“Bob” Barker, 73; Surf City Reporter

Robert “Bob” Barker, a longtime Orange County journalist who covered the Huntington Beach city beat for nearly three decades, died Thursday after a 16-month fight with brain cancer. He was 73.

“The reason we opened the paper was to see what Bob had written,” said City Councilwoman Debbie Cook. “He was the soul of Huntington Beach.”

With a journalism degree from San Jose State, Barker got his first newspaper job in 1957 at the now-defunct Garden Grove Evening News, where he worked for a dozen years.

After a short stint at the Long Beach Independent Press-Telegram, he began covering Huntington Beach in 1970 for the Orange Coast Daily Pilot and its sister publication, the Huntington Beach Independent. Over the years, he developed a reputation as an aggressive but fair reporter who was always ready to share a joke or talk about his beloved USC football team with sources.

He officially retired in 1992 but continued to work part time, initially for the Los Angeles Times and then back at the Pilot and Independent until 1998, covering stories and mentoring young reporters.

In retirement, Barker joined a 60-and-over slo-pitch softball team that won a national title. His batting average was .720.

“He had a passion for life,” said his son Scott. “He made work and everything else fun. He was always entertaining people.”

Barker is survived by his wife of 45 years, Barbara; brothers Jack and Dean; sister Lora Ward; sons Corey and Scott; and a grandson, Trevor.

Services are scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday at Waverly Church in Santa Ana. The family asks that donations be made to Barker’s hospice provider, Vitas Healthcare, 220 Commerce, Suite 100, Irvine, CA 92602.