Sally Field tells a very personal story about the late Robin Williams.
In an article published online Monday in Vanity Fair magazine, Field paid fond tribute to her fellow actress, saying she was so “sensitive and intuitive” that he changed the filming order of 1993’s “Mrs. Doubtfire” for her sake.
“I’ve never told this story before,” Field said in the piece, an oral history of Williams’ life and career.
“I was in the RV outside the courtroom where we were filming the divorce scene. My father had had a stroke a few years ago and was in a nursing home. I got a call from the doctor telling me that my father had died, a massive stroke.”
Field recalled the heartbreaking decision to take her father off life support before returning to the set and “trying with all her might to act.” Although Field said she didn’t cry, Williams seemed to know something was wrong – and took her aside to ask what it was.
When she told him, Williams said, “Oh my God, we have to get you out of here immediately.”
“And he made it happen – they made the rest of the day revolve around me,” Field told Vanity Fair. “I was able to go home, call my brother and arrange everything. That’s a side of Robin that people hardly knew: He was very sensitive and intuitive.”
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
Williams committed suicide in 2014 at the age of 63. An autopsy later revealed that he suffered from a progressive brain disease called Lewy body dementia, which can affect sleep, movement and cognitive abilities.
His family and fans were shocked by his death. Williams was still an actor at the time and – with a long career full of emotional performances in films such as “Good Will Hunting” and “Dead Poets Society” – a valued and seemingly healthy father figure.
“I am stunned and so sad for Robin,” Field said at the time. “He always beamed when he could make people laugh, and he made people laugh his whole life – tirelessly.”
She added: “He was one of a kind. There will be no other. Please God, let him rest in peace now.”
Read more at Vanity Fair.
Do you need help with substance use disorders or mental health issues? In the US, call 800-662-HELP (4357) for National SAMHSA Helpline.
