Robert Andrews Ellis
06/28/1936 - 12/04/2025
Robert Andrews Ellis, a publisher who helped shape the digital transition from CD-ROM to the internet and social media, died on December 4, 2025, at his home in Sonoma, California. He was 89.
Ellis was born June 28, 1936, in Hamilton, Ohio, to Erle Moore Ellis and Lanelle Andrews Ellis. By age 8, Ellis was selling the Saturday Evening Post door to door and the family moved to Arlington Heights, Illinois. Ellis's enduring love of opera formed while listening to the radio with his father.
A high-school track star, he competed against future actor Bruce Dern in local competitions and was accepted to Yale University on a football scholarship. A back injury kept him from joining the team while earning him the nickname "tube" for the medical apparatus he wore for years.
Graduating from Yale in 1958 with a BA in Philosophy, he moved to the University of Chicago, earned an M.A. in History in 1960 and joined the Chicago Sun Times as a reporter. Serving with the Herald Tribune in Paris he met Ingrid Ehrlich in line for a movie. The couple were wedded there in 1962.
Reporting for Time, Ellis moved with his wife to New York, Boston, and Washington DC, settling in Hollin Hills, Virginia. Their two sons, Erle and Stefan, were born in 1963 and 1965, respectively, while Ellis covered NASA's space program for Life, including Gemini 4, featuring the first spacewalk by a U.S. astronaut. Ingrid died by suicide in 1970. Ellis moved his sons to Washington, D.C., devoting weekends and summers to Elbow Ridge Farm, the cattle ranch he bought in 1973.
In 1969, Ellis left Time to found General Learning Corporation, which supported educational programs in Washington and the Peace Corps in Africa. Rehired by Time in 1971, Ellis led a wide array of publishing projects, including innovative multimedia and software products and Iran's first children's educational books in native Farsi - ended by the fall of the Pahlavi monarchy in 1979.
Ellis founded Compact publishing - a pioneer in CD multimedia - after leaving time in 1985. In 1986, he met Jane Bernstein apres ski in Colorado. They were soon inseparable, marrying in 2000. After selling Compact in 1995, the couple moved to Paris, where Ellis established Bonjour Paris, an early online community.
Ellis moved to San Francisco in 1997 to build an early internet startup, Xoom.com, which went public in 1999 and merged with NBC in 2000. This success paved the way for a series of internet and related projects in the Bay Area and beyond, including a second home in the vineyards of Sonoma, which ultimately became his favorite place on Earth.
Well known for his unflagging support of opera in the Bay area, Ellis served on the board of the San Francisco Opera and Opera Parallele. He contributed philanthropically and creatively as a "visionary advocate" of a wide range of institutions locally and nationally, including both traditional and new productions like Doctor Atomic and Girls of the Golden West. SFO General director Matthew Shilvock remembered Ellis as "the lifeblood of this whole industry".
Known by many as a devoted friend, mentor, and supporter of diverse passions, Ellis was also a gentleman farmer, winemaker, lover of nature, and committed parent and grandparent. Never one to shy away from an argument, he was always an inspiration to do better and a nurturer of all those he connected with - which was almost everyone.
Ellis is survived by his son Erle (Ariane) and two grandchildren, Ryan and Amaia. He was preceded in death by his wives and his son Stefan (1996).
A memorial celebration will be held on March 18, 2026 at 2 PM in the Taube Atrium Theater, Wilsey Center for Opera, 401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco 94102.

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Published by San Francisco Chronicle from Feb. 13 to Feb. 15, 2026.

Memories and Condolences
for Robert Ellis

Sponsored by Duggan's Mission Chapel.

13 Entries

Mary Andrews

March 18, 2026

I was sorry to hear of Bob's passing. Bob was my Father's cousin and knew Bob and his first wife Ingrid in Washington D.C. He was very inspirational person and remember even at 15 years old, he would take time to have philosophic conversations about politics.

Joanie Bourg

March 17, 2026

I met Bob in the early 2000´s , referred as a maintenance gardener. He and Jane were living part time in the " Best Place on Earth", the Sonoma property.. we started out planting the first of 2 Lavender gardens, and taking care of the grounds . When I suggested we come every couple of weeks, Bob said." Why? It´s not the Taj Mahal !". . Jane e mailed me soon after and asking when we could start .
Over what became 20 years of working with Bob, we came to know his love of beautiful garden art and nature. He told me that his niece, I believe , built the life size , drift wood horse that graced the Atrium. We were commissioned to construct a very large wall trellis, hand made from Black Bamboo for creeping fig to climb the wall behind the horse.
The property seemed to become the destination , after travel abroad, and Bob was often found working in the garden, or his personal vineyard.
I am grateful to have worked for and with Bob , creating his vision is a location that was truly a Paradise. Many Hawks, and occasional Golden Eagles could be seen riding the thermals , and the views were unmatched. Only 1 house could be seen in a vista stretching all the way to Mt. Tamalpias, and on a superb day, you could see the tops of the Golden Gate Bridge.
The last time I saw Bob, was after I retired , and by chance, as we passed each other during a NO Kings protest , last Summer in Sonoma. We hugged in the crosswalk, his eyes were glinting and his smile was wide. He said, " he just wanted to see what was going on ..." . After reading many of his friends´ comments here, i can see this was a theme in his Life. I will always remember him, and his memory is a blessing.

