August 18, 1999

Hi!

I'd like to commend you on your really wonderful website, Rio's Attic. All I can say is "wow!" When I look for a website on a celebrity, it is usually because I want to better understand the artist's work, or understand a little more about where his or her "specialness" (for want of a better word) comes from. I love reading reviews, and other people's opinions of an actor's work, because it helps clarify my own feelings about it. Unfortunately, I am usually disappointed, because so many fan sites are just full of pictures and a sort of gossipy blather.

It was so wonderful to find your site today and see how different things can be!! I love the repectful way you treat River and the people he was close to--all the stuff that could be so sensational are not dwelled upon there. You talk about the issues that were important to him, but you don't hit us over the head with them. As it should be, the site is centered on his work and a tasteful bio. I came away from the site feeling as if I knew a bit more not only about him, but about myself as well.

BTW, I think the Henry Miller quote on the homepage is so apt--it really seems to express exactly why his death hit me so hard. I have always enjoyed his acting, and I really felt like he was just starting to get going when he died. It is also pretty clear (from the mode of his death, but also from the parts he was choosing) that he was going through some dark times. River was just about my age, and as I am now approaching 30, 24 seems awfully young!! I can't help thinking there is no telling what he might have achieved if he had lived longer and had a chance to overcome some of his demons. Of course it is possible that he never would have, but he seemed to be capable of quite a lot!

Anyway, I can not add much to the quotes from other fans that decorate the Home Page; I agree with everything they've said. I can only join the chorus in saying that you have done a remarkable job, and that it certainly is a *celebration* of his work and his life. Thanks so much for the untold hours you have spent working on this beautiful, well-designed site!