Robin Williams.

Robin Williams. Robin Williams, born in 1952, American comedian and actor, who has gradually transitioned from strictly comic roles to more serious performances. He first became known for his rapid-fire style and ability to impersonate people, including a wide range of celebrities, but he later gained attention for his overall acting ability. Williams was born in Chicago, Illinois, and attended Claremont Men's College and the College of Marin, both in California, and the Juilliard School in New York City. Williams won popularity for his television role as a manic alien in the series Mork and Mindy (1978-1982). He starred in the title role in his feature motion-picture debut, Popeye (1980), and in The World According to Garp (1982), the film version of a popular novel by John Irving. Williams's next several movies--The Survivors (1983), Moscow on the Hudson (1984), The Best of Times (1986), and Club Paradise (1986)--aroused little interest. However, frequent appearances on cable television and talk shows kept him in the public spotlight. In 1987 Williams brought his characteristic hyperkinetic comic frenzy to Good Morning, Vietnam, a film about an Armed Forces Radio announcer, for which he earned an Academy Award nomination. Other nominations followed for primarily serious roles in Dead Poets Society (1989) and The Fisher King (1991). In 1998 Williams won an Academy Award as best supporting actor for his portrayal of a therapist who helps a troubled genius in Good Will Hunting (1997). Williams's other films include The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989); Awakenings (1990); Hook (1991), in which he played the grown-up Peter Pan; Mrs. Doubtfire (1993); Jumanji (1995); The Birdcage (1996); Flubber (1997); What Dreams May Come (1998); Jakob the Liar (1999); One Hour Photo (2002); Death to Smoochy (2002); and Insomnia (2002). He also impersonated popular culture icons as the voice of the Genie in the hugely successful animated feature Aladdin (1992). Since the late 1980s Williams has been one of the principal organizers and stars of Home Box Office's (HBO) annual Comic Relief, a cable television comedic fundraiser for the homeless. In 2003 Williams won a Grammy Award for best spoken-word comedy album for Live 2002. Contributed By: Richard T. Jameson Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.