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George James Morley was born in Ontario in 1927 and operated a retail appliance store in Toronto. After moving to Calgary with his family, Morley became involved with a wide variety of volunteer organizations that complemented his broad range of interests. He had strong interests in Canadian war history and was the founding president of the Canadian Aviation Historical Society, the past president of the N.W.M.P. Commemorative Association, and the director for The Red Coat Puppet Theatre; Morley authored the production “Westward Ride the Red Coats” that was performed in many Alberta schools.
Morley had a passion for comic art. His personal collection, that he began accumulating in the 1940s, includes clippings, comic books, and reference books, reference files on comic art and artists, and original artwork. Morley’s interest in war history is reflected in many of the strips he collected including G-8 and His Battle Aces, Navy Bob Steele, Flyin’ Jenny, and Captain Easy. He was also the founder and publisher of Strip Scene, a fanzine that celebrated the newspaper comic strip with articles, research information and artwork. Strip Scene was first published in 1977 and ran in print form for 25 issues through to 1984; long-time editor Carl Horak continues to maintain Strip Scene as a web presence.
Morley also carried this passion into his volunteer work with Calgary public schools as he worked extensively with students using his love and knowledge of comic art to encourage their own creativity. The George Morley Memorial Scholarship was established in his honour in 2004 to recognize students “with a high level of participation in the arts program."
George Morley died March 5, 2004.