By now, you’ve likely heard the news that Robin Williams died Monday. Reports in the last few hours indicate that the 63-year-old hanged himself. The news spread so quickly last night that this was what I encountered when I looked his name up on Wikipedia around 7:30 pm:

The first movie featuring Robin Williams that I saw was Aladdin, when he lent his voice talents to the role of the Genie. Williams also voiced the Merchant from the film’s opening scene, but this clip where Aladdin meets the Genie (uploaded to YouTube by waltdisney406) is one of my favorite character entrances:

In live-action films, Williams had that unique gift to make his character funny, yet at the same time relate to ordinary humans. Some roles where I’ll remember his extraordinary abilities include Adrian Cronauer in Good Morning, Vietnam; Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting (for which he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor), and the titular character in Patch Adams. Other roles I enjoyed were Alan Parrish in Jumanji, Tom Dobbs in Man of the Year, and his brief appearance as President Dwight D. Eisenhower in The Butler. I must admit (at the time I’m writing this) I haven’t seen Dead Poets Society or Mrs. Doubtfire, but I certainly plan to soon.

What I’ll remember the most is the way Williams delivered his humor. The way he impersonated Rodney Dangerfield and Jack Nicholson (among others) in Aladdin, or how he made Adrian Cronauer a hilarious radio DJ in Good Morning, Vietnam. His humor never failed to make me, and many others, laugh.

Rest in peace, Robin Williams. You will definitely be missed.