Philosopher. Informal Logician. Ventriloquist. Paisan. Born Nov. 11, 1935, in Hartford, Conn.; died Sept. 3, 2019, in Windsor, Ont., of complications from major neurocognitive disorder; aged 83.
A natural entertainer from a young age, Bob Pinto was named Hartford High’s 1953 Class Wit and Best Actor – “never without that contagious grin or glowing enthusiasm,” the yearbook editors wrote. He graduated from St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto, where he excelled in philosophy.
But philosophy was a second career choice. He would gleefully recount how his father, Angelo, put an end to his showbiz career before it started. As a teen, Bob admired ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. He wrote to Mr. Bergen, wondering where to find a dummy like Charlie McCarthy. To Bob’s delight, Mr. Bergen replied, and Bob acquired a dummy from the same manufacturer. Bob named it Archie Watt. With practice, Bob became skilled at throwing his voice.
An agent attending a local talent show was impressed by Bob’s two-dummy act, and he landed his first paid gig. Bob asked his father to drive him, but Angelo forbade his son to perform at a gentlemen’s club. Although the agent never booked him again, Bob continued to perform at talent shows, hospitals and children’s birthday parties, delighting audiences, and his children, for decades.
As much as Bob loved to entertain , his principal commitment remained philosophy. He was a logician first in his interactions with all people, young and old. He engaged our family in vibrant arguments, pushing us to think harder and question the rational status of our beliefs. As a consequence, family dinners were always intellectually challenging, where bonds were built through a vibrant exchange of ideas. No statement was too insignificant to warrant interrogation.
After Rob’s sudden death in 2015, Bob experienced rapid onset of major neurocognitive disorder – a wretched disease that robbed him of his memory and much of his reasoning and philosophical ability. However, his early showbiz training served him well in his final months in hospital: He put smiles on the faces of nurses and visitors with his enduring wit, masterful comedic timing and desire to entertain.
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