George Mardikian
| George Mardikian | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 7, 1903 Bayburt, Ottoman Empire |
| Died | October 23, 1977 San Francisco, California, United States |
| Nationality | Armenian |
| Political party | Republican Party (United States) |
| Awards | Medal of Freedom |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 Armenia United States
|
| Years of service | 1915–1920 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit | Armenian Volunteer Regiment |
| Battles/wars |
World War I World War II Korean War |
George Magar Mardikian (November 7, 1903 – October 23, 1977) was an Armenian-American restaurateur, chef, author and philanthropist who opened the well-known Omar Khayyam's restaurant in San Francisco, California, in 1938. He is the nephew of Armenian Revolutionary Krikor Amirian.
Mardikian was born on November 7, 1903, in Bayburt, in what was then the Ottoman Empire, to Magar Mardikian and Haiganoush Amirian. Mardikian grew up in the city of Scutari, an Armenian community in Constantinople. Mardikian's paternal family was one of warriors—hence their family name: in Armenian, 'Mardik' translates to 'warrior'. His maternal family, the Amirians, was an influential and powerful family in Bayburt. Mardikian's mother also was the eldest sibling of his idol, Krikor Amirian.
As a child, Mardikian was very chubby and carried the nickname 'shisko', which is Armenian for 'chubby'. Mardikian's father, Magar, was of one of the approximately 250 ethnic-Armenian intellectuals and community leaders arrested on April 24, 1915, known as Red Sunday. After his arrest, the Amirians were driven out of their homes and marched to Erzincan. Mardikian's maternal grandmother, Vartanoush Amirian, committed suicide by jumping in the Euphrates, while the rest of the Amirian family was either beaten to death or burned alive. Witnessing the massacre of his mother's side of his family, Mardikian wanted to avenge their deaths and prove to his mother how much of a true genetic warrior he was. As a result of his ambition, Mardikian ran away from his home and joined the Armenian volunteer units, in which his uncle, Krikor Amirian, was a high-ranking member. After the First World War ended, Mardikian returned to his mother as a war hero.
In the summer of 1920, Mardikian worked with Captain Eddie Fox and George D. White of the Near East Relief organization to create an Armenian Boy Scout unit. It would be a short-lived accomplishment, since war broke out between the First Republic of Armenia, Turkey, and Russia. Mardikian called on his fellow youths to continue the fight for freedom. When he returned to the battlefield, he was quickly captured and imprisoned. Mardikian served his term in prison in a sauerkraut factory where the Turkish guards forced the Armenian prisoners to chop ice, even though it was a useless activity. After serving two years in prison, luck had struck Mardikian. George D. White, whom Mardikian had met a few years earlier, told the Turkish prison commandant that Mardikian was an American and demanded his freedom. Mardikian eventually gained his freedom and returned to his mother and his surviving family members in Scutari. His mother, Haiganoush, and uncle, Krikor, advised him that he must go to the United States like his older sister Baidzar. Within a few days, he left Scutari.
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