Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

“Heartbreak Bob” Reisinger found after Normal Heights house fire

A Rosie O’Grady’s regular

Shortly after 10 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16, according to neighbors, a man on Hawley Boulevard in Normal Heights called his girlfriend on the phone and told her, “I set myself on fire; call the fire department.” When firefighters arrived, they found a small house in the rear of the main residence locked and engulfed in flames on the inside. They put the blaze out quickly and discovered the remains of Bob Reisinger, a man in his 50s, inside in the laundry room.

Reisinger’s grandmother, who was in her 90s and lived in the front house, died a year ago. His brother Michael still lives there.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Maurice Luque, a spokesman for the fire department, said the death was “an apparent suicide,” although an investigation has not been completed. “No foul play is suspected,” he said.

Reisinger, who sported a long gray beard, was often seen riding his bicycle in the community. Reputedly a heavy drinker, he was a regular at Rosie O’Grady’s bar on Adams Avenue, where he helped open in the mornings by cleaning up from the night before.

Bridget Allen, a bartender off and on for nine years at Rosie’s, said Reisinger, whose nickname was “Heartbreak Bob,” would “do anything to help anybody. He and I used to talk in the mornings before we opened. He’d tell me about his early life when he chased women all the time and lived a pretty wild life. He often ran down the street to pick up food for me. When I offered him some, he’d say, ‘You know I can’t eat that.’ He meant having few teeth. He’d say, ‘I know it was my fault.’”

Patrons in Rosie’s said they don’t believe Reisinger could have killed himself because he seemed to always be in a good mood. A man named Erick said Reisinger had once taken his keys away from him “when I was wasted.” Others talked about how Reisinger greeted people at the front door, where he often stood outside smoking.

Ed Sandford recalled the time he and his wife held a party in their backyard and Reisinger volunteered to watch the kids. “He just sat on the edge of the canyon,” said Sandford, “and made sure none of the kids went down."

A celebration of Reisinger’s life is scheduled for Wednesday, April 24, at Rosie O’Grady’s. The bar has raised $900 from his friends to help pay for funeral expenses.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

NORTH COUNTY’S BEST PERSONAL TRAINER: NICOLE HANSULT HELPING YOU FEEL STRONG, CONFIDENT, AND VIBRANT AT ANY AGE

Next Article

Syrian treat maker Hakmi Sweets makes Dubai chocolate bars

Look for the counter shop inside a Mediterranean grill in El Cajon

Shortly after 10 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16, according to neighbors, a man on Hawley Boulevard in Normal Heights called his girlfriend on the phone and told her, “I set myself on fire; call the fire department.” When firefighters arrived, they found a small house in the rear of the main residence locked and engulfed in flames on the inside. They put the blaze out quickly and discovered the remains of Bob Reisinger, a man in his 50s, inside in the laundry room.

Reisinger’s grandmother, who was in her 90s and lived in the front house, died a year ago. His brother Michael still lives there.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Maurice Luque, a spokesman for the fire department, said the death was “an apparent suicide,” although an investigation has not been completed. “No foul play is suspected,” he said.

Reisinger, who sported a long gray beard, was often seen riding his bicycle in the community. Reputedly a heavy drinker, he was a regular at Rosie O’Grady’s bar on Adams Avenue, where he helped open in the mornings by cleaning up from the night before.

Bridget Allen, a bartender off and on for nine years at Rosie’s, said Reisinger, whose nickname was “Heartbreak Bob,” would “do anything to help anybody. He and I used to talk in the mornings before we opened. He’d tell me about his early life when he chased women all the time and lived a pretty wild life. He often ran down the street to pick up food for me. When I offered him some, he’d say, ‘You know I can’t eat that.’ He meant having few teeth. He’d say, ‘I know it was my fault.’”

Patrons in Rosie’s said they don’t believe Reisinger could have killed himself because he seemed to always be in a good mood. A man named Erick said Reisinger had once taken his keys away from him “when I was wasted.” Others talked about how Reisinger greeted people at the front door, where he often stood outside smoking.

Ed Sandford recalled the time he and his wife held a party in their backyard and Reisinger volunteered to watch the kids. “He just sat on the edge of the canyon,” said Sandford, “and made sure none of the kids went down."

A celebration of Reisinger’s life is scheduled for Wednesday, April 24, at Rosie O’Grady’s. The bar has raised $900 from his friends to help pay for funeral expenses.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Undocumented workers break for Trump in 2024

Illegals Vote for Felon
Next Article

Classical Classical at The San Diego Symphony Orchestra

A concert I didn't know I needed
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader