Bob was born Sept. 4, 1929, in Beirut, Lebanon, where his father, James, was the American consul. At Princeton he majored in English, roomed with Earl Eichorn, Bill Jahos, Hank Suydam, Warren Wittreich, and Bob Yeager, belonged to Campus Club and graduated summa cum laude.
Bob and Louise Schoonmaker were married in 1951. After service in the Coast Guard, Bob joined the Foreign Service in 1956. His 34-year career, spent often at hardship posts or amid crises, culminated in ambassadorships to Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and Greece. From 1978 to 1980 he was deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs.
Bob retired in 1989 with the rank of career minister and was awarded the Christian Herter Award from the American Foreign Service Association. He also served as president of the Middle East Institute in Washington and as board chairman of the Council for the National Interest Foundation. In 1995 Bob founded Five and Ten Press, publishing short works by himself and other authors.
He died Jan. 9, 2015, in Washington, D.C., and is survived by his wife, Louise; daughter Michal ’75; son Christopher; four grandchildren; and brother Edmund Keeley ’48. His brother Hugh ’46 predeceased him.