Luke Wilson and Own Wilson's father, Robert "Bob" Wilson, has passed away at the age of 75. Luke confirmed the news of his father's death to The Dallas Morning News. Bob died at a hospital on Friday, May 5 after a years-long battle with Alzheimer's.
Bob is survived by his wife, photographer Laura Wilson, and their three children: Luke, 45, Owen, 48, and their eldest sibling, Andrew, 52, who is also an actor. Like his sons, Bob had an active career in the world of entertainment, and was a major influence in the public TV and radio station landscape of Dallas, Texas, where he lived most of his life. He was the president of two major radio stations, KERA-TV and KERA-FM in the '60s and '70s, and he even was involved in the creation of the PBS news show Newsroom with Jim Lehrer. Because of his father's deep connection to PBS, Luke also told The Dallas Morning News that donations can be made to the network to honor his father's life and career there.
Two years ago, in another interview with The Dallas Morning News, Owen opened up about the difficulties of seeing his father's battle with Alzheimer's. "It is a rough thing," he told the site. "It's one of those things where if somebody had said 10 years ago, when my dad and I were joking around, having a putting match, that this is the position your dad's going to be in, where he basically needs 24-hour care, you'd think, 'Gosh, I won't be able to handle that. That's just not possible.'"
Owen added: "For me and my brothers, there just wasn't a bigger influence on us. Maybe it sounds trite or something, but I really believe that his spirit gets carried on through me, the way I like to joke around."