Robert (Bob) Benedict Oliver, who worked hard and played hard, living a busy, fast-paced life that would have overwhelmed a lesser man, died peacefully at home of cancer Aug. 9 in Lansdowne, VA., short of his 71st birthday.

As a father, husband, businessman, award-winning golf writer, thoroughbred horse owner, film and theater producer, and actor, he enjoyed life to its fullest.

Born in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Bob spent his early years abroad living with his family in France. He played in the Jr. League World Series and served in a pit crew during the 24 hours of Le Mans race where he helped fix a leaky valve with chewing gum to finish qualifiers.

His family moved to Thailand, where his father, Robert B. Oliver Sr., worked as a U.S. government manager, and Bob frequently visited for extended periods on break. Returning home to Pennsylvania, he graduated from Sharon Hill High School, then Delaware County Community College.

From there, he went on to Bloomsburg State University of Pennsylvania, where his energetic style and interest in just about everything included playing hockey, working as sports editor, and editor-in-chief of the college newspaper then called the Maroon & Gold. A high point in his collegiate journalism career was a one-on-one interview with boxing legend Muhammad Ali for a story that appeared on Page 1.

He also lettered in golf, was vice president of the journalism fraternity, and served as student government treasurer while at Bloomsburg. He earned a degree in political science, then went on to earn a master’s in journalism at Temple University.

After leaving college he worked in human resources at Central Penn Bank and at Penn Mutual while also working the sports desk at the Bucks County Courier Times. A golf writer, he worked for over 30 years for the Courier Times, winning awards and interviewing the greats of golf, including Phil Mickelson, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Arnold Palmer, who became his friend. He also wrote for Golfweek, Chesapeake Life, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Golf Pennsylvania/Golf Northeast and his own blog.

In 1989 he took a position at media giant Gannett Co., Inc., where he was promoted to Vice President of Compensation and designed incentive programs and executive compensation programs for over 6,000 employees. There he was comfortable in the board room as well as the C-Suite.

In his spare time he officiated over a thousand ice hockey games and served on the Board of Directors for the Southeastern Hockey Officials Association for a decade.

He retired from Gannett and its successor, TEGNA, in 2016.

Retirement didn’t slow him down. He continued to pursue his lifelong interest in thoroughbred horse racing. He participated and invested in the management of over 25 horses. The highlight was Authentic, a champion racehorse who won the 2020 Kentucky Derby.

His passion for golf took him to nearly 1,000 golf courses worldwide, rated hundreds of courses for Golfweek Magazine, and he played almost daily wherever he traveled for work or pleasure.

Later in life an interest in film began and led him to an acting and production career that included parts in 20 movies. He appeared as a father, TV reporter, record producer, Starfleet bridge enlistee, police chief, and priest. But he was most proud of his substantial role as Crank the Clown in the Clown Motel horror movies.

The son of the late Robert and Pauline Oliver of Sharon Hill, Pa., Bob is survived by his wife, Ellen Dugdell Oliver, his son Liam Oliver of Hermosa Beach, California, and his sister Karen Pattinson of Oxford, PA. 

Send to someone

Share this obituary with others

https://everloved.com/life-of/robert-oliver/obituary/

Copy