Curtiss Fleetwood Robinson

Curtiss Fleetwood Robinson, age 81 years old, passed away on March 14, 2025, in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was born on September 24, 1943, at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles to Lloyd Elliott and Vivian Fleetwood Robinson. From the date of his birth to adulthood, he was raised in the family home on Norton Avenue in the Larchmont District of Los Angeles.

Curtiss was a graduate of Los Angeles High School, class of 1961, and became the curator of the high school’s Museum in his senior year. Post-graduation, he attended the Montana School of Mines in Butte, Montana, and later, Pierce College in Woodland Hills, California, and Glendale Community College, in Glendale, California.

He was a reservist in the California Air National Guard from 1965 to 1971.

From an early age, Curtiss developed an interest in mineralogy. This became a life-long passion. He was an active member of the Los Angeles Mineralogical Society (LAMS) and would participate in their field trips to the Mojave Desert. In addition, he and his father would frequently take prospecting trips to the desert and other areas in California to collect minerals. By his twenties, he had amassed an impressive mineral collection, with a specialty in copper specimens. He also engaged in lapidary work and collected specimens of howlite and Happy Camp jade to that end. Later on, he and his wife, Maudie, went on prospecting trips to find placer gold in the Mother Lode.

Another early interest was in attaining his pilot’s license. He took courses in Aeronautical Engineering at Glendale Community College and obtained his license at Michael Dewey Aviation in Santa Paula, California. Afterward, he piloted a flight to Amarillo, Texas, with his father as photographer in a loop course through the Southwest.

After moving to Las Vegas in 1978, Curtiss initially worked for a seafood company supplying the various restaurants and hotels in Las Vegas, and later worked for Nevada Security Alarms providing security for commercial businesses. Curtiss and Maudie Nicholson were married in 1983, in Boulder City, Nevada. He and Maudie enjoyed taking cruises together to Mexico, Alaska, Washington, D.C., and the southern United States. Curtiss also continued his interest in minerals with a focus on the minerals of Nevada. This involved not only field work, but also an investigation of old mining reports and journals of activities in the state. He contributed specimens to museums in Los Angeles (the County Museum) and Nevada.

About 23 years ago, Curtiss had surgery for a slow-growing juvenile brain tumor which resulted in a cure. However, a little over two years ago, he had a small stroke and developed a Parkinson’s-like syndrome. He succumbed to complications of this disabling condition.

In addition to his wife of 41 years, Curtiss Robinson is survived by his younger brother, Dr. Stuart Fleetwood Robinson, brothers-in-law William Nicholson, his wife, Rita, Norman Nicholson, his wife, Bobbe, sister-in-law Claudia Camilo, her husband, Miguel, and many cousins, nephews and nieces.

Interment services were private.