Glenn Beck Remembers Robin Williams: A Man Who 'Made Us Laugh' and 'Made Us Cry

Glenn Beck on Tuesday described legendary actor Robin Williams as a man who profoundly touched Americans of all ages, a man who "who made us laugh [and] made us cry."

"I didn't know Robin Williams, but I think all of us felt we knew Robin Williams," Beck said on his radio program. "We all knew that there was something inside of him that drove him, and drove him to the point of madness. We all, I think, knew that something was inside of him that caused great pain. I'd like to believe that maybe, just maybe, we helped him live a little longer."

Williams was found dead in his home Monday in an apparent suicide.

Beck said Williams was at his "highest self" when he was making us laugh, and is one of a handful of people who has shaped and changed the lives of people in their 20s and in their 60s.

Glenn Beck speaks about actor Robin Williams on his radio program August 12, 2014. (Photo: TheBlaze TV)

"I'm sure the conversations will go, 'What was wrong with him? What was the tragedy in his life? What would drive him to this? What could we have done to save him?'" Beck remarked. "Most likely nothing. What drove him to do this insanity? The insanity of clinical depression. I don't want to talk — I don't want to talk about Robin Williams' illness. Because nothing drives you to suicide other than insanity. But let me tell you something: The mind is one of the most powerful traps you have ever seen."

Beck compared Williams to the genie in "Aladdin," whose voice he played, saying "we have this phenomenal power ... all put in this teeny living space called the human body."

"It's this universal power, the strength, this being beyond our understanding, and it's frightening sometimes," Beck said. "It's even more frightening when you really don't think that there's anything inside of you. When you really deny that power inside of you. So many people are afraid to look inside because [they fear] there's nothing in there, there's nothing of value."

Beck said he believes that Williams "was addicted to our laughter," and he filled a void within himself by giving other people joy.

"I do believe that one of the driving factors in his life, to make everybody laugh, it made him feel better," Beck said. "It was a salve on his wound to make other people happy. It gave him, probably, a happiness that he couldn't find himself, which is so bizarre and tragic. So tragic."

Complimentary Clip from TheBlaze TV

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Beck also asked his co-host, Pat Gray, to put together a compilation of Williams' most memorable work. You can watch it below:

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