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I met Bill once, in the Summer of 2007, in Victoria. My then-girlfriend (now wife) and I ran into Paul and Graham at one of PAX's concerts, and, being the consummate gentlemen they are, they invited us to come see some of British Columbia afterwards, on what would turn out to be a memorable trip. A handful of the LRR cast gave my better half and I a sleep-deprived tour of the city, or at least the part you could see on the trip from the Customs office (where the native Canadians had a considerably harder time getting into their own country than we aliens did), with the tour finishing at a "Bill's House," which appeared in so many early LRR sketches.

A number of people, some of whom I'm quite sure would prefer to be left out of this narrative, passed a day in conversation and laughter with us, sitting in that front room while the sun picked out motes of dust floating in the air. A lot of motes of dust. The house wasn't terribly clean, is what I'm saying, because we were all in our mid-20ss and for God's sake, none of us are hugely put together then.

In return for their hospitality, I offered to make dinner for everyone who put up with the foreigners invading their space, and while I was poking through the kitchen for roasting pans (or, indeed, things that could, eventually, be pressed into service as roasting pans), I met Bill. Well, I say "met." I was talking with someone else in the kitchen, and turned around to see an apparently-endless expanse of fabric an inch from my nose, very nearly as though a wall had been quietly erected behind me, then draped with a shimmering blue-and-black basketball jersey.

I stepped back.

I looked up.

I looked up again.

In my memory, I see Bill's pleasant face, capped by a slicked-back crop of dark red hair, looking down from what seemed like an impossible distance. In the way of these things, I'm sure the actual experience was somewhat less dramatic than the feeling of being peered down at by a towering figure with a knowing smirk, but because I think stories are important, I like to let that memory shift with time. I am equally certain that I am not the only person he did that to, given the laughter of everyone else at what I'm sure was a delightful expression on my face.

We didn't talk much, but when we did, Bill had a voice low enough to make your chest quiver in sympathetic resonance and a quiet, calm demeanour, the kind that suggested he knew a lot of things he chose not to talk about. Not exactly a private person, but one who had a persona he kept around for visitors, a collection of truths and stories left outside the wall that surrounded the important things. He seemed thoughtful and funny, and his handshake made me feel like I was a kid again.

He seemed, in that brief meeting, to be the kind of person I might have liked to get to know better. I never got that chance, but what I did see, I can find a lot to like in. I had no idea he was struggling under a terminal diagnosis, or that he very well may have already seen two other members of his family walk down that path. Now, I think I saw a lot - perhaps a staggering amount - of strength in a young man, and anger, and a mask.

I hope his next adventure is one with less pain and more joy, but still one where he can alarm strangers.

Thanks for the memories, Bill.

I joined the LRR community late and only knew Bill from past LRR videos and Desert Bus, but his passing made me more sad than any celebrity passing in the last two years.
My condolences to his friends, his family, and everyone who knew him.

I have no idea what to say that hasn't already been said. Please add mine to the pile of love for Kate and the LRR family as a whole.

If there's anything the community can do to help Kate or the Crew in Bill's memory, don't hesitate to let us know -- we love you all and I'm sure we'd be honored.

I'm... actually kind of in shock. I started following LRR in the post-Bill years, but by now I've been through the archives enough times that he's a pretty recognisable figure for me. For such a lovely man to be taken from us so soon is a crying shame, but I hope his soul and family can take comfort from the fact that he went into what he must have known were his waning years with such strength and dignity and joy. My thoughts and sympathies go out to Kate, a wonderful person who has had to cope with far, far too much sadness.

Thanks for everything Bill. Au revoir.

My condolences to his friends and family

Goodbye Bill. Your time with us was too short by far.

I only knew him through watching the videos, but you could tell he was a great guy to be around. My condolences to LRR and Bill's Family

So long Bill. This world has lost a great person.

My condolences to Bill's family and extended LRR family.

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Love you all a lot. Many of you know I've been around this forum for a long long long time. I'm not so active anymore, but I'ma tell a lil story of a lil girl who was very nerdy and alone and very unsure of herself.

A long time ago, it was literally a few weeks under 10 years ago, I started watching LRR. I was a shy and nervous girl who wasn't very well liked, I had a lot of super nerdy interests and a few close friends who shared them, but not very many people in my age group that accepted me. I met them at Kei Kon, a little convention in Victoria and went to their site and watched their videos a whole bunch, everything that was on the site up until then at that time.
I loved it so much, I connected with the humour so much. Over the next few years I befriended Morgan in particular, and we started to have an ongoing friendship.

When LoadingReadyLive happened I was so enthralled that I lived in the city where I could see my favourite nerdy sketch comedians live. I'd take different friends every day of the show, it overtook me I loved it so much.
I remember over the next few years sometimes going to hang out with Morgan, who was at the time still living with Bill. I loved their wit, their liveliness and their unabashed no fear attitude towards the things that they loved. Bill was always incredibly welcoming and scathing at the same time. It was so incredible to me to watch such tight knit friends hang out and do all of the things that I loved and endlessly rip on each other in the most amicable way possible.
Bill was always incredibly welcoming and kind towards me even though I was very young still and very awkward and naive. I was still always welcome to come join their domain for a hot minute. It was life saving to me.

