- Date Of Birth: June 11, 1935
- Date Of Death: August 31, 2018
- State: Arizona
Family, friends and faith. Honesty, loyalty and love. These are just some of the words that describe storyteller extraordinaire Jeb John Rosebrook. On August 31, 2018 Jeb was welcomed in Heaven, where without a doubt, he was greeted by family and friends eager to hear the latest news and stories from home.
Jeb was born in New York City on June 11, 1935, the only child to John “Jack” Baker Rosebrook and Genevieve “Jean” Fallon Rosebrook. He passed away peacefully, with his wife, son and daughter around him, at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona, following a brief battle with congestive heart disease, anemia and cancer.
He was preceded in death by his parents John and Jean; his in-laws William Frederick Fischer and Eunice Gray Fischer; sister-in-law Catherine Joan Fischer; brother-in-law Lt. Col. William Howard Fischer, USAF; uncles and aunts: Mary Corinne Rosebrook, Charles and Ellen J. Rosebrook, Robert S. and Martha Rosebrook Tomlinson, Edward and Cecelia Fallon McGlone, William and Florence Fallon Hopewell, Tom and Virginia Fallon Anderson, Bill and Ann Fallon Morgan and Harry B. and Eve Fallon Quier; and, many beloved cousins and close friends.
He is survived by his wife Dorothy Eva Fischer Rosebrook of 58 years (August 6, 2018 was their anniversary); his son Jeb Stuart Rosebrook (Julie); daughter Katherine Fallon Rosebrook Goode (Robert); grandchildren Jeb Alan Rosebrook, Kristina Corinne Rosebrook, Fallon Gray Goode and Jack Rosebrook Goode; his sister- and brother-in-law Elizabeth “Betty” Fischer Silva and Tony Silva; and sister-in-law Sonya Fischer, as well as numerous cousins, nephews, nieces and great-nephews and great-nieces.
Because of childhood asthma, his parents chose to send him West from their Connecticut home for his health. He attended the rural Orme School, then known as the Quarter Circle V Bar Ranch School near Mayer, Arizona, from 1945 to 1949. After eighth grade he attended St. Leo’s Preparatory School for Boys near Dade City, Florida, before returning to Orme’s newly created high school in 1951. Rosebrook spent his summers living and working at his parents farm Falrose Farm, the largest wine grape farm at the time in Virginia, outside of Charlottesville, at Carter’s Bridge. With Christmas breaks either in New York or Los Angeles, and cross-country train rides in between school semesters, Rosebrook’s young life and adventures in New York, Arizona, Florida and Virginia shaped his life as a storyteller.
He graduated from Orme School in 1953 and matriculated to Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, where he studied English and journalism. At W&L he was a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity and Sigma Delta Chi, the honorary journalism fraternity.
In 1961, Jeb and Dorothy moved to Los Angeles and settled in Brentwood. This was the beginning of their 47 years of living, working and raising a family in Southern California. Jeb was working for Foote, Cone and Belding advertising agency when in 1965 he published his first novel, “Saturday.
In recent years, he returned to some of his favorite genres of writing: non-fiction, theater, novels and memoir. He was a contributing writer to “Arizona Highways, “True West” and “Harnett’s Sports Arizona.” With Earl Hamner, he adapted The Waltons “The Conflict” into a stage play. available through Dramatic Publishing, with permission of Earl Hamner and Warner Brothers.
Jeb’s greatest joys in life centered around writing, storytelling, family and friends. He also had a great love of sports. An athlete as a young boy, he played football and basketball in high school (and a walk-on in freshmen football at Washington & Lee); he was the catcher for his advertising softball team (an All-Star!); and was always an avid tennis player until a shoulder injury sidelined his game. He was a lifetime New York Yankees fan, but his heart belonged to his Brooklyn Dodgers and continued when they moved to Los Angeles.
Born with the gift of the Irish “blarney,” there was never an audience too small with which Jeb would share his love of his childhood, movies, sports, books, bars, music, cross-country drives, writing and life from New York to Virginia, from Arizona to Los Angeles. His storytelling is legendary, as were his friends.
Jeb was also a dedicated volunteer, mentor and teacher throughout his life. He served on the vestries of his churches, the boards of the local YMCA, his daughter’s schools and the Orme School, where he was a trustee for over 40 years. He taught screenwriting at Arizona State University and Scottsdale Community College. He was a sought-after public speaker and writing instructor, most recently as the keynote speaker at the Tallgrass Writing Workshop at Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas, in June of 2016.
New Yorker; Southern Gentleman; Arizona Cowboy; L.A. Writer; and, always the optimistic Dreamer—Jeb will be missed by his beloved wife Dorothy (a love affair of 60 years), his children, grandchildren, extended family and the many who called him friend.
