Troops. And by his children. What he said and what he showed in his final twitter message. This special edition of nightline, the death of Robin Williams, will be right back. Good evening, a brilliant light has gone out in hollywood tonight. Robin williams, whose fierce, frenetic comedy captivated us for decades has died at age 63. For all his wild, often improvised humor on stage stage and on screen, behind the scenes he struggled mightily with Substance Abuse and depression. Tonight on a special edition of nightline were going to dedicate our entire show to the life and the death of a true american original. Nanonano. Reporter from mork shazbat. Reporter to captain hook. To mrs. Doubtfire. To his manic make you laugh so hard your ribs hurt comedy specials. Oh, yeah reporter Robin Williams was a legend. But behind the zaniness lurked something darker. Drug abuse and depression. Williams described himself as a man looking over a cliff. Its not just a fear of falling or its the thing of, you can do this. You can jump. You know. You can fly. And just one. For someone who has no tolerance for it, thats not a possibility. Reporter and this morning, according to authorities in california, they got a 911 call reporting that williams was not breathing at his home in tiburon. Theyre calling it a case of suspected suicide. Tonight his representatives saying williams had been battling severe depression of late. Abc news has learned williams recently checked himself back into rehab. His wife Susan Schneider issuing a statement tonight saying, i lost my husband and my best friend. I am utterly heartbroken. A tidal wave of sadness and sympathy online tonight from fans and fellow celebrities. Steve martin tweeting, i could not be more stunned by the loss of Robin Williams. Mensch, great talent, acting partner, genuine soul. John travolta, we loved him and he loved us back. We are all better for having known him. I love you, robin. And so many more tonight. Bill cosby, tim allen, kevin spacey, reba mcintyre, and this from ellen degeneres. I cant believe the news about Robin Williams. He gave so much to so many people. Im heartbroken. We spoke by phone tonight with cheryl hinds who guest starred on williams recent cbs sitcom the crazy ones. Its so hard right now because its so tragic. But i just feel very thankful and grateful that i got to work with him and i got to to be his friend. Reporter even president obama weighing tonight. He was one of a find kind. He arrived in our lives as an alyen but he ended up Touching Every element of the human spirit. And in hollywood itself tonight at the Iconic Comedy Club the laugh factory, where williams performed many times, a tribute right there on the marquee. Robin williams, rest in peace, make god laugh. For williams, life began in chicago in 1951. His mother, a former model. His father, an executive at ford. He was surprisingly a quiet child. The first comic impression he did imitating his grandmother to his mom. It was only in high school, in drama class, that he overcame that shyness. He went on to julliard and shortly thereafter, in the late 1970s, he burst into the National Consciousness as an oddball alien named mork. Nanonano. Reporter in the tv show mork and mindy. Fly, be free he ad libbed most of his dialogue and wild physical comedy. The show was a huge hit. Then came a series of live comedy specials, also big hits. We believe now that chernobyl has been taken care of. If youd like to follow us into the plant, ill show you around. Reporter and then of course the movies. Reporter there was that unforgettable role in popeye. Williams very quickly moved into dramatic territory. With the world according to garp in 1982 about a struggling writer and his romantic entanglements. A. A short story. I wrote it for you. You wrote it for me. Many of his most famous roles mixed wit and warmth. Good morning vietnam. What is the Demilitarized Zone . Sounds like something from the wizard of oz. Oh, no, dont go in there. Reporter the dead poet society. Call me mr. Keating or if youre daring captain my captain. Reporter mrs. Doubtfire. Hello and good will hunting. Talk about you, who you are. And im fascinated. Im in. Reporter for which he won an oscar for best supporting actor. But all of that onscreen humor masked inner turmoil. In the early 1980s, a problem with cocaine which he claimed to have quit after the fatal overdose of his friend and fellow comedian josh belushi. He spoke to abcs Barbara Walters about it. People also feel in writing about you, reading the interviews thark the death that the death of josh belushi was an enormous influence on you, rather than just you tell me what it was for you. Its only the fact that, heres a guy who is probably one of the toughest, strongest people you could ever meet. And hes taken out. You know . Its basically it cleaned up a whole generation of people. Because this guy was as strong as anybody you could ever meet. John could run into that wall and get up and do it again. If it took him out, you realize we are all pretty mortal. When you hear of people using drugs, most of the time they use them to get high. For me it was a great way of escaping, to cut off from people. It was the only time i could escape. Reporter he got sober for many years, it