(Submitted by Jon Crick, ex-son-in-law and KFMB veteran.)

Retired KFMB engineer Bob Crotinger passed away at a hospital in Tucson, Arizona September 16, 2013 at the age of 88.

Born on a farm in Oskaloosa, Iowa on April 7, 1925, Bob was the only child of Harold (Buck) and Marguerite Crotinger.

Bob’s passion in life was electronics in general, and radio/TV broadcasting in particular. He took his first job in 1943 working for KANS radio in Wichita, Kansas, where he met his wife, Pearla Godinez. They moved to Dayton Ohio in 1948 where Bob helped build one of the country’s first television stations, WHIO-TV.

Suffering from pollen-induced asthma, he was compelled to escape to the ocean breezes of San Diego in 1956 and took a position with KFMB-AM/FM/TV, which he held for the next 25 years. After a short stint of retirement in Prescott, Arizona, he returned to San Diego and worked for the San Diego County Communications Department for 10 years, finally retiring for good in 1992.

A life-long ham radio operator, K6PC delighted in talking with other hams around the globe. To make things interesting, he would pack up his gear and set up in ghost towns in the desert, sending out QSL cards from these towns to those lucky individuals he “worked” from these very unusual locations.

Bob returned to Prescott for a time, but eventually moved to Tucson where he established his KBOB low-power FM station, broadcasting from his house entertaining old-time radio style programs to the whole neighborhood. The announcer was, of course, none other than “Dirty Bob”.

Bob is survived by his only child, Florence Crotinger Meeds, and his two grandchildren Ian Crick and Trevor Crick.

A memorial service will be held for him October 13th in San Diego. For updated information on the San Diego service, inquire at crottymemorial@san.rr.com or visit his memorial Facebook page.