George P. Burdell. Possibly the most famous attendee of Georgia Tech apart from Jimmy Carter. George Graduated From Tech in 1930, achieving his BS Degree (in more ways than one, if you get my drift...). Never one to rest on his laurels, he then proceeded to get a Master's degree. This much is unsurprising. What is more surprising is that over the next several decades, George continued to attend classes. He never gave up on his old Alma Mater. After WWII, he enrolled in at least 10,000 credit hours total before the school announced, to almost everyone's dismay, that he was no longer allowed to register for classes (the fifth or sixth time, when they actually enforced it, but that's another story.)

George's Debutante Ball that was held annually for years, and was a staple in Atlanta newspapers' Society sections but he was notorious for many things besides that. George had a wicked sense of humor, bothering insurance agents, ordering furniture C.O.D. to fraternities that snubbed his friends, and recently made an unsubstantiated claim that he was Dean of the department of Arts and Sciences at Georgia Tech for over a decade.

Nearly every restauraunt in Atlanta for several decades knew about George and his eating habits (as finicky as he was--it was rumored that despite the number of reservations he made, he never touched a single bit of food, letting his fellow techies have all of the culinary fun.) He is paged to the desk by his adoring fans to this day whenever there is a football game.

There are numerous other stories about George, such as his military service during WWII, first going to Harvard's Navy Officer Training School, his service as a British Aviator, and his tour as a US Navy crew member, but perhaps the most famous stories are about things that never happened. George got a Bachelor's Degree and a Master's degree form Georgia Tech. This much is indisputable. Also indisputable is the fact the George P. Burdell never lived.


George P. Burdell, in case you did not understand, was a practical joke. He was a character that Techies, originally, would page at every away game. Between WWI and WWII he became more famous, as graduates moved around more.