Robert J. Albo

Robert James Albo M.D. May 8, 1932 - Feb. 21, 2011 Resident of Piedmont, CA Robert J. Albo passed away peacefully with his family by his side on February 21, 2011. Bob is survived by his loving wife of 55 years, Marjorie, his son Bob and wife Sarah, daughter Debbie and husband Robb Jacobs and son Douglas and wife to be Keri. He also has 8 grand children Timothy, Danielle and Julia Albo; Jordan, Jennifer and Jillian Jacobs and Calista and Brianna Thompson. Bob was the son of Yolanda and step-father John Albo and is survived by his younger sisters, Diane Kett and Londa Patch and his Aunt Nella Alis. Bob was born in Oakland and grew up in Berkeley. He attended Berkeley High School where he was president of his senior class and valedictorian. He went on to UC Berkeley where he played basketball and baseball, earning 3 letters in each sport. He had the rare distinction of being elected co-captain of both sports in his senior year. He received Cal's Jake Gimble award for having the best combination of athletics and academics among graduating seniors. During his graduate year at UC Berkeley, Bob coached the freshman basketball and baseball teams to undefeated seasons. Players from both of those teams would go on later to play for Pete Newell's NCAA Championship basketball team in 1959 and Cal's championship baseball team in 1957. Bob was inducted into the Class of 1954 Hall of Fame in 1960 and then into the UC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. In 1954, Bob met his wife to be, Marjorie Stanley, at the "Lair of the Bear" where they were both on staff and where Bob later became Lair director. They were married in 1956 and had recently celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary. Bob practiced surgery in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 40 years before retiring in 2005. He had a special gift with people and took a personal interest in each patient, many of whom would later become close friends. Bob went to medical school at University of California San Francisco (UCSF) from 1955 to 1959 and did his residency at UC Moffett Hospital. His office was on "Pill Hill" in Oakland and during his years as a practicing physician, he was Chief of Surgery at Summit Hospital, a clinical professor at UCSF and Chief of Surgical Services for student health at UC Berkeley. Bob also loved sports and was the head team physician for the Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors for many years as well as the Oakland Oaks (ABA Basketball) and Oakland Seals (Hockey). He was an avid East Bay sports fan and his passionate loyalty to his teams could often be heard courtside or on the field. He was honored to have been a part of 4 world championships, 3 with the Raiders in 1976, 1980 and 1983 and once with the Warriors in 1975. He was known and respected by many professional athletes, coaches and staff. Bob was a world renowned magician, magic collector and author. His interest in magic began when his parents gave him a Mysto Magic set for Christmas at age 9. Over the past 70 years he collected magic, performed shows, gave lectures and wrote 15 volumes of books, many of which are renowned for their documentation of magic apparatus and history of the magical arts. He did most of the work himself, illustrating, photographing and writing the books from his personal collection which was the largest private collection of magic in the world. His first book, "Oriental Magic of the Bambergs", was published in 1973 and his last and greatest achievement was "The Ultimate Thayer" published in 2009. Bob's collection of magic now belongs to David Copperfield and is displayed in his museum in Las Vegas. Bob was a member of the Bohemian Club, Claremont Country Club, Pacific Union Club and Silverado Country Club. Bob truly lived a 'magical' life and he will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved him. The family would like to thank the staff at Summit Medical Center for their professional care and kindness and a special thanks to Jen. In honor of Bob's love for the University of California, donations can be made in his name to "The UC Regents in Memory of Robert Albo" - UC Athletic Dept, 195 Haas Pavilion, Berkeley, CA 94720. A celebration of Bob's life will be held at Claremont Country Club, 5295 Broadway Terrace, Oakland on Sunday, March 13th between 2:00-4:00 PM (coat required).