‘The World is Open for Play’, A Touching Tribute to Robin Williams and His Mentor Jonathan Winters

“The World is Open for Play” by Evan Puschak is a touching tribute to both the late actor and comedian Robin Williams and Williams’ mentor, comedy legend Jonathan Winters. It looks at the careers of both men, and how Winters influenced Williams, but also how Williams influenced Winters after the two began working together on the television show Mork & Mindy.

Winters began his career as an improvisational comedian in the early days of television. His famous routine “The Stick” was a favorite of Tonight Show host Jack Paar. In the routine, Winters would use a simple stick as a prop to quickly create a number of improvised scenes. Williams performed a similar routine using a pashmina as a prop on an episode of Inside the Actors Studio.

Williams sadly took his own life earlier this month. Winters passed away April 11th, 2013 at the age of 87.