George Nonomura
Growing up in San Francisco, George Nonomura’s parents exposed all their children to fencing at an early age. One of the youngest in the large family, George learned fencing at Halberstadt Fencers Club, learning from the succession of coaches at the club. Starting with Hans, he took lessons from John McDougall, Charlie Selberg and Michael D’Asaro.
A successful junior and senior competitor, George was a consistent finalist at national events for nearly 10 years and earned him a place on the 1988 US Olympic Foil Team. For many years he was trained by Letterman Fencing instructor Dr. William O’Brien. George coached for a time after his competitive career, then worked for the San Francisco Fire Department until his retirement.
Articles
The Salle in the Woods
In the woods of Southern Oregon off a dirt road and across a valley from the winding I-5 was a fencing salle d’armes built by Charlie Selberg in an old barn. It was stuffed to the rafters with fencing memorabilia dating back decades.
LA’s Greatest Hits, 1936
When I have the opportunity to visit someone who has fencing memorabilia that I can scan for my collection, I often don’t get a chance to thoroughly take in the significance of everything I’m working with.
Helene Mayer Goes To Jail
It’s a struggle to not take cheap shots at the drawings in old fencing books, at least for me. Sometimes though, the artist’s interpretation of the message the author is hoping to convey is just too good to forego a bit of a laugh.
The Search for Al Snyder, National Champion
Typically, US National Foil Champions are reasonably well documented, particularly in their home town. That doesn’t seem to be the case with Alfred R. Snyder, 1944 US foil champion.
The Glamorous Photos of Erich Funke d’Egnuff, Part 2
There are many ways in which the scrapbook of Erich Funke d'Egnuff is a gold mine, not least of which are the amazing variety of newspaper photos of fencers. The scrapbook covers the years 1934 to about 1942 and the fencers of that time had a style all their own. ...
The Halberstadt Scrapbooks, Book One
As many times as I’ve mentioned the Halberstadt Scrapbooks on this website over the years, I was shocked to realize that I have not, until now, written a defining story about what they are and (to me, at least) their significance.
My Heroes are all Women, Part Two
Having not one, but two, Helene Mayer trophies land in The Archive recently seems to have been a precursor to a small ‘golden age’ of incoming H. Mayer material that I can’t explain in any way that I can explain, but I’m happy for the good fortune.
My Heroes are all Women, Part One
I’ve had two brain-melting events in the last few weeks that have left me in a state of awe that I could really be so lucky. To many, it might be tough to understand how I can get such a thrill out of the circumstances that have arisen.
Land of the Lost Trophy
I’ve been perusing the pages of “The California Fencer”, later just “The Fencer”, a West Coast publication that circulated for a few years following WW2 and prior to the start of the national American Fencer magazine.
Photo Gallery
SHARE YOUR
STORY
Have something to share or add? Our goal is to capture the stories we know are out there. Plus photos, videos, home movies, posters—you name it. All this material helps preserve the stories of West Coast fencing.
Stay Informed
Want to know when we publish a story? Or release a new documentary? Sign up for our email list and we’ll keep you posted.
