Robert Wilson, Father Of Acting Wilson Brothers Deceased At Age 76

Robert Wilson, the father of actors Andrew, Owen and Luke and Wilson, died on Friday. The former television executive died at the age of 76, after years of fighting Alzheimer’s disease.

Robert Wilson is survived by his wife, Laura, his sons and grandchildren.

Robert Wilson an entrepreneur and successful man

Born and raised in New England, where he met his wife, author, and photographer Laura Cunningham, with whom he formed a tight-knit family. They raised three children who became successful actors.

According to family friend Mike Ritchey, “These boys grew up in a household that really appreciated brains and talent and hard work. And that didn’t have to be in the arts. Bobby and Laura felt and feel that way about any endeavor. Anything you undertake requires a talent, a style…They’re a very strong family.”

The Wilson’s father was the perfect example of hard work, at only 26 years old he worked at KERA as the head of the station bringing changes and improvements to the station. He revolutionalized the station and brought it from black and white to color and from film to video tape, throughout the ’60s and ’70s. And he didn’t stop there.

He also brought public radio to Dallas by launching KERA FM and that’s just the beginning of his entrepreneurial’ traits.He was also the man behind bringing Monty Python’s Flying Circus to broadcast on American tv in 1974.

Robert had a great impact on Dallas news industry and in the community. He helped to launch the career of journalist Jim Lehrer after putting him in command of KERA’s public affair programming.

This was the starting off the Dallas Times Herald, and Lehrer, later on, got his own PBS show, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.

This were only some of Robert’s ideas, as his wife Laura pointed out at a KERA interview, though he had several ideas he stayed modest. “He really sacrificed in a way his life for the creative freedom that each of us was able to experience. And that’s unusual because he himself was very creative,” she said.

Robert worked as the station manager until 1975. In 1994 he started his own communication business where he worked until his illness.

Wilson was an inspiration for his community

In 2015, Owen opened up about his father’s diagnosis for the first time. He expressed how difficult has been for the family to cope.

“It’s one of those things where if somebody had said 10 years ago, when my dad and I were joking around, having a putting match, that this is the position your dad’s going to be in, where he basically needs 24-hour care, you’d think, ‘Gosh, I won’t be able to handle that. That’s just not possible,’ he said.

“But it does happen. Such things just happen in life. You just have to do your best to deal with it. You’ve got no choice but to accept it. And then, you sort of still look for the things to be grateful for. He is at home, take care of, and he has people around that love him,” he added.

Finally, he said, “For me and my brothers, there just wasn’t a bigger influence on us. Maybe it sounds trite or something, but I really believe that his spirit gets carried on through me, the way I like to joke around.”

Owen also pointed out that during the difficult battle with Alzheimer’s the community has been crucial in supporting his parents.In an interview with E!, he said that the “value of friends… People have supported my mother and done stuff and that’s so valuable. The great thing about feeling you’re a part of a community is how it sustains you.”

Robert Wilson an inspiring father

In a 2004 interview with The News, he recalled with a smile something he heard Owen say on David Letterman’s show.

“Letterman said, ‘Three boys. That must have been hard to your parents.’ Owen said it was ‘three, seven, nine, zero.’ Three boys, seven high schools, nine colleges, zero degrees. So that isn’t exactly a success,” the Wilson patriarch said with a laugh. “There were trying times. Raising three boys was a challenge.”

Despite being a challenge, the boys are profoundly inspired by their father’s work and commitment to them and the family.

Andre Wilson said in a 1999 interview, “I hope I do as good a job of being a father as he did. That’s something I think about a lot. He was so supportive. He came to every single game we were in.”

The positive impact and influence that their father had on the actors were huge. On Wes Anderson’s Rushmore, which was co-written by Owen Wilson, there’s a line that was directly taken from something Robert said to him before.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine having sons like this,” says Bill Murray’s character at a point in the film.

After the movie, Owen cornered his dad to ask what he thought. “You realize, don’t you, Dad, that I took that from you word for word.”