Robert G. Cenno

As a child, Bob, as he liked to be called, made many memories with his family. Some of his fondest memories were playing with his older brothers, running daily errands with his mother, Rosie and going for evening rides with his dad, Leo, and brothers to the diners for a treat like rice pudding. He especially enjoyed his vacations to South Florida swimming at the Fontainebleau hotel and would later return as an adult where he was a “regular” in the nighttime scene.

Bob was extremely ambitious as a teenager and had a successful music career as a professional drummer. As a young teen, he caught a glimpse of the live show from drummer legend, Gene Krupa and from then on, his mind was set to learn the trade. Bob was lucky enough to be taught by an accomplished percussionist, Mr. Russo, which provided a solid foundation for him to become a phenomenal drummer. With the help of his favorite older brother, Richie, he joined the successful band, The Five Showstoppers at the young age of 17, who he would start his 15-year run of solely living on the road playing live music around the country for standing ovation audiences: playing a total of 38 states and several cities in Canada within his lifetime. Bob backed some of great singers such as The Coasters, Al Green, Tiny Tim, Steve Alaimo, Al Wilson, Vicky Carr, and many others. Another highlight of his career was being selected with his band for the musical showcase in a national Coca-Cola commercial.

In 1976, after a few years after the birth of his son, Anthony, Bob officially came off the road and planted roots in South Florida to provide a more stable home environment. Bob adored Tony, as he called him, and said that his birth was the proudest family moment when he became a father. Bob divorced from his 1st wife when Tony was 12 and raised him as a single parent until he was 18. During these years, Bob continued to play in bands around the South Florida nightclub scene while also picking up odd day jobs including a limo driver, property manager, and gas station attendant. During these years, Bob established a close friendship with Michael James of the famous 50’s band, The Four Coins, and formed his own band with him, Déjà Vu whom he enjoyed playing with for 5 years.

In 1991, Bob met the love of his life, Melody who he would later officially marry in 2010. Being out at lounges and small night clubs is where he felt most at home and he loved showing Melody all his favorite places around town and telling her stories of his past experiences. Melody was a single mom to 9 yr. old, Valerie but that did not deter him from dating her and integrating himself as a father figure to her. He would take joy in taking Melody and Valerie to the local zoos, parks, arcades, day trips to Key West, amusement parks and his favorite restaurants, sometimes just for ice-cream sundaes or donuts. Anyone who knows Bob, knows he loved to eat out and enjoy delicious food, especially dessert.

The 3 of them lived together until 2001 when Melody and Bob relocated to Austin, TX due to Melody’s family turmoil that required her full-time presence. The 17 years spent in Austin would be Bob’s least favorite in life. As difficult as it was to stay positive in a place, he hated living in, he and Melody continued to grow their unbreakable bond, making fun memories, and investing in their only child together, an American Eskimo, named Tippi. Bob did not fly in his later life, so all his travel was done by vehicle. Throughout these 17 years, they would visit NYC, Tennessee, Florida, New Orleans, Shreveport, Atlantic City, Colorado, Utah, California, Oklahoma and of course Las Vegas. On these trips, Bob always had a story to tell from when he was on the road and loved to reminisce about that period in his life when his only home was his car and a hotel. His memory was impeccable until the day he passed and could recall names and dates of singers, actors, movies and even who they were married to or dated at the time. If you had a conversation with Bob, he could easily entertain you with a colorful recount of references from an earlier time in history or a real-life experience he had. Another strength of his was his sense of humor. He did not like to take life too seriously and could make a joke out of someone in the room or just pull it out of his repertoire of satire. He had many funny sayings and many times, if you were around him long enough would find yourself repeating something he had come up with.

In 2018, Melody, Bob and Tippi relocated to Bob’s dream retirement location, Las Vegas, NV. Even in Bob’s final years, his love of travel and the arts never diminished. Vegas was the ideal location for him to take Melody to a show on the strip whether it was a comedian, musical act, or a Broadway show. He loved to take drives out to see the mountains, canyons, and national forests. Some of his lifetime heroes were Superman, The Lone Ranger and James Bond. Bob loved watching movies and appreciated talented actors. A great end to the day for him would be watching a classic movie starring one of his favorites like Al Pacino, Humphrey Bogart, Carey Grant, or Sean Connery.

Robert is survived by his wife, Melody Cenno; son and daughter-in-law, Anthony and Jenna Cenno, daughter and son-in-law, Valerie Kennedy and Stefano Mozher, and his brother and sister-in-law, Richard, and Marie Cenno. He was preceded in death by mother Rosemary and father Emilio Cenno; brother Fredrick Cenno and brother Franklin Cenno.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.palmnorthwest.com for the Cenno family.