John Elias Paradissis (June 27, 1895 - March 19, 1992) was a Turkish-American bookkeeper, bookseller, and publisher. Born in Smyrna, Turkey, Paradissis operated The Oriental Bookstore in Tientsin, China, in the 1930s until at least 1940, when he published Chinese Art Ivory written by Barry Eastman in Tientsin. Paradissis married Tatiana Basil Shastovsky (February 19, 1914 - September 16, 1997) on February 3, 1946, in Tientsin. Tatiana entered the United States on June 14, 1948, with her stepson Philip. They went to St. Petersburg, Florida. John arrived six years later in Seattle via United Airlines on October 4, 1954. Paradissis became a bookkeeper in the United States. Tatiana became a naturalized U.S. citizen on January 14, 1955, and John became a naturalized U.S. citizen on April 18, 1958. Paradissis married Penelope Hadjiry in Shanghai with whom he had one son, who was Tatiana's step-son, that was born in Tientsin on August 8, 1944. Unfortunately, the historical record leaves very little trace of Penelope, except her purported birthdate, December 2, 1908. We have been unable to determine anything about her life or what happened to her. Paradissis died in Los Angeles in 1992.



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