With my sincerest apologies for the title of this post, Mr. Williams, rest in peace. I was asked by friends how I felt about Robin Williams' suicide. I responded that I did not know the man, but as a former performer, I was awed by his talent and saddened by his loss. I said that his actions brought home the severity of my own depression.
Today, I read that he had also been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Consider that for a moment in the context of what I think of as a transformative role in his career, the movie, "Awakenings."
Think about the scene with Max Von Sydow, where he wonders if the patients' brains are active. Von Sydow says no only because the notion of yes would be monstrous. Now think about the scene where he asks the drug maker if the tics caused by Parkinson's could be extrapolated into the statue-like state of his patients.
Might his Parkinson's diagnosis, combined with what he learned researching his role in "Awakenings" and his long battle with depression all be linked to his death? So you see, there is nothing flippant about the title.