New York, March 6: Hollywood actor/comedian Robin Williams, who was hospitalized earlier this week after experiencing shortness of breath, will have heart surgery to replace an aortic valve, his publicist confirmed on Thursday.
Oscar-winner Williams’ publicist Mara Buxbaum announced in a press release that the 57-year-old actor needs an aortic valve replacement, forcing him to cut short his stand-up comedy tour.
Buxbaum confirmed the news a day after Williams was forced to suspend an 80-city tour of his one-man show, Weapons of Self-Destruction, in Florida after he suffered shortness of breath, prompting him to check into a hospital.
Now, his publicist confirmed that the ailing comedian/actor has postponed the rest of his comedy tour, "Weapons of Self Destruction", to undergo an aortic valve replacement, according to a statement posted on his website. The publicist, however, did not disclose when the surgery will take place.
A statement posted on Williams’ Website quoted the actor as saying: "I'm so touched by everyone's support and well wishes.... This tour has been amazing fun and I can't wait to get back out on the road after a little tune-up."
Williams, who had been on the sold-out, 80-city tour since September last, is expected to resume his shows in the fall, his publicist said. According to him, tickets will be honored once the new dates are scheduled, or for refunds, ticket holders can contact the places from where they had purchased the tickets.
Born in July 1951, Williams is an Academy Award-, Golden Globe- and Grammy Award-winning American actor and comedian who first rose to fame as the delightful Mork from Ork on the TV show Mork and Mindy, which ran from 1978 to 1982. The show was a hit and established Williams as one of the most popular comedians of the '70s and '80s.
Williams then began to reach a wider audience with his standup comedy, including three HBO comedy specials, Off The Wall (1978), An Evening with Robin Williams (1982), and Robin Williams: Live at the Met (1986).
Williams was Oscar-nominated for Good Morning, Vietnam (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989) and The Fisher King (1991) before finally winning an Academy Award as the sympathetic psychologist who befriends Matt Damon in Good Will Hunting (1997).
The quicksilver comedian has a history of heart diseases in his family. His elder brother Robert Todd Williams, founder of California's Toad Hollow Vineyards, died of complications from heart surgery on Aug. 20, 2007.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Williams had a serious addiction to cocaine, and in August 2006 he entered himself into a rehabilitation center for alcoholism.
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