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ONE LESS GEORGE IN SURF CITY

2/29/2020

7 Comments

 

Icon George Draper passed away

by Corky Carroll
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I was sad to wake up today and hear of the passing of long time Huntington Beach surf icon George Draper.  George had been in a losing battle with cancer for some time and like when most people go down to that horrible thing it always makes ya think, “if they can put people on the moon why can’t they find a way to stop this?”  But anyway, it is what it is and it got our pal George this time and “Surf City” is a little bit darker today for it. 
 
George Draper was one of the infamous Huntington Beach Georges.  The first was George Farquhar.  That George ran the local newspaper and was a regular in the lineup at the pier in the 1960’s.  You would always see him at just about any and every thing that went on in town, camera in hand and notebook in his back pocket, the perfect newspaper guy that also happened to be a local surfer at the same time. 
 
The next George was “Little George” Patton.  He was the original George that opened Georges Surf Center.  He got the nickname “Little George” because, yeah you guessed it, he was little.  He was a stoked dude who loved to surf and used his baby son in all of his advertisements in the surfing publications.  I still hear from him often; he lives in Thailand now and has a young and pretty wife.  He is always trying to out “young and pretty wife” me, but he can’t.  Mine is younger and prettier, hahaha George.  Cool dude.

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Mike and I will be together again at Dive'N'Surf, April 5th 2:00pm-4:30pm. Details shortly...

Then came George Draper, the first “Mayor of Main Street.”  Draper bought Georges Surf Center from Patton.  This worked out really conveniently as being that they were both named George there was no need to change the name of the store.  It was still Georges, just a different George.  One of the cool, and really smart, changes to the store was the addition of “Jan’s Juice Bar” in the back.  A beautiful young surf chick named Jan Gaffney ran it and the extra people that came to get smoothies and cookies added to the sale of surfboards and the success of the business.  George was a single dude and loved to hang out in front of the store enjoying the ebb and flow of beautiful surf girls passing by, cherry picking the best looking ones for maybe a phone number or at least a name.  He was kinda the local surf Don Juan of the 70’s.  George was also a pal of Jack Murphy, a.k.a. “Murph the Surf.”  Murph told me one time that George didn’t ‘t trust banks and had all his money buried somewhere or stuffed into mattresses.  Treasure map anybody? 
 
Then came the Lambert Georges.  The older one being a very popular local surfer who was the father of the younger one who became the next “Mayor of Main Street,” after George Draper.  George Lambert was first the shop gremmie and then manager of the Robert August Surf Shop.  Also a super good surfer and Huntington Beach High School Surf Team star.  He went on to manage the longboard room at Huntington Surf ‘n Sport, along with me for a few years, and eventually has become one of the top real estate agents in town working with Bob “the Greek” Bolan at Huntington Beach Realty.  Wanna buy or sell a house, George is your dude.  I loved the time we worked together at HSS, two surf shop dinosaurs in a 21st century surf super store.  I liked to think we added a little “soul” to the place.  They could fold t-shirts there so tight and perfectly that you could cut fish with the edges, an art I never could master.  George’s son, Max, is now one of the hottest up and coming surfers in town.  My real name is Charles and my dad and his dad and as far back as is known were all named that.  I named my first son Clint and the second one Tanner.  So I can understand why George broke the chain.  The big question is who is gonna be the next “Mayor of Main Street,” and will it be a George? 
 
So here is a big Aloha to George Draper, a huge part of Huntington Beach and Orange County surf lore.  May you ride the sea of tranquility and troll the streets of heaven for angel babes.

7 Comments
DEREK
2/29/2020 03:39:38 pm

GREAT STORY AS ALWAYS I KNEW THE TALL GEORGE

Reply
Judy Young
4/16/2020 02:40:25 pm

I cryed to now know George PASSED.
It's sad to know i cannot see him when
I come home to Huntington Beach. I
Became friends with George n 1969 when i RENTED Peggy Shupps 5th & walnut.
It was a good CORNER to eye the surfers
From my real ESTATE OFFICE. Like
George i was young THEN. Not George's
Type n high heels and Cadillac. What he
Liked to talk to me ABOUT was REAL ESTATE. RIP GEORGE WILL MISS U. :(

Reply
Paula B. Slater link
3/5/2020 04:15:39 pm

I just found your story about George Draper. A few months ago George commissioned me to sculpt his life size portrait bust. There are photographs of the clay portrait on my website under works-in- progress at https://paulaslater.com/sculpture-cat/works-in-progress/ It has been cast in bronze (I haven't yet posted photos of the bronze on my website). If you would like me to email you with photos of the finished bronze, just send me an email. We hurried to get the bronze cast because George was so very excited to see it that he emailed me every week to see how it was coming along. Bernadette, his nurse, wrote me he loved it and that "it's all that George wanted it to be, he was so pleased with the bust." She also wrote in that email that he had passed on one week before he received it. George and his nurse didn't tell me that George was ill. I think he hung on so he could see and receive his bronze portrait. I don't know what the family intends to do with it. Is there someplace it could be displayed by the Surfing Walk of Fame? He wanted me to sculpt him a little younger than the photos he supplied and "without the turkey neck but with lots of his trademark hair." Bernadette said George was a fabulous man and of course, we all want to be remembered at our best :-)

Reply
Bernard Beausoleil
3/17/2020 10:34:39 pm

I’m sorry to hear of George Draper’s passing losing the fight to cancer. I also want to address a statement Corky Carroll wrote in the article regarding cancer. Two secrets people need to know regarding cancer for most people:
Cancer and other diseases cannot thrive and survive in an oxygenated and alkaline environment. What does that mean? A Los Angeles coroner with 15 years experience noted that over 95% of diseased cancer patients’ bodies were acidic. You must exercise to oxygenate your cells, and must eat and drink an alkaline diet. Look up the difference.

Reply
Mark Abell
12/17/2020 07:21:35 am

I really loved George. Every time I walked home, surfboard under arm, I stopped in to say hello. I bought a couple of boards from George. I surfed with him but only saw him out a few times because he was busy running the shop. He had one heck of a personality because he always had a girl 20 to 30 years younger than him under his arm. I saw him like that at so many local parties.
He sold the shop, which I was sad about, bought a vw bus and left town to travel around the United States. He always came back to Huntington Beach though. I am really gonna miss him.

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Ivy
9/24/2021 04:15:38 pm

George Draper ran the best surf shop in huntington beach . I used to write poetry and he would let me post in his window. Jan who had "the good earth" health food bar made the best sandwiches, healthy as can be honey wheat berry bread with alfalfa sprouts and tuna fish salad with avacado and a slice of cheese, the best sandwich in huntington beach witha smoothie. George was friends to all good natured and he loved the beach, had the best surfboards that Sammy Hawk and others rode. Georges Surfshop the best suft shop in huntington beach, California.

Reply
Ivy
9/24/2021 04:22:21 pm

what I meant to say he had the best surf shop in Huntington Beach. We will miss you George. and always think of you

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