OBITUARY

When William P. Draganza owned the Black Knight on 17th Street and

prom rolled around every year, he would tell his servers to treat the

kids just like they were grown-ups.

“He wanted to serve people the way he thought they should be served,”

wife Jane Draganza said. “And he would save the check and make sure it

got to the parents.”

Mr. Draganza was known for such consideration, his wife said, and will

probably be remembered by restaurant regulars as the guy who always stood

in the back but always made sure everything was OK.

Mr. Draganza died last week after battling cancer. He was 83.

His wife remembers him as a quiet “fellow” but an observer who said

important things when he spoke. As the owner of Costa Mesa’s Black

Knight, which operated where the Pierce Street Annex is today, the late

Costa Mesa resident became somewhat of a local celebrity.

He spent day and night there launching the business in the 1960s,

tending to everything from the bar to the books.

Son Michael Draganza remembers cleaning the parking lot with his

siblings every Saturday morning for $1.50 an hour. They’d chat with

regulars and grab Clorette gum meant for patrons from behind the bar.

They’d count the change in the cigarette machine and anyone who found

a silver quarter got to keep it.

“He was really a wonderful guy, always willing to do things for other

people,” Michael Draganza said.

After Mr. Draganza retired, he taught all the grand kids how to golf.

“He went to all the golf events,” Jane Draganza said. “That was one of

the things he made me promise, that I would help continue their golf

lessons.”

He was also one to avoid any sort of fuss. He didn’t even want a

funeral, so instead the family held a cremation.

“He never wanted to be in the limelight,” Jane Draganza said. “But

everyone knew him.

Mr. Draganza is survived by his wife; children William Mark Draganza,

Michael Draganza, Jayne Murrel and Jean Draganza; and four grandchildren.