"Mork Meets Robin Williams" opens with Mindy anxious to interview comedian Robin Williams for KTNS-TV, seemingly the only person in Boulder who hasn't met him, since he performed at the local comedy club and signed autographs at Remo and Jeanie's restaurant. Mindy's boss Miles Sternhagen (Foster Brooks) drops by after lunch to inform her that he's fired if she doesn't come through with the interview. Feeling no pain, he reveals that he's parked outside in her hedge, refusing an offer to stay and nap until he sobers up: "I can do that while I'm driving!" Meanwhile, Mork finds himself being chased all over town due to his resemblance to Robin Williams, and when the two come face to face it's staged quite well. Robin admits that he's a 'performing addict,' unable to say no, who doesn't mind granting Mindy an interview to save her job. As himself, Robin Williams is commendably serious and reserved, certainly more animated as Mork, who quietly concludes the episode with Orson by listing celebrities that were prisoners of their own fame, in particular the recent murder of John Lennon. This entry came about because Williams felt it important to have his fans know the difference between the real Robin and his TV creation Mork.
2 Reviews
Not what you might expect
Lian12 October 2020
On recommending this episode to anyone, you tend to get the same reaction. A cringe at the idea of fictional characters meeting one of the actors who actually play them.
The idea does sound cheesy as hell. But by the end of viewing this episode the reaction is very different. And even on repeated views its hard not to be moved up by the honesty and emotion on display.
It's cleverly done too, hitting the requisite laughs, with Mindy being set the seemingly impossible, job on the line, task of interviewing Robin Williams in town to do a stand up set for a Solar Power benefit, by her boss Mr. Sternhagen (if anyone does a more upright hilarious drunk than Foster Brooks I've yet to see it).
Or seemingly impossible for her at least. To her frustration, everyone else she knows seems to have run into him around Boulder with ease.
While she's super excited by the prospect of meeting him, Mork expresses complete ignorance about who this guy Williams is, before sniggering at his name and grossing her out whispering to her the 'disgusting' thing Robin means in Orkan. He then denies he looks anything like him, when she observes they actually do look very alike, and on her production of Williams' 'Reality What a Concept' album Mork proceeds to deconstruct his looks, ultimately declaring '"I'm bright and cheery, this guy has big problems!"
A line which is funny but after you stop laughing the term, half joking, whole in earnest springs a little to mind.
Nor is Mork any more inclined to believe in the resemblance after he arrives home with his clothes torn to pieces, claiming that the people of Boulder have discovered he's an alien and are chasing after him calling him disgusting names. Such as Robin? Mindy suggests.
Still not convinced, primarily as he can't understand why people would chase and rip the clothes off someone they claim to love, he agrees to go with Mindy, as a protector, to the stage door of where William's is performing but in disguise.
It's a last ditch effort on her part to see him, and save her job...and it pays off when she finally convinces Mork to take off his silly disguise as it's only attracting more attention then deflecting it. The minute he does of course, the crowd around the Stage Door surge at him, assuming he's Williams and he and Mindy are ushered inside by security who also assume he's Williams.
Inside his dressing room, finally about to meet Williams, Mindy gets teased by Mork for being star struck reminding her stars are just "big balls of glowing hot gas."
It's well documented that Robin Williams ascent to fame off the first season of Mork & Mindy was stratospheric and sent the demands on his time rocketing...along with setting unrealistic expectations of who he was. This episode, suggested to Garry Marshall by Williams himself, tries to show the public not only that he is not Mork, but that characters he drew on were created through his childhood to help mask an innate shyness and early difficulty making friends. Stemming from that difficulty making friends, is often a desire to please the ones you have and have people continue to like you...resulting in an inability to say No that's very hard to overcome, especially when people take your saying No for you suddenly thinking yourself better than them, now you've 'made it big'. And while saying No might give you more time to yourself, maybe having more time to yourself, might be the last thing you want.
Having Mork present during the interview is clever, well done, and underlines the main point that they are not the same (with the added whimsy of a little poking fun either direction) the rest of these topics, including the acknowledgement that he's also a performing addict, come up through the course of Mindy's conversation with the sober, thoughtful Williams. Something which must've been a slightly strange yet (one might imagine) probably a personally satisfying, experience for Pam Dawber too, as his friend who was there alongside of him through much of the unexpected madness and fallout.
