In the glamourous lanes of Hollywood, some names are so legendary that they are immortalized by all, even long after they are gone! And one such name is the legendary comic actor Robin Williams. “O Captain! My Captain.” This legendary poem by Walt Whitman has been immortalized by the legendary actor in his film Dead Poets Society (1989). William’s genius has been lauded by all, be it the Academy or us fanfolk. So when UFC color commentator Joe Rogan sat for his recent ͏͏episode o͏͏͏f͏͏ ͏͏‘͏Joe͏͏ Ro͏͏ga͏n͏͏ Ex͏͏pe͏r͏͏͏i͏e͏nce͏ #͏͏2196,͏’͏ in conversation with͏ co͏m͏e͏d͏͏i͏an͏͏ ͏G͏reg Fitz͏͏simm͏ons, host of “͏͏͏S͏und͏a͏y ͏Paper͏͏s”͏͏͏ ͏an͏d͏ “Chil͏di͏s͏h,” he gushed out on how considerate Williams was during one of his shows.
While the Podcast King may have pra͏i͏sed ͏Robin W͏ill͏ia͏ms in his͏ latest montage,͏ at one point, he held the opinion that ͏Williams did more harm ͏to the world of com͏e͏dy than good. So what is all that about? Let’s take a look!
The time when Joe Rogan couldn’t recognize Robin Williams
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While in conversation with G͏reg Fitz͏͏simm͏ons about the comedians of Hollywood, Rogan narrated the story of when he met Robin Williams out of nowhere at The Improv Comedy bar in New York City. Rogan was blitzed by the certitude that he might be being lauded by Robin Williams himself, “I met him once at The Improv, and I didn’t realize I was talking to him until a couple of minutes into our conversation.”
Rogan explained that he couldn’t recognize him at first as he was in disguise, “The craziest thing is that he didn’t even introduce himself as Robin Williams. He waited in line, and nobody noticed it was him because of the big beard, glasses, and hat. It took me a moment to realize who he was. He was such a super nice guy.”
He further emphasized that Williams was humble, despite walking the shiny lanes of being a critically acclaimed actor: “There was a line of people waiting to take pictures and say hi, and this guy came up to me. He said, ‘That was really wonderful. I really, really loved this one bit,’ and he started talking to me about it. He said, ‘That bit was just so courageous.”
Even before Rogan conveyed his experience, Fitz͏͏simm͏ons shared his own account with the legend, wherein he was ‘playfully heckled’ by Williams and the comedian also deemed him one of the ‘sweetest guys in the world.’ William’s stage presence, demure nature, and focus on the audience are also a testament to that according to the comedian.
So despite holding the late actor in such high regard, what did the multi-million dollar podcaster accuse the legendary actor of, in terms of stealing jokes from lesser-known artists? Let’s find out.
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When Rogan accused Robin Williams of stealing jokes
While previously in conversation with Harland Williams on ‘JRE #2158’, Rogan exposed a lesser-known and dark side of Robin Williams. The podcaster showed zero mercy towards the actor as he straight out accused him of plagiarism. Yes! That word when used in regards to someone’s work, the integrity of any artist’s career takes a hit.
“I think [Robin] wanted to kill more than he wanted to be ethical at any cost. Part of that manic sort of style is this constant need to have a bit about anything that you’re talking about ever. Killing was more important; filling that hole inside of him was more important than anything. So he would just do other people’s stuff, ” said Rogan.
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Later even during the podcast primarily in question, Rogan noted that after meeting him, he wished, “there wasn’t that joke stealing thing.” Rogan then further concluded, “I think in his defense, I think he was kind of crazy.” Fitz͏͏simm͏ons too asserted credit to the ‘mad’ genius in him, claiming that jokes stuck by him to which Rogan replied that it was definitely a hopeful way of seeing things.
Regardless, what’s your take on the hubbub? State your thoughts in the comments below.