Robert Joseph Semon, Sr.

A Korean War U.S. Marine Corps veteran, a longtime compositor at "The Evening Gazette" (later, the "Worcester Telegram & Gazette") and a working class hero to his children is gone but not forgotten. One of six siblings, father of three children and husband of one great lady, Robert J. Semon Sr., 84, died peacefully April 25 at UMass Memorial Hospital–Memorial Campus. Once a Marine, always a Marine, Mr. Semon became a leatherneck in 1951 and served in Korea and Pacific Theater in 1952 and 1953. He earned the rank of sergeant and was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the U.N. Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Navy Occupation Service Medal. He was also earned the distinction of sharpshooter. At boot camp, Mr. Semon earned the nickname "Laughing Boy," given to him by his drill sergeant, due to his inability to keep from laughing whenever his drill sergeant tried to be his most menacing, emasculating and insulting. As a result, Mr. Semon was given certain leniencies at boot camp that his fellow grunts did not share. If someone else laughed, they were immediately punished with a rapid succession of push-ups or latrine duty, but, not Mr. Semon, because he was "Laughing Boy" and he couldn't help not to laugh. Mickey Rooney once served Mr. Semon potatoes while serving in Korea. After his honorable discharge, Mr. Semon was offered a position in both the Massachusetts State Police and the U.S. Marine Honor Guard. Proud to be a Marine to the day he died, Mr. Semon often signed his anniversary cards and birthday cards to his loving wife, as well as birthday cards to his children, with his Marine Corps service number "USMC 1194388". While he had long hair for most of his post-Marine Corps life (a trait that goes down to his wife and most of his children, even today), Mr. Semon later adopted a U.S. Marine Corps baseball cap to cover his once, long-flowing hair. After military service, Mr. Semon worked as a compositor, starting with lead type and hot wax, at "The Evening Gazette," later the "Worcester Telegram & Gazette," for more than 40 years. His wife of 59 years, Rose Marie (Turturro) Semon died Tuesday, July 14, 2015. The two got married on June 9, 1956 at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Worcester. Born in Worcester, son of Cleveland and Julia (Polobinsky) Semon, Mr. Semon leaves a daughter, Linda S. Semon of Pacific Palisades, Calif.; and two sons, Robert J. Semon Jr. of Connecticut and Craig S. Semon of Worcester, who served as his parents' caregiver. In between the less than two years that separate the passing of Robert and Rose Marie, the family lost Rose Marie's kid brother, Robert H. Turturro, and kid sister, Josephine Turturro, both of West Brookfield. Robert graduated from Commerce High School. He grew up in the Whittier Street neighborhood and lived with his wife and children on Kendall Street and, later, the Greendale section of Worcester. A big John Wayne fan, Mr. Semon had seen and owned all of The Duke's films. Mr. Semon was also a big New England sports fan, whose enthusiasm for the Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox, the New England Patriots and Boston Bruins (not so much) was passed down to his children, especially his daughter, who would regularly take him to sporting events. Last fall, Mr. Semon said he hoped to live to see Tom Brady win his fifth Super Bowl (which he did). With news that Brady wasn't planning to retire anytime soon, Mr. Semon, in the hospital, said he wanted to see Brady win his sixth, seventh and eighth Super Bowls. For Brady's next three Super Bowl wins, Mr. Semon will be cheering him on with the angels and watching from heaven. Although a little corny at times, Mr. Semon had a great sense of humor and loved "The Three Stooges" (only with Curly, never with Shemp; he hated Shemp) since he was a little boy. Like his wife, Mr. Semon was a hard worker. He started working very young and worked two jobs for most of his adult life to provide for his family. Also, like his wife, Mr. Semon was always there for their three children, during good times and bad. In his youth, Mr. Semon loved to play basketball and also was on a basketball team with some of his fellow "Evening Gazette" colleagues. In the height of "Beatlemania," the back of Mr. Semon's head was used as a photo illustration to represent "long hair" in "The Evening Gazette". Ironically, Robert was the only one of the Semon clan that wasn't a massive Beatles fan. Mr. Semon scored two tickets to Game Six of the 1975 World Series. Instead of attending the game, he drove his two eldest children (Linda and Bobby) down to Fenway while he watched the historic game in a Boston bar. For years, Mr. Semon was an amateur photographer, experimenting with double-exposure and black-and-white Polaroid film long before it became popular. He was also an excellent doodler and helped all his children create prize-winning science fair projects out of cardboard, papier-mâché and plaster of Paris. Mr. Semon also coached the short-lived Tris Speaker minor league baseball team, Dow's Auto Service, which was so bad that it made the Bad News Bears look like Brooklyn Dodgers in their prime. Calling Hours will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, May 5, in Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel, 370 Plantation St. Mass will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 6 in Our Lady of Loreto Church, 33 Massasoit Road. Burial will be at St. John's Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to: The National Kidney Foundation, 85 Astor Ave., Suite 2, Norwood, MA 02062; or the American Heart Association, 20 Speen St., Floor 1, Framingham, MA 01701.