Robin Williams Remembered

Robin Williams Remembered: Watch Him Make NASA Laugh in 1988 (Video)
By Miriam Kramer, Staff Writer   |   August 12, 2014 11:29am ET
245



Robin Williams, an Oscar-winning actor best known for his comedic work, died yesterday (Aug. 11) of an apparent suicide at 63 years old. In 1988, Williams helped to wake up the crew of NASA's space shuttle Discovery to start their morning.

"G-o-o-d morning Discovery!" Williams said in a video of the wakeup call posted by Space.com partner collectSPACE.com. "G-o-o-d morning Discovery! G-o-o-d morning Discovery! Rise and shine, boys. Time to start doing that shuttle shuffle. You know what I mean. Hey, here's a little song coming from the billions of us to the five of you."

Mission Controllers are seen laughing and smiling in the video as Williams' recorded wakeup (which makes reference to his 1987 role in "Good Morning, Vietnam") is broadcast to the astronauts orbiting Earth. The actor's introduction led into a space shuttle-themed song to the tune of the "Green Acres" TV show. [NASA's Final Space Shuttle Wakeup Songs]

Williams' call to the shuttle marked the first morning of the STS-26 mission, according to a New York Times story about the flight. The mission was the first launched since the Challenger disaster in 1986.