George Rapée

George Nicholas Rapée (May 22, 1915 – April 1, 1999) was an American bridge player. From 1942 to 1980 he was the most successful player in the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) in its three most important teams-of-four tournaments, the Vanderbilt, Spingold, and Reisinger. He played on the American teams that won the first three Bermuda Bowls, 1950 to 1953.

Rapée was born and raised in New York City. His parents were from Hungary; his father Erno Rapée was a concert pianist and orchestra conductor. He earned bachelor's and law degrees at New York University and served in the US Army for three years during World War II. He was an attorney and real estate investor or, in the words of his obituary by Alan Truscott, "a real estate lawyer ... assembling properties for development".

He died at his home in Floral City, Florida, age 83, survived by his wife Joellen Hall Rapée, a daughter, and two grandsons.

Rapée is known as the man who invented the Stayman convention that is named for Sam Stayman. (It was first published in 1945 under Stayman's name. One of the world's most popular bridge bidding conventions, generally as "Stayman", it was invented also and perhaps earlier by Jack Marx, for whom it is named in the U.K.) According to Truscott, Rapée had the idea c. 1940 that a two clubs response to one notrump asks for a major suit; his long-time partner Stayman "enlarged and publicized the idea".

Rapée was 21 years old when he first won a national title in 1936 (predating the ACBL, est. 1937, and not listed below). Sixty years later he "currently" entered all major American tournaments for open teams and he had been the oldest player to achieve several marks including a bronze medal as team captain and player in the 1990 Rosenblum Cup (off-year world championship).

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