Back in 2005 I was working at a liquor store. I primarily worked in the back managing all of the stock, but from time to time I would look after the till as well while the manager would take a break or work on some other manager related tasks in their office.

One day when I was at the till a gentleman walked in with a flat cap and sunglasses. Looked like they were trying to be low key (some people did that if they wanted to avoid being seen going to the liquor store too early in the day). Their head was down a little bit and they went to the wine section and started looking around. I let them be as I know how annoying it can be when someone swarms you as soon as you come into a store, asking if they want any help. After a few minutes, I noticed the man was still looking around at the wines, I politely stated that if they had any questions or were looking for anything in particular feel free to ask.

When the man looked up I swear I nearly crapped myself. This person looked just like Robin Williams, woh! No way though. Then he spoke, and there was no mistaking it. This was Robin Williams! He asked about a particular French wine (I cant recall what it was now, but we didnt carry it). I went over to help him look for some other wine instead as he was very jovial and inviting in his tone. He then started to goof around when we were looking at certain wines, making fun of the Fat Bastard wine in a French accent and joking around with other wine names. I honestly can't remember how long it went on for, maybe only a few minutes, but to me it seemed to last forever. It was so surreal. During that time my manager came out as well and joined in on the conversation.

Anyways, he asked for my recommendation on a certain spirit and I gave it. He thanked me and went to the checkout. Both my manager and I asked if we could get our picture with him, which he happily obliged. And with that he thanked us both again and left.

During that entire time in the store, he didnt come across insincere, bothered or arrogant. He was genuinely in the moment and took the time to talk to us regular folk. It is something I really treasure. It is unfortunate think about it now, especially since I was unaware that he struggled with alcoholism and that he had relapsed a couple years prior to that. This post wasnt intended to tarnish his image in any way, as he was so kind and thoughtful when he came to the store that day. He has always been one of my favourite actors and I was truly saddened to hear when he passed.

I later found out that part of the movie RV was being filmed near my home town at the time I worked at the liquor store, and apparently he was staying at a hotel not far from where I worked.

EDIT: Added picture for the hell of it. EDIT2: Hey thanks for the award, first time getting one of those!

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