TIBURON, CALIFORNIA: Robin Williams was a family man, who loved his children deeply. The late actor had three children from two different marriages. His firstborn is Zak Williams, whom he had with his first wife, Valerie Velardi. Williams and Velardi had been married from 1978 to 1988.
The ‘Mrs Doubtfire’ star then went on to tie the knot with Marsha Garces and welcomed two children — Zelda Williams and Cody Williams. But his marriage with Garces also did not work for long and they divorced each other in 2010 after exchanging vows in 1989. The third and last wife of Williams was Susan Schneider to whom he said “I do” in 2011. The couple remained married for around three years before the comedian’s death in August 2014 at the age of 63.
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‘The light was always on in him’
Williams and Schneider’s relationship began on a very happy note as his widow once told PEOPLE, “Robin and I met later in life, both of us, yet we met right on time. That sense of comfort when someone really sees you for who you are, that's what we had and it was present that first day. It was this instant familiarity and comfort. The light was always on in him.”
She continued, “We would always talk at least four, six, 10 times a day. That's just what we did when he was away on the road. We would just share everything. We were each other's rock. For years our favorite thing to say [to each other] was 'You're my anchor,' 'You're my mojo.' We felt so grounded when we were together and I miss that so much.”
‘My husband's heart is what kept him alive’
However, not much later into their marriage, the ‘Patch Adams’ actor began to face health issues, like delusions, heightened anxiety levels, and limited movements. “He was really able to, I think, kind of keep it together when we were in social situations. And then when we would be home, the truth about his experiences would come out,” Schneider revealed while referring to Diffuse Lewy Body Dementia, from which her husband was suffering. However, it was diagnosed only after his suicide.
Schneider added as per PEOPLE, “My husband's heart is what kept him alive for as long as he [was]. I completely understood. I was beside myself in agony, but it was this sense of, he fought to the end, and I didn't know what we were fighting, but I knew we were fighting hard.” On August 11, 2014, Williams was discovered dead in his house’s bathroom.
‘I feel stripped bare’
Following his demise, his eldest son, Zak said as per ET Online, “Yesterday, I lost my father and a best friend and the world got a little grayer. I will carry his heart with me every day. I would ask those that loved him to remember him by being as gentle, kind, and generous as he would be. Seek to bring joy to the world as he sought.”
Zelda issued a statement too that mentioned, “My family has always been private about our time spent together. It was our way of keeping one thing that was ours, with a man we shared with an entire world. But now that’s gone, and I feel stripped bare. My last day with him was his birthday, and I will be forever grateful that my brothers and I got to spend that time alone with him, sharing gifts and laughter. He was always warm, even in his darkest moments. While I’ll never, ever understand how he could be loved so deeply and not find it in his heart to stay, there's minor comfort in knowing our grief and loss, in some small way, is shared with millions.”
She stated, “It doesn’t help the pain, but at least it’s a burden countless others now know we carry, and so many have offered to help lighten the load. Thank you for that,” before adding, “Dad was, is, and always will be one of the kindest, most generous, gentlest souls I've ever known, and while there are few things I know for certain right now, one of them is that not just my world, but the entire world is forever a little darker, less colorful and less full of laughter in his absence.”
Williams’ younger son Cody shared, “There are no words strong enough to describe the love and respect I have for my father. The world will never be the same without him. I will miss him and take him with me everywhere I go for the rest of my life, and will look forward, forever, to the moment when I get to see him again.”
‘The Williams children will receive the vast majority of the items’
However, with all the grief and sadness, a legal battle also followed as Schneider filed a case against Williams’ children over his estate. The siblings called out their stepmother for “adding insult to a terrible injury” and accused her of working “against his wishes by challenging the plans he so carefully made for his estate,” as per PEOPLE.
However, eventually, they agreed to a settlement, and according to Schneider’s lawyers’ statement she “is able to keep the few emotional items she requested, such as their wedding gifts, selected clothing items, a watch Robin often wore, plus the bike she and her husband bought together on their honeymoon.”
“The Williams children will receive the vast majority of the items they demanded, such as more than 50 bikes and over 85 watches, as well as thousands of never-disputed items like Robin Williams’s Academy Award statue. With an overall estate estimated at more than $100 million, Mrs Williams will be receiving only a fraction of the overall estate, representing those funds sufficient to allow her to remain in the home for her lifetime,” the statement added.