people's lives in some respects. Robin Williams, for me at least, is a memorable part of my childhood with films like Mrs Doubtfire and Aladdin. It's kinda like when Steve Irwin died, I grew up watching his wildlife programmes and when he died I was pretty upset. Not like, majorly upset, but just sad. It's not that strange when you consider you see these people a lot, albeit through a screen more than anything else.

[Cyberman]

Can anyone confirm if this is true?

Westboro Baptist Church Threatens To Picket Actor's Funeral

Apparently it's to do with this act (though since when have the Phelps rats ever needed a reason?):

[Welsh cake]

It's sad that there's this taboo against mental illness. Even if they seek help, they may still be looked down on or mistreated. That just makes suicide all the more appealing.

I can relate. From my experience in the workplace, there is no actual "taboo" about coming out and saying you have a mental illness.

Apathy and intolerance are the proper words. Most people I know in real life don't give a shit about anyone except themselves. And they dare to call themselves "normal".

They don't see you as a person, but a means to an end...
You're a number not a human...
You're only as good as your last mistake...
...etc....etc...

You're only looked down upon and/or mistreated if you cannot do the job or duty expected of you because of your mental illness.

[Jenny A]

Can anyone confirm if this is true?

Westboro Baptist Church Threatens To Picket Actor's Funeral

I can neither confirm nor deny. But I believe it. Don't worry, Robin Williams was popular enough that they will only hurt themselves. Pray they bring burning crosses, misspelled signs, and hillbilly auras.

[ShaMan]

Pray they bring burning crosses, misspelled signs, and hillbilly auras.

I will prey pray on for WBC.

[Rayaan]

I always got the sense he never really showed his true personality to the public. Like he was hiding his depression behind a façade of comedy.

I've been thinking that also, especially after hearing the news of how he killed himself, along with his drug and alcohol addiction as well as severe depression. It's sad, and it's pretty ironic, too.

Nonetheless, he was a good comedian for sure and I enjoyed most of his movies.

[Jackalope]

Had he died of natual causes, I would have no fucks to give, honestly. It was the manner of his death - clearly the man was deeply troubled by his melancholy, and *that* is something I can identify with.

Again this is a hard position for me to take, especially because there have been multiple suicides in my family and I've had one close friend commit suicide as well. Those affected me because I knew and cared about the people. Robin Williams I didn't know. Whether or not I identify with the cause is irrelevant to it being sad for me. There is so much suffering in the world and I think that the enormous deal that is made out of celebrities and their problems is not healthy for us as a society.

I get what you're saying, and in the vast majority of cases, I'm with you. In this particular case, there's something the man and I have in common, that's directly linked to his cause of death. That's what triggers the feelings of empathy that I have for him, even though I've never met him.

[Jenny A]

I always got the sense he never really showed his true personality to the public. Like he was hiding his depression behind a façade of comedy.

I've been thinking that also, especially after hearing the news of how he killed himself, along with his drug and alcohol addiction as well as severe depression. It's sad, and it's pretty ironic, too.

Nonetheless, he was a good comedian for sure and I enjoyed most of his movies.

I'm not sure there is such a thing as "true personality." Most people who suffer from depression have two related personalities, the deeply depressed one and the usual one. When depressed we can sometimes put on the usual one. When not depressed we have no interest in putting on the depressed one.

The drug part I've avoided so far, but my guess is there are yet more possible personalities.

[Napoléon]

I'm not sure there is such a thing as "true personality." Most people who suffer from depression have two related personalities

That's pretty much exactly what I was getting at, you're just wording it in a different way.

My meaning of 'true personality' is one which he simply doesn't express in public. His private personality if you will. He undoubtedly seemed to act strange in many of the interviews I'd seen of him, almost like he was nervous and not really good with people. Like I said, he seemed to try too hard to be the funny man, maybe because he was self conscious or thought he had to be funny constantly. I'm only speculating, none of us are professional psychologists and really know for sure what's going on in his head.

[Zidneya]

Oh man! Why!
Why it had to be him?!!
I had Jim Carrey in the pool.
Damit.

You're a prick.

What's wrong with death sir? What are we so mortally afraid of? Why can't we treat death with a certain amount of humanity and dignity, and decency, and God forbid, maybe even humor.

Robin Williams
Patch Adams 1998