Arizona Daily
April 6, 2016
CHATALAS, George Macy, DDS George passed away on Thursday, March 31, 2016 after a brief illness. He was 78 years old. He was born on February 2, 1938 to George John and Faye Macy Chatalas in Seattle, WA, the second of two children. He attended school in Seattle and received his doctor of dental surgery degree from the University of Washington in 1964.
While at the University he affiliated with the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. Upon graduation he served two years as a captain in the US Air Force at Biggs Field in El Paso, TX after which he returned to Seattle to practice dentistry with his father. He sold his practice and retired from dentistry in 1997 and moved with his wife, Marcia, to Tucson AZ. During his years as a dentist he was inducted into both the American College of Dentists and International College of Dentists. He served on the Washington State Board of Dental Examiners, the ADA Accreditation Commission and participated in the Seattle-King County Dental Society and the Washington State Dental Association on legislative and policy activities.
George was a serious advocate of quality and ethical dentistry and always had his patient's and the public's best interests at heart. In his retirement in Tucson he enjoyed golf, playing regularly at Omni Tucson National. He became enthusiastically involved with the docent program at the Tucson Museum of Art, responding to his lifelong interest in art. He served as president of the Tucson Museum of Art Docent Council and as vice president for docent training; as a member of the board of directors of the Southern Arizona Center Against Sexual Assault; and the Arizona Commission on Judicial Performance Review.
He pursued film acting, taking roles in several local productions. He played the sheriff in a commercially distributed film, Renegade. He embraced the culture of Tucson and the southwest, collecting Native American, Mexican and western art. He was politically liberal, a man of convictions who advocated for and supported human rights, social justice, choice, and tolerance.
He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Marcia; his children, Jody Chatalas and Helen Chatalas of Seattle; grandchildren, Ella Chatalas and Fin Butler of Seattle; his former wife and mother of his children, Catherine McCurdy Chatalas; his sister, Joan, and her three children of Seattle; cousins in Seattle, California, Oregon, and Boise, ID; his three, canine pals, Buddy, Benny and Sadie; and numerous friends in Tucson, Seattle and Boise, Idaho.
A celebration of life will be held at the Tucson Museum of Art on Sunday, April 10, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. You are welcome to come in your western or cowboy wear. Contributions in his memory may be directed to the Docent Council of the Tucson Museum of Art, the Southern Poverty Law Center (www.splc.org), Pima Animal Care Center, or a charity of your choice . Happy Trails, Georgie, until we meet again. Vaya con Dios. We love you. Arrangements entrusted to DESERT SUNSET FUNERAL HOME.
CHATALAS, George (George Macy Chatalas)
Born: 2/2/1938, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
Died: 3/31/2016, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.A.
George Chatalas’ westerns – actor:
Renegade – 2011 (Sheriff Marcus Carson)
Blackwood – 2012 (war veteran)