Bobby Silverman, as I knew him from Kindergarten at Oak View Elementary School to Senior year at Blair, was a good and accomplished man. In Mrs. Combs "special" math class in 6th grade, I would be halfway through my quiz as Bob ran to the front of the class to turn his in first and 100% correct. As an actor, he went from a dramatic production we put on at 8-years-old in Richard Bromer's basement for our parents to starring roles in "Inherit The Wind" & "How To Succeed In Business" at Blair. I was proud to tell folks that I had a schoolmate who had his PhD and M.D. and was the Director of the Diabetes Institute at N.I.H. After which he went on to a 2nd career consulting for Merck Pharmaceutical. I'm glad I was able to catch up with him at our 50th Reunion. I'm also grateful to have exchanged Birthday greetings on this site (I just said "Happy Birthday" to him last week). Rest easy my friend.
Bobby Silverman was one of the smartest persons I've known. Didn't matter if it was science or humanities.
A real renaissance man. I'm sorry to hear this news.
Bob and I were interchangeable as the last to get in the game for the winless 8th grade Eastern Jr. High Basketball team. When the game was out of hand, (usually after the 1st quarter), Bob's cheering section went into action with a very vocal "We want Bob" chant roaring thru the gym.
We had many more good natured battles on the Oakview Elementary playground after school, metal nets and all. Bob was a very fine fellow.
Dear Citizens: Steve Bullman Howard here. I admired the accomplishments of Bob Silverman. I would say we typically had a little longer hallway conversation(s) at Eastern and Blair, than just a "Hey!" He was not one to twaddle. He was just smart, and had a sharp wit. I reminded myself to him at the 55th reunion, as he had "misplaced" my name; something that happens to all of us. I commented on how much I appreciated his taking sports pictures along the sidelines during football season, for Silver Chips. During one game, he had gotten really excited during a "reverse" cross-body block (having to go back, towards the onrushing linemen) that I had thrown, jumping up and down...He missed the picture opportunity, he got so excited. ...I also told Bob how much I enjoyed reading a short story of his during our senior year (55 years ago), I'm guessing in one of the art-literary magazines that were published at Blair; obviously I don't remember the format. It's one of those I wished I had saved (if anybody has it, I would love a copy). It was a coming of age short story about how he finally, physically out-wrestled his dad, but later wept about it, realizing the end of an era.
Bob's very quick retort to me was,"That was about my older brother...not my dad." No hesitation there.
Bob, his brother Bill, and his parents Edgar and Anne, moved over the back fence from us (we were on Walden Road) to Whitney Street, when we were in second grade. I believe they moved from the apartment complex down by Long Branch, but if I remember correctly, Bob was born in Wilmington, Delaware, and the Philadelphia Phillies were his team. We became best friends, and classmates at Oak View Elementary, and remained in close touch for many years beyond Oak View, Eastern, Blair, college, and graduate school. He married his medical school classmate Randi, who it was my pleasure to get to know, and had two amazingly wonderful and accomplished children who I never got to know but learned more about from their reading what they said about their Dad at his funeral.
He was, as many have remembered him, whip-smart, funny, politically-engaged, professionally-accomplished, a loyal friend, and from all I gather, a wonderful husband and Dad. His household, growing up on Whitney Street, was loving, lively, argumentative (four VERY smart people there!), his brother was the first Libertarian-type I ever met, and he (and we) would push unfinished Avalon Hill strategy board games or Monopoly under a chair in his living room and pick up days, and more days, later. We loved Electric Football; it was harder for me to follow the Strat-0-Matic football he enjoyed; and we had great political discussions. Edgar and Anne were social activists and took their sons to the 1963 March on Washington where Dr. King spoke of "I Have a Dream" -- they invited me along but my parents, while liberal, were too nervous to let their middle-schooler go to such an event. (How about THAT for a missed opportunity!)
During and especially after high school, a standard reunion outing was Monte's Miniature Golf on Metzerott Road, near the U. of Maryland, which survived for decades before development devoured it -- 36 holes of adventure (two mirror-image courses) -- so many times there with our friends Howard Ross, Phil Somers, Ricky Bromer, and others. My first double-dates with someone else driving (since I didn't, in high school) were with Bob in the front seat of his black VW bug with his girlfriend Barbara Kaplan (Eastern, but then Springbrook, and later my friend and classmate at Brandeis U.) and tall me stuffed in the back seat with a girl I may or may not have known well enough, or felt comfortable enough with, to be stuffed in the back seat of a VW bug with. I admired Bob's social sophistication, among so many other sides of him. Oh yes, and the evening always started with 25 cents worth of gas (about a gallon) at the Co-Op at Piney Branch and Flower. And he would drive on the Beltway, a true feat of daring for a kid.
Then there was 11th grade, when Bob and my dear friend Lee McCuistion (she now of championship dogs and a Texas ranch) organized my "surprise Sweet 16" party at Bob's house, complete with pink streamers and cake. Remains one of my fondest memories of high school -- more the fact that they planned and organized it in the first place (my memories of the actual party are skimpy).
Bob carried forward the tradition of his family -- loving, passionate about things that mattered, and true. I had not seen him in several years and we had a longstanding "we'll meet up in Philadelphia" understanding for "one day," especially after my wife and I moved to Phoenixville, PA almost two years ago. That plan ran out of time. I miss you, my friend.
