Nicholas Pappas; Furrier, Lincoln Brigade Veteran

Nicholas Pappas, Los Angeles furrier and veteran of the Lincoln Brigade that fought in the Spanish Civil War, has died. He was 82.

Pappas died Friday of a heart attack at his home in Culver City, his son Michael said.

A native of Cambridge, Mass., Pappas was in New York learning the fur trade in 1938 when he and his brother Philip volunteered to fight in Spain. The Pappas brothers, like many others, considered it a moral battle against a threatened fascist takeover of Europe.

Some 3,300 American volunteers fought against the forces of Gen. Francisco Franco in the Abraham Lincoln Battalion of the 15th Brigade of the International Brigades of Foreign Volunteers. In the United States, they became known as the Lincoln Brigade, a group considered to be suspect of including Communists during the McCarthy era.

“Not all the volunteers in the international brigades were dedicated, devoted anti-fascists,” Pappas told The Times in 1977 during his first visit to Spain after Franco’s death. “Many were. But some of them were bums.”

Half the Americans, including Pappas’ brother, died. Pappas was promoted to captain of a machine gun company commanding 150 soldiers. He later fought in North Africa and Italy in World War II.

Facing the anti-Communist taunts between his two stints in the military, Pappas spent two years in Russia working in the labor movement, acting and teaching ballroom dancing.

Throughout his life, Pappas remained active in Lincoln Brigade veterans activities and as a reference on American participation in the Spanish Civil War. He returned to Spain for the 50th anniversary of the war and for the 60th last year when he was made an honorary citizen of Spain. He also served as an advisor on a Spanish documentary about Ernest Hemingway, whom he had encountered during the war.

After World War II, Pappas worked for Ben Kahn Furs in New York, and in 1950 he moved his family to Los Angeles.

In 1957, Pappas founded Michael’s Furs, named for his grandfather, in downtown Los Angeles. After his retirement in 1990, his son Michael took over the business. Always active in labor organizations, Nicholas Pappas served as president of the local Fur Workers Union No. 87F.

Pappas is survived by his wife of more than 50 years, Mary; two sons, Anthony of Culver City and Michael of Los Angeles; two brothers, Harold and Michael, and one granddaughter.