His father was Harvey Sullivan, a U.S. District Marshal who had followed the Chilkoot Trail in 1898 to join the Klondike Gold Rush.

[citation needed] After graduating from Valdez High School, Sullivan went on to join the United States Army during World War II and served in the Aleutian Islands.

Sullivan fulfilled the maximum two terms mandated by the municipal charter, handing over the reins to Tony Knowles on January 1, 1982.

[citation needed] Toward the end of the 1970s, he proposed what he called "Project 80s", a campaign of beautification and preservation of historic sites.

Adjacent to that building, Marlow constructed an assisted living facility and named it the George M. Sullivan House.

Together, they had nine children, including Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan, and daughter Colleen Sullivan-Leonard, who served two terms in the Alaska House, 2017 through 2021.