LOS ANGELES—The Hollywood Walk of Fame is always a place where movie stars live on and fans can go to celebrate their favorites.
On Tuesday Robin Williams’s star on Hollywood Boulevard was surrounded by admirers who came to honor his memory and say “Thank you” for bringing joy into their lives.
The 63-year-old actor was found dead in his home near San Francisco around noon on Monday.
“We’re so sad,” said Janet Lisica, who was visiting Hollywood from Oakland, N.J. with her family. “He’s really a great actor, and we give his family the best condolences. We’re truly sorry.”
Many fans grew up watching his television shows and movies or listening to his comedy albums.
He stepped into the limelight in 1978 in the TV show “Mork and Mindy,” won an Oscar for the 1997 movie “Good Will Hunting,” and won five Grammys over the years for live and recorded albums.
“He’s such an entertainer. He defines the word entertainment. That’s what he did,” said Leo Naudin, who brought a large bouquet of flowers to lay on the Hollywood star.
Naudin said he saw Williams and many of his characters as father figures.
“It hurts to lose him. It hurts to lose him the way we did,” he said. “When I’ve been down in my life, when I’m sad, I was always able to watch Robin Williams movies and just be made happy.”
“Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan, and everything in between. But he was one of a kind. He arrived in our lives as an alien—but he ended up touching every element of the human spirit,” President Obama said in a statement.
The Marin County Sheriff’s Department said death by asphyxiation was the preliminary cause of death, and they suspect it was suicide by hanging.
Williams had a history of alcohol and drug abuse. His publicist said at the time of his death he was fighting severe depression, and according to the Sherriff’s Department was seeking treatment for it.
An autopsy is currently scheduled for Tuesday. Toxicology testing will also be conducted, with results available in two to six weeks.
Williams is survived by his wife, daughter, and two sons, and will be remembered by millions.
