Robert J. Anderson (1933 - 2008)

American Actor and Television Producer. Credited as Bobby Anderson in his youth, he is best known for his role as the young George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). He was born in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, to a showbiz family. He was the son of Marie Augusta (Fleischer) and Gene Anderson (Eugene Randolph […]

Robert J. Wussler (1936 - 2010)

Broadcast Executive. He was a former president of the Columbia Broadcast System (CBS) Television Network, and co-founder of the Cable News Network (CNN) along with Ted Turner. He joined CBS as a mailroom assistant following graduation from Seton Hall University in 1957, before rising through the ranks to head the CBS news and sports divisions. […]

Robert Jacob (1970 - 1970)

In 1870, Jacob purchased Charles Fritz’s interest in the firm of Fritz & Wainwright, a lager beer manufacturing company in St. Louis. The firm name was changed to Samuel Wainwright & Co. Wainwright’s son Ellis purchased Jacob’s interest in the business in 1875. It was sold to the St. Louis Brewing Association in 1889. (bio […]

Robert Jay Strasser (1947 - 1993)

Business Executive. President and CEO of Adidas America. He was also a Nike executive who negotiated factory and sports marketing contracts. He signed Michael Jordan to Nike. In Mr. Strasser’s words: “The way ahead is clear. Be honest about the battlefield. Throw out the old rules that don’t make sense. Get out of the comfort […]

Robert Johnson (1911 - 1938)

Robert Johnson Robert Leroy Johnson (May 8, 1911 – August 16, 1938) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. His landmark recordings in 1936 and 1937 display a combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that has influenced later generations of musicians. Johnson’s shadowy, poorly documented life and death at age 27 have given rise […]

Robert Kardashian (1944 - 2003)

Attorney. He was a businessman and lawyer who gained fame as one of O.J. Simpson’s legal “dream team” by getting him acquitted of his ex-wife’s murder. Kardashian attended the University of Southern California before O.J. arrived on campus and became friends with him in the 1970s. O.J. camped out at Kardashian’s home in the days […]

Robert Kennedy (1925 - 1968)

Robert Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy was born on November 20, 1925, in Brookline, Massachusetts, the seventh child in the closely knit and competitive family of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy. “I was the seventh of nine children,” he later recalled, “and when you come from that far down you have to struggle to survive.” He […]

Robert Koehler (1850 - 1917)

Painter. Was the first Wisconsin artist to interject social questions into his artwork. Known for his paintings of “Holiday Occupation; Her Only Support,” “The Socialist,” and “The Strike.” (bio by: Laurie)

Robert L. Carter (1917 - 2012)

Carter was born on March 11, 1917, in Caryville, Florida. While an infant, his mother moved north to Newark, New Jersey and later East Orange, where he was raised and attended Barringer High School in Newark and then graduated at age 16 from East Orange High School after having skipped two grades. He earned his […]

Robert Lansing (1928 - 1994)

Born in San Diego, California, as Robert Howell Brown, he reportedly took his acting surname from the state capital of Michigan. As a young actor in New York City, he was hired to join a stock company in Michigan but was told he would first have to join the Actors’ Equity Association. Equity would not […]

Robert Lawrence (1935 - 1967)

Robert Lawrence was born in Chicago, Illinois. He attended Haines Elementary School and, at the age of 16, he graduated in the top 10 percent from Englewood High School in Chicago, in 1952. At the age of 20, he graduated from Bradley University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry. At Bradley, he distinguished […]

Robert Lawson (1892 - 1957)

Author and Illustrator. He is considered one of the finest creators of children’s books of his time. Lawson was the first to receive both of the top two American prizes in this field: the Caldecott Medal for “They Were Strong and Good” (1940), and the Newbery Medal for “Rabbit Hill” (1945). His tales often observe […]

Robert Lee Brokenburr (1886 - 1974)

Civil Rights Leader.  The son of a former slave, he was born in Phoebus, Virginia (now part of the city of Hampton), received a law degree from Howard University in 1909, and began a practice in Indianapolis.  A Republican, as were most African-Americans who could vote in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Brokenburr […]

Robert Leslie Howland (1905 - 1986)

Master of St. John’s College, in his youth an Olympic athlete for Britain. (bio by: David Conway)

Robert Lowe Kunzig (1918 - 1982)

Attorney and a Judge of the United States Court of Claims. Born in Philadelphia and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1942. He was a Captain in the U.S. Army during World War II, from 1942 to 1946. He served as a prosecutor at the Nuremberg Tribunal, winning the conviction of Ilse […]

