Sad Clowns There will be endless analysis and punditry over Robin Williams sad passing yesterday. You can be sure the cliche of the sad clown will be invoked over and over, but, like all cliches, it contains a kernel of truth. In my many years of working in night clubs in New York, Las Vegas, and the rest of the world, comics have often been my opening act. As a group, they are the saddest show business people I have known. After shows you see them in bars drinking alone or trying to pick up some girl. Most of them live a lonely existence; many of them have pain. The best of them work from that pain and create comedic genius: Lenny Bruce, George Carlin, and Richard Pryor come to mind. I met Lennie Bruce and Richard Pryor. Robin was part of that group. Sometimes what they create comes from such a dark, haunted place it is difficult to watch. That Robin Williams finally tapped into a place with so much pain he could no longer bear it is sadly no surprise. He lived by his art, and died by it.--mamie van doren
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 17:57:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015