R Neill & E Garsonnin

Planted Trees

Melinda Moreaux

March 17, 2026

Bob Ellis came into my life in the spring of 2018, after the Tubbs Fire had taken his home and after the loss of his beloved wife, Jane. When we first met, he asked for piano lessons. He had bought a house that happened to have a piano in it and said he thought he might as well learn to play.

It quickly became clear that Bob was deeply musical. He had a lovely singing voice, and before long our piano lessons evolved into voice lessons. He was endlessly curious about how the voice works and loved learning about the mechanics of singing. What I remember most, though, was how his mind was always spinning with ideas-projects, possibilities, and ways to bring people together. As someone who tends to live in that same creative space, I felt an immediate kinship with him.

Our lessons often led to wide-ranging conversations about music, the arts, gardening, the beagle he once had in Washington, D.C., and, of course, politics.

Bob loved good food with such genuine delight that it always made me want to bake for him-cookies most often, and once even a pie.

He also shared many stories from the remarkable life he had lived-his years in Paris and his work in places like Iran, Myanmar, and Cambodia. I loved hearing about those experiences and the perspective they gave him on the world.

Bob spoke often and proudly about his son and his grandchildren, and he kept me updated on their achievements with obvious delight. It was clear how much they meant to him.

Bob´s curiosity, generosity, and love of music touched many lives, including mine. I will always be grateful for the time we spent making music together and for the joy he brought into my world.

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Cheryl Jones

February 23, 2026

Dear Erle(aka Chris),
The long ago years I spent with Bob, you and Stefan were among the best of my life. When I learned of his passing I was filled with remorse and memories. Your bond with your father was special. Please take good care of yourself in this difficult time. And, know that I always loved the three of you deeply.

With love,
Cheryl

Lynne Bair

February 15, 2026

I am greatly saddened by the loss of Bob Ellis. He enriched the world and the lives of his many friends by his presence. Bob's agile mind was wide-ranging and his many interests were true passions. He supported what he loved financially but also with the gift of his time. His love of opera is well known by everyone who knew him at all, but he also loved music in general. For example, he subscribed to the performances of the Berlin Philharmonic. It was typical of him that he decided late in his life that he would study piano, albeit as a beginner. He enjoyed wine, roses, and art -especially being surrounded by wide range of beautiful objects and pictures he and Jane collected with care. To me it was also telling that after some years of working, he decided to return to graduate school not to pursue a professional degree of some sort but simply because history interested him greatly.
He was a devoted, ever interested, and supportive father, grandfather, and friend. He was so proud of them all.
I knew Bob for forty years. He was great company and loved to live well. He enjoyed his life. What a pleasure to have known him.

Laurent Massa

February 13, 2026

I would like to present my condoleances to Bob's family who I haven't had to opportunity to meet. I briefly met Bob in the early 90s in MA before I moved to SF to start Xoom.com with Chris and Bob. We spent most of the days working together trying to create something from an idea. Bob quickly became a mentor to me. We went through ups and downs but Bob stayed strong, always kind but determined. He was a pillar for me. I will never forget how Bob protected me during the NBC takeover. Kindness, fairness and respect of the other are Bob's main qualities that stuck with me. I will miss you Bob!

Bob Mohl

February 12, 2026

Bob was the most perfect gentleman of culture with a generous heart, an empathetic listener and irrepressible entrepreneur. He was always optimistic and looking forward, never backwards. We have lost someone who represented the best of humanity. I last saw Bob a little over a year ago in Paris for the memorial for his long time Yalie friend David Burke. After the US elections the following month he declared it was time for him to leave the country. I hoped he´d choose Paris but apparently it was time for him to leave the world altogether.
Be kind. Be well. Be bold.
Bob Mohl
(photo by Linden Berry)

Jeff Lindenthal

February 12, 2026

Miss you, Bob. Our time together was always treasured. Jeff and Melissa

Sopheap Chea

February 12, 2026

Please accept my deepest condolences on the passing of Bob Andrews Ellis. He was a man of great kindness, generosity, and compassion. Through his unwavering humanitarian support, he profoundly touched the lives of many in our community and helped create meaningful, lasting improvements in their well-being. His legacy of care and service will continue to inspire us, and he will be remembered with gratitude and respect.
Sopheap Chea - Cambodia

In memory of Bob Ellis

Planted Trees

Marty Perlmutter

February 10, 2026

I met Bob in 1981 when he was working on Videotex for Time-Life, a primitive effort to send images over wires. He was friends with a mentor, Gene Fairly. We became pals as blood-drenched pioneers in new media. Bob was a regular at Chinese lunches in San Francisco where for 20 years we "felt up the elephant," trying to figure out the business at the end of the bits. Bob was disciplined as well as visionary. He was an avatar in the realm of online analytics. From his publishing days he grokked the importance of finding, knowing, your audience. He was a savvy businessman, a deeply warm and generous gentleman, and a terrific dinner companion. Movie-star handsome, I will treasure his memory and try to uphold goals and principles we shared.