Grace, Wit, and Southern Spark: Laurie Mclaurin

Basic Information

Southern roots and early life

Laurie Mclaurin’s story begins in the American South, where magnolias and memory often intertwine. Born on September 24, 1922, she spent formative years in New Orleans, a city whose music and mischief have a way of slipping into one’s cadence. Her mother, Laura McLaurin Berry, remarried in 1929 to Robert Forrest Smith, and the young Laurie grew up with a blended surname history that would appear across records as Janin, Smith, and later Williams.

Her lineage carried the weight of civic history: she was a great-granddaughter of Anselm J. McLaurin, Mississippi governor and U.S. senator. Yet Laurie tended to aim her stories forward, favoring the present moment. She loved fashion as theater—believing one could “turn from bimbo to countess with a hat”—and she cultivated a wit that could disarm a room in a single remark. Those early threads—grace, humor, poise—would stitch themselves into her life’s fabric.

Love, marriage, and a growing clan

Laurie first married in 1941 to William Joy Musgrave. The war years were a whirl of change, and by the late 1940s the marriage had ended. She later married Robert Fitzgerald Williams on June 3, 1950—a Ford Motor Company executive whose career would take the family across the Midwest. With Robert came a ready-made extension of family in stepson Robert Todd Williams, and soon after, on July 21, 1951, Laurie welcomed her son Robin.

The family lived in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where country-club courts and corporate culture coexisted. By 1967, Laurie and Robert shifted coasts to Tiburon, California—a hillside vantage point above the San Francisco Bay, where fog moves like velvet across the water. Their marriage endured until Robert’s death in 1987. Through decades of moves and milestones, Laurie cultivated a home life strong enough to hold both ambition and affection.

Creativity in the wings: modeling, acting, and art

Laurie’s creativity preferred the wings to the spotlight. In the late 1940s she modeled at Marshall Field’s in Chicago, absorbing the choreography of elegance and the art of making an entrance. She studied lithography in 1945 at the San Francisco Art Institute, signaling an appetite for craft that went deeper than the lens. In the 1950s she took part-time acting roles in television commercials, and in later years she popped up in a Caltrans vanpool advertisement and even “The Silver Foxes 2: Shape Up America,” a spirited exercise video for seniors.

Her athletic side found a champion in renowned coach Jean Hoxie, who helped refine Laurie’s tennis game in Michigan. On the court, she learned the balance between patience and power—a rhythm that matched her approach to life. She didn’t build a résumé for public display; she built a repertoire of skills that fed her curiosity and served her community.

Home courts and community

Faith and service ran like a current through Laurie’s routine. In Marin County, she was active in her Christian Science church. She volunteered with youth programs—tennis among them—turning sport into a mentorship tool. She had a knack for showing up precisely where a little humor and a steady hand could change the temperature of a room.

Her emphasis on community also distilled into domestic rituals: handwritten notes, carefully planned gatherings, a kitchen that functioned as a neighborhood crossroads. Laurie was a private person in a public family, but her influence rippled outward in the calm way foundations do.

The mother behind a legend

Talk to people who knew Robin Williams, and they’ll describe a quicksilver brilliance that never seemed to run dry. Listen closely and you’ll hear Laurie’s echo: the melodic Southern timing, the spontaneous turn of phrase, the glee that bubbles up from a well-told story. When mother and son appeared together, Robin laughed like a boy discovering a new toy—proof that even the world’s most inventive comedian could be surprised by homegrown humor.

In the social media age, clips of Laurie teasing, twinkling, and coaxing laughter from Robin have resurfaced, charming a generation that never knew her in life. She kept her privacy. The camera, when it found her, caught the warmth anyway.

Timeline: a life in key moments

Family snapshot

Finances, privacy, and the life she chose

The public ledger on Laurie is intentionally simple. She lived comfortably, helped by her husband’s executive role, and pursued creative, athletic, and volunteer endeavors on her own terms. There are no trophies to tally, no ledger of net worth to parse—just the quiet arithmetic of a life that measured wealth in family, friendship, and well-timed laughter.

Echoes that linger

Laurie’s death on September 4, 2001, in Tiburon, closed a chapter written with grace notes rather than headlines. Yet her voice continues—through family stories, through glimpses on nostalgic videos, through the cadence of humor that her son carried onto stages and into living rooms around the world. Some legacies are marble and monuments; hers feels more like a favorite room, warm and lived-in, with light that never quite goes out.

FAQ

Who was Laurie Mclaurin?

She was a model, part-time actress, and devoted volunteer best known as the mother of Robin Williams.

When and where was she born?

She was born on September 24, 1922, with records pointing to Jackson (or Purvis), Mississippi.

What was her family background?

She descended from Mississippi statesman Anselm J. McLaurin and grew up in New Orleans in a blended household.

Whom did she marry?

She married William Joy Musgrave in 1941 (later divorced) and Robert Fitzgerald Williams in 1950.

How many children did she have?

She had two sons across her marriages and a stepson through her second marriage.

What did she do professionally?

She modeled, appeared in commercials, studied art, and took occasional on-screen roles while dedicating significant time to community and church.

Where did she live during her life?

She lived in New Orleans, Chicago, Bloomfield Hills (Michigan), and later Tiburon, California.

How did she influence Robin Williams?

Her wit, storytelling, and Southern timing infused his comedic instincts and nurtured his love for improvisation.

When did she pass away and at what age?

She died on September 4, 2001, in Tiburon at age 78.

Are there videos or clips of her today?

Yes, short clips and TV segments resurfaced online show her playful exchanges with Robin.