George L. Graziadio Jr. (1919–2002) was an American commercial real estate developer, banker and philanthropist. With George Eltinge, he developed 100 shopping centers for Kmart in California and elsewhere in the 1950s. In 1963, they co-founded Imperial Bancorp, which was later acquired by

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and renamed Comerica Bank-California. The

Graziadio School of Business and Management The Pepperdine Graziadio Business School (Graziadio School) is the graduate business school of Pepperdine University, a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. ...

at Pepperdine University bears his name.

Early life

George L. Graziadio Jr. was born in 1919 in Vernon, Connecticut. His father was a realtor, insurance businessman and auctioneer. His paternal grandparents were Italian while his maternal grandparents were Irish. Graziadio graduated from high school in 1937. He dropped out of college in 1939. He took a

road trip A road trip, sometimes spelled roadtrip, is a long-distance journey on the road. Typically, road trips are long distances travelled by automobile. History First road trips by automobile The world's first recorded long-distance road trip by t ...

from Connecticut to Los Angeles, California with a friend in 1939, and decided to stay there.

Business career

Graziadio started a commercial real estate development company with

George Eltinge George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd President ...

in the 1950s. The two men built a hundred shopping centers in California and elsewhere, most of which housed Kmart stores. Graziadio and Eltinge co-founded the Imperial Bank-California in 1963. The two men cobbled US$1.25 million together from their social circles to start the bank after they failed to have access to loans from banks for their real estate development projects. It was later known as Imperial Bancorp. It had "$7.4 billion in assets and 15 branches," and mostly made loans to technology and entertainment companies in the Southland. For example, they made loans to Yahoo! and feature films. Graziadio served as its Chairman until it was acquired by

, a bank based in Detroit, Michigan, for US$1.3 billion.

Philanthropy

Graziadio donated US$15 million to Pepperdine University in 1996. As a result, the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School bears his name. Additionally, he donated US$650,000 to endow the George L. Graziadio Center for Italian Studies at

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...

. With his wife, Graziadio endowed the George and Reva Graziadio Radiology Center at the Torrance Memorial Medical Center in Torrance, California. They also donated to the "Mountain Communities Hospital in

Lake Arrowhead Lake Arrowhead or Arrowhead Lake may refer to: United States Bodies of water * Arrowhead Lake (Idaho) * Lake Arrowhead Reservoir, California * Lake Arrowhead, Georgia * Lake Arrowhead (Maine) Communities * Arrowhead Lake, Cumberland County, New J ...

, the John Douglas French Alzheimer's Foundation,

Chapman University Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California. It encompasses ten schools and colleges, including Fowler School of Engineering, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Fowler School of Law, and Schmid College of Scie ...

, UCLA, the Hugh O'Brian Youth Foundation and the YMCA." Additionally, they were the 2002 recipients of the Humanitarians of the Year Award from the House Ear Institute. Graziadio was the 2002 recipient of the Horatio Alger Award from the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans.

Personal life

Graziadio married Reva Mikles, a native of

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. They resided in Rolling Hills, a

gated community A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences ...

on the Palos Verdes Peninsula near Los Angeles, California. They had a son, G. Louis Graziadio III, and two daughters, Mary Lou Graziadio and Alida Calvillo.

Death

Graziadio died of cancer on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in June 2002. His funeral was held at the Firestone Fieldhouse on the campus of Pepperdine University.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graziadio, George L. Jr. 1919 births 2002 deaths People from Vernon, Connecticut People from Rolling Hills, California Businesspeople from California American company founders American chairpersons of corporations American bankers Pepperdine University people Deaths from cancer in California American people of Italian descent American people of Irish descent 20th-century American businesspeople