Bob Goodfader, 62; Venice Restaurateur, Community Activist

Bob Goodfader, 62, a Venice restaurateur, businessman and community activist who was involved in the refurbishment of the beach boardwalk, died of lung cancer April 19 at his home in Venice.

Goodfader, who moved to Venice in 1975, owned the Sidewalk Cafe and an open-air vending area. Both businesses are on the boardwalk, as is Small World Books, which is run by his wife, Mary. He also owned the Break Shot, a sports bar in West Los Angeles.

As a community activist, Goodfader fought for cleaner restrooms, more lighting, and other health and safety issues on the Venice boardwalk.

A native of Winthrop, Mass., Goodfader earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Worchester Polytechnic Institute in 1960. After serving in the Army, he worked as an engineer for Sylvania and was involved in designing special lighting on projects such as the Apollo space capsule.

He came to Los Angeles as Sylvania’s West Coast sales manager, but soon became an entrepreneur. His previous businesses included the One Life natural food store in Santa Monica, the Green Bean restaurant in Culver City and the Sidewalk Cantina in Venice.