Robin Williams’ unforgettable first meeting with Frank Sinatra: “That was pretty crazy”
There has perhaps been no entertainer as naturally gifted as Robin Williams, with the actor captivating generations of audiences through his dazzling comedy career and equally impactful dramatic roles.
Whether it be his voicing of the infectiously joyful Genie in Aladdin, a wounded professor in Good Will Hunting or the youthful optimism of Perry in The Fisher King, Williams’ performances continue to be a timeless and ever-present force in cinematic history, with the actor dedicating himself to the pure goal of making people feel something.
With iconic roles that led him to work with directors such as Mike Nichols, Terry Gilliam and Gus Van Sant, the actor never failed to surprise and inspire, something that he always seemed to place an enormous amount of pressure on himself to do.
However, while his sense of humour and comedic timing always came across as completely effortless, the actor revealed an instance in which he desperately wanted to impress a fellow performer who had quite the effect on Williams during his early career.
There’s an age-old bit about how nearly every actor in the business starts out with an appearance on Law and Order or General Hospital, with some of the greats beginning their careers with Poptart commercials or brief cameos on soap operas. While Williams was known for his breakthrough role on Mork and Mindy, one of his first professional gigs was a part in the sitcom series Laugh-In, showcasing the talents of great comedians from Lenny Schultz to June Gable.
For Williams, this was one of his first on-screen appearances, despite the short-lived nature of the show, which only ran for one year. But during this time, he was perhaps able to compensate for the brief lifespan of the show by meeting one of the greatest singers of the time, stumbling across an encounter with none other than Frank Sinatra.
The singer made a guest appearance on the show in 1977 alongside Cindy Williams, with Williams performing a sketch alongside Sinatra in which he plays a cowboy who is deeply obsessed with the singer, proclaiming that he is “so happy to be here that I could drop a log”. When describing his time on the show, the actor said, “Yeah, I was on a remake of Laugh-In. My favourite moment on that was that I got to meet Frank Sinatra which, if you don’t make him laugh, [he makes a slicing motion across his throat]. When he laughed at my joke, I thought, ‘I’m going to live another day!!’ That was pretty crazy”.
There are some people that we are more eager to make an impression on than others, and considering that he was at the beginning of his career, you can see why Williams would be so intent on making the singer laugh. While some people crumble in front of their heroes, allegedly, Williams later became friends with the singer, marking a strangely unexpected friendship that arose from typically strange circumstances within the world of show business.