appears. But then he relapsed as he discussed on his comedy tour weapons of selfdestruction. Alcohol is dangerous for peel people like myself, alcoholics, or ethanol challenged. Whatever you want to call it. Reporter williams checked himself into rehab in 2006. He talked about it in this interview with abcs diane sawyer. So to talk about it as caused by something it is just there. It waits. Lays in wait until the time when you think im fine now. Im okay. Then beep, next thing you know its not okay. You realize, where am i . This is strange, i didnt realize i was in cleveland. How are you . I am well. Very well. It is a good thing. Is it a good thing . Oh, yeah, its nice. Two months . Two months. Club medicated. Away, quiet time. Good, though. Im back. People say, how do you feel . With my fingers. How is that . Dont drink. What are you doing to stay that way . Dont drink. Reporter relapse caused him his second marriage. He soon started to clean up his act for the sake of his career and most importantly his three children,s a discussed in this interview. The one thing that cleaned me up, that was having a kid. Thats immediate. I didnt have any rehab or any group you did it yourself. Oh, totally. Kind of i took my mothers advice. Vitamins and exercise. When you have a kid youre awake and smell like piss anyway so you dont need drugs. Youre like, hey, wheres the baby . Reporter it is fitting his final posting on social media was a tribute to the daughter he loved. Happy birthday to ms. Zelda rae williams, quarter of a sench century old today but always my baby girl. Happy birthday, zelda williams, love you. If the 60yearold Robin Williams could give the 30yearold Robin Williams advice, what would you tell him . Dont go so fast. How much have you loved doing what you do, loved being with people . If you can answer that question positively, youre doing okay. Its a good life. And just before we came on the air tonight, one of the people williams loved very much, his daughter zelda williams, said on twitter, i love you, i miss you, ill keep trying to look up. So much pain for his family tonight. Were thinking about them. Coming up on this special dig of nightline, we look at the memorable moments from a phenomenal career. Moderate to severe is tough, but ive managed. I got to be pretty good at managing my symptoms, except that managing my symptoms was all i was doing. When i finally told my doctor, he said my crohns was not under control. He said humira is for adults like me who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohns disease. And that in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. And many achieved remission. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. Serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Before treatment, get tested for tb. Tell your doctor if youve been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if youve had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flulike symptoms or sores. Dont start humira if you have an infection. If youre still just managing your symptoms, ask your gastroenterologist about humira. With humira, remission is possible. vo ours is a world of the redeyes. daughter im really tired. vo the transfers. Well, thats kid number three. vo the copilots. All sitting. Trusting. Waiting. Val. For a safe arrival. Introducing the allnew subaru legacy. Designed to help the driver in you. Care for the passenger in them. The subaru legacy. Its not just a sedan. Its a subaru. Robin williams was a performer with breathtaking range. He would be hilariously unhinged and heart breakingly tender, sometimes in the same scene. Tonight we take a look back at some of his most unforgettable moments and hear williams own thoughts on the craft he mastered. Heres abcs david wright. We did it. Im driving in my car i turn on the radio reporter as a comedian and actor, Robin Williams always seemed slightly possessed. People think of method actors going, whats he saying . Shut up, he feels it. Reporter his pace, frantic. His energy super charged. Look, five yards, lets go dont you know, listen now. Master i dont think you quite realize what youve got here why dont you just rule mate while i illuminate the possibilities . Reporter the Perfect Choice to voice the genie from disneys aladdin. You aint never had a friend like me hollywood often struggled to find a bottle anything enough for his genius. Nanonano. Reporter williams was already in his late 20s by the time abcs mork and mindy made him a star. His character, mork from ork, spun off from one of the later episodes of happy days, a dream sequence where the goodnatured space alien tries to abduct Ritchie Cunningham only to be foiled by the fonz. So do men date women on your planet . Hard to tell, parts are interchangeable. Reporter williams was so out of this world, abc gave him a sitcom of his own. Mork, will you help me . If you insist. Mind if i cut in . Thank you. Reporter a comic genius who had trained at julliard to be a serious actor, as he told johnny carson. Shakespeare, exciting to wear tights and have people go, i cant see anything. Someone give him a dagger reporter the big screen was better able to capture a personality his size. Among his first roles, one of the most iconic cartoon heros. Im popeye the