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0648-GEN-10/2013
George N. Theofiles
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Goerge Nicholas Theofiles was born in Reading, Pennsylvania in 1947 to Nicholas George and Pandora E. Theofiles. He has one brother. His maternal grandfather came from Greece to America to take a job as a textile designer at a plant in Reading, Pennsylvania. His grandmother's family was leaving Greece during the Balkan War and all but she and her little sister were killed when the launch going out to a freighter was sunk by a Turkish torpedo. George had an interest in printed materials from a young age and began to accumulate whatever he saw that interested him in the context of history, both American and European. In school, he was interested in journalism, arts and theater. He attended the Maryland Institute of Art in Baltimore, received his BFA in graphic design in 1969 and traveled all around the world during his time in college. After college, he freelanced, taught in the vocational department at Houston Woods Junior Senior High School in Baltimore City. He always had an entrepreneurial spirit so he decided to open his shop called Miscellaneous Man in Fells Point. He was able to buy one hundred thousand movie posters that were from the 1940's to the 1970's for a thousand dollars. Besides paper items, he has also purchased other items at auctions like the goggles and barometers that Peary used at the North Pole. He bought many other items including numerous Scrimshaw from Robert Peary Safford, Peary's grandson. In 1973 George moved from Baltimore to New Freedom. George's knowledge of printing is massive including stone lithography and he actually has the first offset poster printed in 1884. George has a core collection of WWI propaganda posters that are American, French, British, German, Italian, Greek and Japan. He also has many WWII posters. He was able to purchase a scrapbook, pictures, and tickets, bought a poster of the first professional wrestler in America in 1896 called The Strangler but does not collect sports memorabilia. He has collected many trademark items and book plates.