James Nalley
Bobby Silverman, as I knew him from Kindergarten at Oak View Elementary School to Senior year at Blair, was a good and accomplished man. In Mrs. Combs "special" math class in 6th grade, I would be halfway through my quiz as Bob ran to the front of the class to turn his in first and 100% correct. As an actor, he went from a dramatic production we put on at 8-years-old in Richard Bromer's basement for our parents to starring roles in "Inherit The Wind" & "How To Succeed In Business" at Blair. I was proud to tell folks that I had a schoolmate who had his PhD and M.D. and was the Director of the Diabetes Institute at N.I.H. After which he went on to a 2nd career consulting for Merck Pharmaceutical. I'm glad I was able to catch up with him at our 50th Reunion. I'm also grateful to have exchanged Birthday greetings on this site (I just said "Happy Birthday" to him last week). Rest easy my friend.
Rchard Bromer
Bobby Silverman was one of the smartest persons I've known. Didn't matter if it was science or humanities.
A real renaissance man. I'm sorry to hear this news.
Richard "Ricky" Bromer
Steven Rogers
I was very fortunate to have Bob as a friend for the two years that I was at Blair.
We shared many classes, and I recall his having represented Blair on the TV show "It's Academic".
Not only was he very smart, he was also a real mensch. -- Steve Rogers
Karl Brandt
Bob and I were interchangeable as the last to get in the game for the winless 8th grade Eastern Jr. High Basketball team. When the game was out of hand, (usually after the 1st quarter), Bob's cheering section went into action with a very vocal "We want Bob" chant roaring thru the gym.
We had many more good natured battles on the Oakview Elementary playground after school, metal nets and all. Bob was a very fine fellow.
Steve (Bullman) Howard
Dear Citizens: Steve Bullman Howard here. I admired the accomplishments of Bob Silverman. I would say we typically had a little longer hallway conversation(s) at Eastern and Blair, than just a "Hey!" He was not one to twaddle. He was just smart, and had a sharp wit. I reminded myself to him at the 55th reunion, as he had "misplaced" my name; something that happens to all of us. I commented on how much I appreciated his taking sports pictures along the sidelines during football season, for Silver Chips. During one game, he had gotten really excited during a "reverse" cross-body block (having to go back, towards the onrushing linemen) that I had thrown, jumping up and down...He missed the picture opportunity, he got so excited. ...I also told Bob how much I enjoyed reading a short story of his during our senior year (55 years ago), I'm guessing in one of the art-literary magazines that were published at Blair; obviously I don't remember the format. It's one of those I wished I had saved (if anybody has it, I would love a copy). It was a coming of age short story about how he finally, physically out-wrestled his dad, but later wept about it, realizing the end of an era.
Bob's very quick retort to me was,"That was about my older brother...not my dad." No hesitation there.
Rest in peace.
Robert Levin
Bob, his brother Bill, and his parents Edgar and Anne, moved over the back fence from us (we were on Walden Road) to Whitney Street, when we were in second grade. I believe they moved from the apartment complex down by Long Branch, but if I remember correctly, Bob was born in Wilmington, Delaware, and the Philadelphia Phillies were his team. We became best friends, and classmates at Oak View Elementary, and remained in close touch for many years beyond Oak View, Eastern, Blair, college, and graduate school. He married his medical school classmate Randi, who it was my pleasure to get to know, and had two amazingly wonderful and accomplished children who I never got to know but learned more about from their reading what they said about their Dad at his funeral.
He was, as many have remembered him, whip-smart, funny, politically-engaged, professionally-accomplished, a loyal friend, and from all I gather, a wonderful husband and Dad. His household, growing up on Whitney Street, was loving, lively, argumentative (four VERY smart people there!), his brother was the first Libertarian-type I ever met, and he (and we) would push unfinished Avalon Hill strategy board games or Monopoly under a chair in his living room and pick up days, and more days, later. We loved Electric Football; it was harder for me to follow the Strat-0-Matic football he enjoyed; and we had great political discussions. Edgar and Anne were social activists and took their sons to the 1963 March on Washington where Dr. King spoke of "I Have a Dream" -- they invited me along but my parents, while liberal, were too nervous to let their middle-schooler go to such an event. (How about THAT for a missed opportunity!)
During and especially after high school, a standard reunion outing was Monte's Miniature Golf on Metzerott Road, near the U. of Maryland, which survived for decades before development devoured it -- 36 holes of adventure (two mirror-image courses) -- so many times there with our friends Howard Ross, Phil Somers, Ricky Bromer, and others. My first double-dates with someone else driving (since I didn't, in high school) were with Bob in the front seat of his black VW bug with his girlfriend Barbara Kaplan (Eastern, but then Springbrook, and later my friend and classmate at Brandeis U.) and tall me stuffed in the back seat with a girl I may or may not have known well enough, or felt comfortable enough with, to be stuffed in the back seat of a VW bug with. I admired Bob's social sophistication, among so many other sides of him. Oh yes, and the evening always started with 25 cents worth of gas (about a gallon) at the Co-Op at Piney Branch and Flower. And he would drive on the Beltway, a true feat of daring for a kid.
Then there was 11th grade, when Bob and my dear friend Lee McCuistion (she now of championship dogs and a Texas ranch) organized my "surprise Sweet 16" party at Bob's house, complete with pink streamers and cake. Remains one of my fondest memories of high school -- more the fact that they planned and organized it in the first place (my memories of the actual party are skimpy).
Bob carried forward the tradition of his family -- loving, passionate about things that mattered, and true. I had not seen him in several years and we had a longstanding "we'll meet up in Philadelphia" understanding for "one day," especially after my wife and I moved to Phoenixville, PA almost two years ago. That plan ran out of time. I miss you, my friend.