sailor reporter williams came into his own when he started playing offbeat heroes with a strong streak of humanity. Garp in the world according to garp. My name is t. S. Garp. Whats t. S. Stand for . Terribly sexy. I used to be terribly shy but i changed. Seize the day. Gather while ye may. Why does the writer use these lines . Because hes in a hurry. No, beep. Thanks for playing anyway. Because we are food for worms, lads. Because believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die. Reporter the loveable teacher in dead poet society. Carpe diem, seize the day, boys. Reporter almost a buttondown, collar prep School Version of his standup style. Why do i stand up here, anybody . To feel taller. No. Thank you for playing, mr. Dalton. Good morning vietnam reporter and as the crazy wartime deejay Adrian Cronauer in good morning vietnam. His force of personality, allowing him to tackle taboos. The buffalo, theres horns everywhere, i think were going to have a little napalm there, try to cook it down. Have a little barbecue. Reporter in the bird cage a flamboyantly gay father. You do fussy, fussy, fussy. In mrs. Doubtfire, a crossdressing mary poppins. Hello reporter at the time, williams own marriage had recently fallen apart. I want a divorce. Reporter scenes like this must have resonated from his own personal life. It was his portrayal of a south boston psychiatrist that won him his oscar. This girls [ bleep ] perfect right now. I dont want to ruin that. Maybe youre perfect right now, maybe you dont want to ruin that. But i think thats a super philosophy. That way you can go through your entire life without having to ever know anybody. Reporter in good will hunt counseling a complex and hugely talented kid. You dont know about real loss. Because it only occurs when you love something more than you love yourself. I doubt youve ever dared to love anybody that much. Reporter as the wildeyed hero of a board game brought to life in jumanji. Youd hardly think of Robin Williams as president ial, would you . Yet he played two commanders in chief. 26th president of these United States of america at your service. Reporter the rough rider Teddy Roosevelt in night at the museum. Not much of a stretch. Excuse me to you. The hunt. Reporter then more recently in the butler, Robin Williams played ike. In some ways the ultimate, the iconic commander in chief. Williams later told james lipton on inside the Actors Studio that he loved transforming into character. You start to do these things where you really start to make a character, someone who isnt yourself, someone combined with makeup, movement, all these different things. You really start to get outside yourself and youre freed to be behind, operating it. That was a really fascinating thing for me. Reporter he always brought part of himself too. His humanity. Struggling to contain all those characters bursting to get out. This is mork signing off. Till next week. Reporter im david wright for nightline in hollywood. I remember watching that show every week as a 7yearold. Coming up on nightline, a side of Robin Williams many of us never got to see. Why he was so beloved by our troops. This special edition of night line is brought to you by progressive. Yeah, girl you know, ive been thinking about us and, uh, i just cant fight it anymore its bundle time bundle mm, feel those savings, baby and thats how a home and auto bundle is made. Better he learns it here than on the streets. 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Come see one of our remodeled stores and get a free portable power charger with a 15 purchase. Here i am. Rock you like a hurricane fiber one now makes cookies. Find them in the cookie aisle. Robin williams was not only a father and a husband, but also a deeply devoted philanthropist. In particular he had a special relationship to our men and women serving overseas as Abcs Martha Raddatz reports. Reporter there was an instant connection between Robin Williams and our troops. Never phoney, never the privileged celebrity. Just a comedian who helped them escape the cruelty of war or the aftermath of injuries, if just for a moment. He was the comedian who during uso tours would sneak away after his big performance to visit the troops who werent able to attend. The dog handlers, the dining hall workers, the soldiers keeping guard. It was in kuwait in 2007, entertaining the troops, when Robin Williams had an unforgettable moment himself. Ohoh reporter retreat sounded. Signaling the lowering of the flag. And everyone turned to face it. Williams, not quite knowing what was happening, just paused. But there was that pride, that respect, and then so quickly afterwards, the humor. Im not going to forget that ive never had an entire audience just go, forget you reporter our troops knew he was one of the special ones. A man who truly cared and showed it. Im Martha Raddatz for nightline in washington. Tonight the secretary of defense called williams a true friend and supporter of our troops. We want to thank you for watching nightline tonight. Well have much more on the death of Robin Williams first thing in the morning on gma and tomorrow a special edition of 20 20. Of course you can get the latest news anytime you want it on abcnews. Com. Im dan harris. Good night