The encounter leaves Mindy suitably conflicted in accepting his offer to slip away (without telling his management) the next morning to meet her to do an on camera interview with *her* at KTNS. Something that could be a huge boost to her career as she was only supposed to write up the interview for the KTNS Anchor to read out. But he assures her she's not taking advantage, and he can learn to say No tomorrow.
It's bookended by easily the most emotional exchanged between Mork and Orson ever done. With Orson taking the view during Mork's report that it is hard to feel sympathy for stars as they essentially have it made, money, fame, mansions. Something which Mork largely agrees, but points out that some times are trapped by their stardom, unable to be anything else but the persona their fans expect, 24 hours a day.
The idea does sound cheesy as hell. But by the end of viewing this episode the reaction is very different. And even on repeated views its hard not to be moved up by the honesty and emotion on display.
It's cleverly done too, hitting the requisite laughs, with Mindy being set the seemingly impossible, job on the line, task of interviewing Robin Williams in town to do a stand up set for a Solar Power benefit, by her boss Mr. Sternhagen (if anyone does a more upright hilarious drunk than Foster Brooks I've yet to see it).
Or seemingly impossible for her at least. To her frustration, everyone else she knows seems to have run into him around Boulder with ease.
While she's super excited by the prospect of meeting him, Mork expresses complete ignorance about who this guy Williams is, before sniggering at his name and grossing her out whispering to her the 'disgusting' thing Robin means in Orkan. He then denies he looks anything like him, when she observes they actually do look very alike, and on her production of Williams' 'Reality What a Concept' album Mork proceeds to deconstruct his looks, ultimately declaring '"I'm bright and cheery, this guy has big problems!"
A line which is funny but after you stop laughing the term, half joking, whole in earnest springs a little to mind.
Nor is Mork any more inclined to believe in the resemblance after he arrives home with his clothes torn to pieces, claiming that the people of Boulder have discovered he's an alien and are chasing after him calling him disgusting names. Such as Robin? Mindy suggests.
Still not convinced, primarily as he can't understand why people would chase and rip the clothes off someone they claim to love, he agrees to go with Mindy, as a protector, to the stage door of where William's is performing but in disguise.
It's a last ditch effort on her part to see him, and save her job...and it pays off when she finally convinces Mork to take off his silly disguise as it's only attracting more attention then deflecting it. The minute he does of course, the crowd around the Stage Door surge at him, assuming he's Williams and he and Mindy are ushered inside by security who also assume he's Williams.
Inside his dressing room, finally about to meet Williams, Mindy gets teased by Mork for being star struck reminding her stars are just "big balls of glowing hot gas."
It's well documented that Robin Williams ascent to fame off the first season of Mork & Mindy was stratospheric and sent the demands on his time rocketing...along with setting unrealistic expectations of who he was. This episode, suggested to Garry Marshall by Williams himself, tries to show the public not only that he is not Mork, but that characters he drew on were created through his childhood to help mask an innate shyness and early difficulty making friends. Stemming from that difficulty making friends, is often a desire to please the ones you have and have people continue to like you...resulting in an inability to say No that's very hard to overcome, especially when people take your saying No for you suddenly thinking yourself better than them, now you've 'made it big'. And while saying No might give you more time to yourself, maybe having more time to yourself, might be the last thing you want.
Having Mork present during the interview is clever, well done, and underlines the main point that they are not the same (with the added whimsy of a little poking fun either direction) the rest of these topics, including the acknowledgement that he's also a performing addict, come up through the course of Mindy's conversation with the sober, thoughtful Williams. Something which must've been a slightly strange yet (one might imagine) probably a personally satisfying, experience for Pam Dawber too, as his friend who was there alongside of him through much of the unexpected madness and fallout.
The encounter leaves Mindy suitably conflicted in accepting his offer to slip away (without telling his management) the next morning to meet her to do an on camera interview with *her* at KTNS. Something that could be a huge boost to her career as she was only supposed to write up the interview for the KTNS Anchor to read out. But he assures her she's not taking advantage, and he can learn to say No tomorrow.
It's bookended by easily the most emotional exchanged between Mork and Orson ever done. With Orson taking the view during Mork's report that it is hard to feel sympathy for stars as they essentially have it made, money, fame, mansions. Something which Mork largely agrees, but points out that some times are trapped by their stardom, unable to be anything else but the persona their fans expect, 24 hours a day.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
