Bob Ringwald, jazz musician and Molly's father, dies at 80

Robert Ringwald, the celebrated jazz pianist and father to Molly Ringwald, has died. He was 80.

Molly Ringwald's obituary for her father was published Saturday in The Sacramento Bee.
"Anyone who knew Bob also knew his mischievous streak and his ever-present, slightly ribald sense of humor. If you didn't sufficiently beg to get off of his email joke list, you would have received one just a couple of days before he died," she wrote.

Ringwald was born in Roseville, Calif., and was declared legally blind at an early age. He began playing piano at 5.

At 13, Ringwald formed his first band, and, thanks to a newly grown beard, was able to pass as an adult by 17, which allowed him to play in nightclubs. In the 1970s he was performing in clubs seven nights a week.

A passionate advocate for traditional New Orleans jazz, Ringwald co-organized the first Sacramento Jazz Festival in 1974. Since then, the event has become an annual tradition, and the festival named him "The Emperor of Jazz" in 2012.

Ringwald also hosted "Bob Ringwald's Bourbon Street Parade" on KCSN-FM, and he once served as a guest announcer, reading the lineup in Braille for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was also a ham radio enthusiast.

"His dignity, humor, strength of character, and courage will always be remembered and cherished by everyone whose lives were touched by his," Molly Ringwald wrote.

Ringwald is survived by Adele, his wife of 60 years; a sister, Renée Angus; his daughters Molly Ringwald and Beth Ringwald Carnes; a son, Kelly Ringwald; two grandsons; two granddaughters; two step-granddaughters; one great-grandson; and one step-great-grandson.

Ringwald's obituary did not list a cause of death. A memorial service is pending, and in lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to the Foundation Fighting Blindness or to CURE Childhood Cancer.

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