Robert Lowery (1913 - 1971)

Born Robert Larkin Hanks in Kansas City, Missouri, Robert Lowery grew up on Wayne Avenue near the long-demolished Electric Park. Lowery’s father was a local attorney and oil investor who worked several years for the Pullman Corporation as a railroad agent; his mother, Leah Thompson Hanks, was a concert pianist. He graduated from Paseo High School […]

Robert Ludlum (1927 - 2001)

Ludlum was born in New York City, the son of Margaret (née Wadsworth) and George Hartford Ludlum. His maternal grandparents were English. He was educated at The Rectory School then Cheshire Academy and Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut were he earned a B.A. in Drama. While at Wesleyan, Ludlum joined the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. […]

Robert Lund (1925 - 1995)

Businessman. He started the American Museum of Magic in Marshall, Michigan, which is the largest magic museum in the world, containing some half-million pieces of memorabilia, as well as an archive of thousands of little-known conjurors. Items on display at the museum include the “Milk Can” escape equipment of Houdini. (bio by: Graveaddiction)

Robert Lund (1925 - 1995)

Businessman. He started the American Museum of Magic in Marshall, Michigan, which is the largest magic museum in the world, containing some half-million pieces of memorabilia, as well as an archive of thousands of little-known conjurors. Items on display at the museum include the “Milk Can” escape equipment of Houdini. (bio by: Graveaddiction)

Robert Lynn Asprin (1946 - 2008)

Author. Born in St. John’s, Michigan the son of a machinist and a school teacher, he attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Employed as an accounts payable clerk by Xerox he became inspired to write his first novel ‘The Cold Cash War’ in 1977 when he became frustrated with bureaucracy and inefficiency. The […]

Robert M. Fellows (1903 - 1969)

Motion Picture Director, Producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, he made his entry into Hollywood as an assistant director in the 1928 film, “Power”. From the early 1940s he made his mark as a producer, responsible for such films a “They Died with Their Boots On” (1941), “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” (1949), […]

Robert Mantle Rattenbury (1970 - 1970)

Tutor at Trinity and University Registrar. (bio by: David Conway)

Robert Maupin “Iceberg Slim” Beck (1918 - 1992)

Author. Wrote under the pseudonym ‘Iceberg Slim.’ (bio by: A.J. Marik)  Family links:  Children:  Camille Mary Beck (1964 – 2010)* *Calculated relationship

Robert Maxwell (1923 - 1991)

Jan Ludwig Hoch was born in Slatinske Doly, a village in the province of Ruthenia which was then in Czechoslovakia but which, after 1945, became part of the Ukraine. His parents, Mechel and Hannah, were Orthodox Jews. Mechel eked out a living as a cattle salesman, woodcutter and farm labourer. There were seven children in […]

Robert Mazer (1923 - 2013)

Industrialist, philanthropist and longtime principal owner of the Chicago White Sox. He worked in the Chicago South Side stockyards and during World War II he served as an electronic technician in a Navy division headquartered at the Great Lakes Naval Center. Later he founded Mazer Chemicals, a manufacturer of chemical emulsifiers and surfactants and an […]

Robert McKimson (1910 - 1977)

Born in Denver, Colorado, Robert McKimson spent 10 years getting an art education. He then went to work for Walt Disney. He stayed with Disney’s studio for two years and then went to work for the Romer Grey Studio located in Altadena, California in 1930, a would-be animation shop started by the son of Western […]

Robert McLean (1891 - 1980)

Newspaper Publisher. Published the Philadelphia Bulletin, and served as President of the Associated Press from 1938 to 1957.

Robert Middleton (1911 - 1977)

Robert Middleton, (born Samuel G. Messer, May 13, 1911 – June 14, 1977), was an American film and television actor known for his large size and beetle-like brow. With a deep, booming voice, Middleton trained for a musical career at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He worked steadily as […]

Robert Montgomery (1904 - 1981)

Robert Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Fishkill Landing, New York (now Beacon, New York), to Henry Montgomery, Sr. and his wife, Mary Weed Montgomery (née Barney). His early childhood was one of privilege as his father was president of the New York Rubber Company. His father committed suicide in 1922 by jumping off […]

Robert Montgomery Bird (1806 - 1854)

Playwright. Known for plays such as “The Gladiator” (1834) and “The Broker of Bogota” (1834).  Family links:  Spouse:  Mary Elizabeth Mayer Bird (1809 – 1868)* *Calculated relationship