I think it might be a bit presumptive to assume that Dr Robert Beeman the airgun guru is no longer with us. When I trawled the internet for more information, I found nothing that seemed to relate to him, but did find an obituary for a different Robert Beeman, who lived in Connecticut (as opposed to California), who died on August 25th I 2012. (
https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries...?pid=159481346) It seems too much of a coincidence that both would pass away on the same date. Also, I think that if our Robert Beeman had passed away, there would have been much more publicity.
Robert’s situation has been a mystery for the past 5 years. I was in regular email contact with him up to October 2016, when I had been helping him with some chemical analyses for his monumental Giradoni book. The book was just about to be published, and the last email I had from him said:
Dear John - Sorry to bother you once again about the green deposits within an ancient Girardoni air flask. ……………………………….. My health continues to fall, but I still get much more done than “they” expect- but a whole lot less than I want!
Warm regards,Robert
That was the last I heard from him, despite sending various emails afterwards. In 1919 I asked John Allen, Editor of the Bluebook of Airguns, if he knew of the state of health of Robert, and he confessed that he knew no more than I did. The Bluebook publisher had sent emails to him, but every time the replies came back from Robert’s wife Tosh.
I fear that Robert may be a very ill man, virtually incommunicado, and it may be premature to assume he has passed away. Unless of course anyone has more definite information. Whatever the situation, I think it is a tragedy that his Girandoni book, which he had worked so hard on, and which I was privileged to see a small part of, may never see the light of day.
Originally Posted by ccdjg
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