see the script until he weighed in on whether he wanted this highly coveted role. At the end of the weekend, Robin’s answer was an enthusiastic yes, and he waited for confirmation. It never came. Unbeknownst to him, two other top-tier stars had also been given the script over the same weekend. The movie was Batman and the part was The Joker. Jack Nicholson got the role.
Sure, Robin was angry, but the hurt and bewilderment in his voice as he talked to me about it was palpable. He couldn’t fathom that he’d been lied to and set up like that. I’m sure that episodes like this one help explain why Robin lived in San Francisco, putting a lot of distance between himself and Hollywood.
Whenever I was in San Francisco with Robin, I was amazed that he could walk around in public and no one bothered him, other than to wave or say hello. When he went to Bike Odyssey in Sausalito, the sales people and the mechanics all knew him and would come over to talk. He was always greeted warmly by the proprietor of Heroes Club: The Art of Toys on Clement, where Robin bought Star Wars models and Godzilla monsters among other toys that he collected. They knew him at The Cheese Steak Shop on Divisadero, where he would occasionally take me for a Philly cheesesteak. San Francisco was home to him. He loved the city and the city loved him back.
For Robin, the best part of being home in San Francisco was that he was able to spend time with his kids—Zak, Zelda, and Cody. Nothing lit up Robin’s face more or gave him as much joy and relaxation as when he was around his children—whether it was putting a puzzle together with Zelda at the kitchen table, playing video games with Cody in the kids’ playroom, or snowboarding with Zak at Lake Tahoe. They relished their time with Robin, but unfortunately, his hectic schedule and location shoots on films meant he was away much more than he wanted. That’s why he would lobby for his films to be shot in the Bay Area, which is what happened with Mrs. Doubtfire, Bicentennial Man, and Flubber, among others. Even though he was on set all day, he was home every night. Gradually, as his kids grew older, they came to realize that they had to share their father with the rest of the world.
ROBIN PLAYS PHOTO JOURNALIST, FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY PARTY, LOS ANGELES, 1997 ©DIRCK HALSTEAD
Robin was a lucky man in many ways. He was extraordinarily talented. He had the love of his family and friends. He reached the heights of his profession and was richly rewarded, both financially and with prestigious recognition. He traveled the world and was loved by millions. He lived to make people laugh and succeeded at it like no one before him.
I was lucky just to be his friend.
ENDNOTE
I had always thought that when I was eighty-four and Robin was eighty, we would sit down someplace and collaborate on a book about the golden years of his career. He would look at my photographs and then reminisce about the events and his feelings at the time. Unfortunately, that book was never to be.
It took me a long time after his death to decide what I should do with all the photographs I had of Robin, both public and private, many of them never published. It made no sense to sit on them given the millions of fans he had around the world who would love to see more of Robin, especially between two covers in a book they could pick up over and over and keep around for years.
I truly believe that Robin would have found this book to be an accurate and singularly realistic “portrait” of his life during some of his most productive and joyous years. Most importantly, I hope Robin would have found this book to be a worthy representation of himself—for his family, his many friends and admirers, and most of all for his millions of fans.
Arthur Grace
Los Angeles
February 2016
IN PERFORMANCE DURING STAND-UP SHOW, ON TOUR, 1986
MUGGING FOR THE CAMERA IN HIS DRESSING ROOM BEFORE STAND-UP SHOW, 1986
ALONE IN HIS DRESSING ROOM BEFORE GETTING DRESSED FOR HIS SHOW, 1986
IN PERFORMANCE DURING STAND-UP SHOW, 1986
RESTING IN HIS DRESSING ROOM MOMENTS AFTER COMING OFF STAGE, 1986
LAUGHING WITH MEMBERS OF HIS ROAD ENTOURAGE OUTSIDE AIRLINE TERMINAL, 1986
SLEEPING ON PROP PLANE TO CHICAGO, 1986
ON THE TARMAC IN CHICAGO WITH FELLOW PASSENGERS, 1986
SIGNING AUTOGRAPHS AFTER HIS SHOW, 1986
CHECKING HIMSELF OUT IN HIS DRESSING ROOM PRIOR TO PERFORMANCE, 1986
IN PERFORMANCE, 1986
BACKSTAGE WITH SHOW PROP AFTER PERFORMANCE, 1986
IN DRESSING ROOM WATERING A POTTED PLANT WITH A SQUIRT GUN AFTER HIS SHOW, 1986
JOKING WITH SECURITY DETAIL OF LOCAL POLICE, 1986
