Norris Brock Obituary

Robin Norris BrockJanuary 3rd, 1939 to April 22nd, 2023 "the most interesting man in the world"Norris was called many things in his life; Norris, Norbert, Brock, Chuck Norris, Dad, and Grandad (Gdad). When asked any question, he often responded with "it's complicated" or "it's a long story" because, well, it was! Norris was born somewhere between Texas and California (the location was always up for debate because - say it with me - "it's complicated") to Norris "Brock" and Virginia. In his 84 years on this planet, he lived a life full of adventure and observance. Starting with childhood, he always responded to the question of "what were you like as a kid?" by saying in the most confident and serious tone with hidden amusement: "I was never a kid". For anyone who ever met the quiet and stoic giant of a man, that checks out. In his teen years, he attended La Jolla High School where he was a casual surfer and would hang around the boat docks admiring the various sailboats. Around the age of 17/18, he met Phil Acker who taught him about sailing. Phil also happened to own a camera store, but Norris denied this as the inspiration to his career in cinematography. He met and married Jean in his early twenties. The two would go on to move to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where they built a life together with their two children - Robert and Robin. Norris had a very successful cinematography career while living in Pittsburgh where he worked for WQED and National Geographic. During his career, he won two Emmys and worked on a number of critically acclaimed projects including: Looking for Me (1970), The Voyage of the Hokule'a (1977), The Living Sands of the Namib Desert (1978), The Tigris Expedition (1978), Living Treasures of Japan (1981), Save the Panda (1983), Ballad of the Irish Horse (1985), and The Infinite Voyage (1987). Norris won Emmys for Egypt: Quest for Eternity (1982) and Inside the Soviet Circus (1988). Norris held a close and soft appreciation for fatherhood. He was eternally proud of his children - Robert and Robin - for the people that they had become and the families that they had built for themselves. While rummaging through his storage, we found notes he'd written to them during his travels that he saved and various achievements of theirs awarded to them over the years. In more recent years, he always loved hearing about what new things those two were up to whether it be work, hobbies, their kids, you name it. When asked recently about fatherhood, he stated yet another serious but whimsical tone: "I am not sure I was any good at it" but that he was really proud of them. Some of his greatest adventures occurred later in life. Norris was a grandfather to four -Jamie (Robin - San Diego), Eric (Robert - Boston), Emily (Robert - Cleveland), and Anna (Robert - Cleveland). Norris loved being a grandfather and made it a priority to visit his grandchildren often. He spent time in San Diego with Jamie enjoying endless beach days and trips to the San Diego Zoo or in Cleveland for nature hikes and museum visits with Eric, Emily, and Anna. He attended graduations (virtually andin-person), birthdays, holidays, and visits just-because. Norris also had a special relationship with his daughter-in-law, Wendy. These two shared an undeniably close relationship; she was not only his friend, but she was also his personal chocolate chip cookie dealer, holiday shopping helper, on-call nurse, and over the years had become like a daughter to him. These two usually spent their time together laughing over a glass of wine and some sort of tasty treat. They shared a mutual love of flowers, ceramic pottery, and chardonnay. She never let his cookie jar run empty and he never gave up trying to beat her to the bottom of the jar. Norris lived in Pittsburgh for several decades after he and Jean separated before moving to Washington D. C. and eventually settling into "retirement" in Annapolis, Maryland. He spent most of his free time with his marina buddies sailing around the Chesapeake Bay or visiting the local museums. He owned a beautiful sailboat, the Cham-Payne, which he fixed up and lived on up until the fall of 2019. He looked back fondly on his career and even post-retirement, found himself involved in passion projects and various adventures. Norris traveled all over the globe for his work and family and kept his travels well documented through photos and journals. Next time you wonder where a flying plane is traveling, watch a National Geographic documentary, eat a chocolate chip cookie or see sailboats on the water, think of Grandad Norris. So, when asked about our favorite part of who Norris was, we can confidently respond with - "well, it's kind of a long story".