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George Trabant, a St. Petersburg Times Staff photographer of 34 years, passed away at the age of 87 at his home in Port Charlotte, Florida on May 26, 2004.
Before moving to Florida from Staten Island, NY, George was taking pictures solely for enjoyment when he and his mother went to Europe in 1933. John Malone, a pitcher for the Kids and Kubs baseball team, was on the same cruise. Impressed with George’s interest in motion pictures, he suggested photography as a career.
George completed high school, then went to the New York Institute of Photography.
Even though he was only a part-time photographer for the Staten Island Advance, he drew some big assignments…President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s visit to New York City and Public Enemy No. 4. The gangster shot was a bit of luck, George recalled.
He scooped all the New York photographers. They were having coffee in the county jail when the guy was brought in. George sold the picture to the New York Daily News.
He’d always wanted to travel to Florida. Visiting this area in 1939, he went on to Miami for the winter. He kept thinking about St. Petersburg. He was really impressed with the area, the climate, the friendliness of the people.
Visiting the Suncoast again in the early ‘40s, he moved to St. Petersburg in 1943 with the idea of being a freelance photographer. He bought a five-room
bungalow, moved in and in a day or two found Times reporter Lorna Caroll at the door to interview him.
She came back when George wasn’t home and left a note advising him to see then-editor Tom C. Harris – a photographer’s job was open.
About a week after he bought the house, George was working for the Times. And did he ever work! Sandy Gandy and he were the only photographers. Sandy Gandy left for another newspaper, and George was alone, working 60 to 65 hours a week, for several weeks until photographer Johnny Evans came.
George and Lorna Carroll teamed up for one assignment George considered the most frightening he’s ever had. The Sunshine Skyway’s deck had been completed and Rube Allyn, Times outdoors writer, was to walk across it from the Manatee County side.
The best view for pictures was from the top. The uncompleted top. George and Lorna made their way to the superstructure and began walking across two-by-four beams near the center. Loaded down with equipment, George had only one hand free to hang on. Until he got to the place, there was nothing to hold. He got the pictures but it was not an assignment he’d ever care to do over.
His most impressive assignment over the years was the dedication of Everglades National Park. President Harry Truman dedicated the park and was presented gifts by the Seminoles, the only president ever to receive gifts from them, the Bureau of Indian Affairs said.
 Another memorable photo assignment was when George was to take photos of a baby eating her first bowl of spaghetti. The photo were the baby ended up with the bowl of spaghetti upside down on her head was purchased and ran in Life Magazine. It even ran in the 1973 issue of “The Best Of Life”.
A few other famous celebrities George was proud to have photographed where, Gregory Peck during the filming of “The Yearling”, movie star Ester Williams, baseball celebrities Roger Maris and Casey Stengil.
Surviving family members include his wife of 56 years, Doris, Port Charlotte, Fl; son, Gary, Seminole, Fl; 2 daughters, Carol Marcotte, Providence, RI, and Tami Tower, Port Charlotte, Fl.
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