As I've grown older and come into myself I grew into new interests, started playing music, became consumed in other aspects of life. But I always have and always will appreciate so much that time when LRR meant so much to me. It gave me the confidence that I could be exactly who it was and whoever I wanted to be, and be accepted. This forum played a big part in that too and the friends I made from it.

My condolences to everyone who is hurting is so great. As incredibly heartwrenching that it is that Bill is gone and died so young and had to go through the fear of himself falling apart through a horrible disease, more than anything I feel incredibly thankful to him and to LRR in general and to this forum and to all of you whether I've ever made a post to you or not. Because I'm not the only one who has felt this I'm sure. I'm not the only one who's life has been completely and utterly changed by the fact that Bill was here and that this happened as it did.

Thank you everyone. So much love to you all. Especially to the crew and anyone who has ever been a part of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PrnGo-lOVA

Fayili wrote:I think that's a nice idea but it might also be a downer coming into work every day and being reminded that your friend is dead. That's how I'd feel, anyway. If they're down for it, though, it would be a lovely thing, I'm sure.

That is totally fair. It was, after all, just an idea. It's LRR's daily space, so they would have the best judgement whether it'd be positive, negative, or a mix of both.

This year has only just begun, but it has been SO rough on losing influential people in our lives. David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Dan Haggerty, Glenn Frey, and many more... but the hardest hitting one to me is far less famous.
TallBill, MegaWatt, William Watt - I hope your family realizes how deeply loved you are by fans around the globe. I hope they can see how massive of an impression you have made on this community of good-hearted geeks, nerds, and dorks. You used your candle not only to brighten the worlds of those around you, but to start a massive bonfire. My heart goes out to Kate Watt, LoadingReadyRun, and the entire crew of Desert Bus for Hope. Rest in Peace, Ninja Fighter.

Condolences to all who have known Bill or have been his fans through the years. Even to this day my wife still considers Gay Chicken to be her favourite video

I knew he was sick, but I didn't expect it to hit like this so soon.
RIP Bill

I just wanted to say, I've ready this thread from top to bottom, and will continue to do so.
Thank you all for sharing your thoughts and feelings.

Just, thank you.

I felt a real ache in my heart when I read the blog post.
I never had the chance to meet him in real life.. A real regret I'll hold on to now.

Me and Bill talked quite a bit when I was frequenting this place about a decade ago..
He introduced me to DotA, taught me how to play, invited me to play with Adam, James, Morgan.. We joked a lot and laughed even more, and I really felt a sense of friendship with Bill despite the fact that I was some forum 'internet troll' then. I'll never forget all the late nights we stayed up to play DotA, talking about different ways to help beat our insomnia (a lot of which I still use to this day).

The little time I had with Bill I could already feel how genuine, loving and caring he is.
The news really cut deep.. I can't imagine how it must feel for the people close to him.

I really want to go on and say more, but this is not my place.

My love and my heart goes out to all of you..

If I could hug everyone, I would.

I second that feeling.

Unfortunately I didn't know Bill personally, but I would've loved to. What I do know of him through LRR and Desert Bus over the years, I'll always remember fondly.

I'm very sad to hear of his passing - my thoughts are with everyone, especially those closest to him - for whatever little it might be worth.

For my part it's a fact that Bill, along with LRR in general, have left an indelible impression on my life; all for the better. Thanks guys, thanks Bill.

Very saddening, condolences to his friends, family and all who knew him.

Thanks for all the videos, DB times and laughs that were had.

Oh, no. There's a large hole in space-time up in Canada right now. There are no words.

First of all let me way my condolences and thoughts and prayers go out to Bill’s family and friends.

Its weird to say because im just a fan of LRR but this news hit me hard. I remember Bill most from the Commodore Hustle season 1 series and his parts always made me laugh. He and Morgan worked so well with each other and that added to the comedy.

This is such a shock and a huge loss for all of us.

Thank you Bill for everything and keep playing that Tupac in heaven!

It's strange how the passing of someone I've never met can feel so personal. Being a big, big fan of LRR for years and years (despite what my forum activity may suggest) and seeing Bill in all those sketches and Desert Busses kinda made him a small fixture in my life, along with everyone else. Some of my favorite pieces of past Desert Busses were the times where Kate would sit next to Bill and tell the best stories ever. And I'm quite sure I'm not the only one that feels this way.

I guess what I'm saying, in my own weird rambling way, is that he was a great guy that had a much bigger impact on this small portion of the world than he may have even realized. His presence will be missed, and my heart goes out to Kate, the LRR crew, and everyone else affected by this news.

My condolences to everyone
i never met bill and by the time i really started watching your video's he was mostly a person in the archives. regardless i still greatly enjoyed his part in videos
i feel sad

We love and remember the lost, may they never be forgotten.

My condolences to the Loading Ready Run crew, and I hope they remember all the good times they had with him.

In all the sketches he made me laugh and that's what I'll be remembering. My condolences to his family and friends.