Early Life
Robinson's parents were poor tenant farmers who worked in the tobacco fields as sharecroppers. The family used an outhouse, drew water from a cistern, and did laundry in a cast-iron tub over an open flame. Their house did not have running water until Robinson was ten years old. When Robinson was born, he was so seriously ill that the doctor was certain he would not survive. He was temporarily paralyzed from birth and his head was misshapen. So likely was Robinson's death that the physician asked Robinson's father Charles for a name for the baby's birth and death certificates. Robinson's parents were young (his mother Imogene was twenty) and they were hoping for a girl. They named the baby "Vicky Gene Robinson" for Charles' father Victor and the baby's mother Imogene. For a long time, Robinson's parents believed the boy would die soon. Much later in life, Robinson's father would tell him he couldn't take any joy in the boy's development because he always thought each step was going to be the last thing. Robinson's parents were and still are members of a small Disciples of Christ congregation. Robinson describes his childhood as very religious. Robinson had perfect Sunday School attendance for thirteen years.
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