History
The high school was founded in 1924 under the direction of Principal Rae G. Van Cleve. Most of the original campus facilities were demolished in 1966 because they did not meet earthquake safety standards, but the historic Auditorium and its iconic Rotunda were spared by preservationists and are still in daily use. Greenway Court, originally built in 1939 as a social hall by the students at Fairfax as a class project, was also spared and was moved to its current location on Fairfax Avenue, where it now stands as a theater and has served since 1999 as the home of the Greenway Arts Alliance.
Fairfax High School has been known since the 1930s as a breeding ground for future major figures in the entertainment industry.
Former NFL official Jim Tunney served as the school's principal from 1964 to 1970.
When the 1971 Sylmar (San Fernando) earthquake struck on February 9, 1971, with a magnitude of 6.7 on the Richter scale, nearby Los Angeles High School was damaged severely and closed for repairs. Students from LA High attended Fairfax High on "double sessions," with Fairfax students using the campus from 7am-12 noon, and LA High students from 1pm-6pm.
In 2009 some territory from the Los Angeles High School attendance boundary was transferred to Fairfax High School.
Read more about this topic: Fairfax High School (Los Angeles)
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“If you look at history you’ll find that no state has been so plagued by its rulers as when power has fallen into the hands of some dabbler in philosophy or literary addict.”
—Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466–1536)
“Racism is an ism to which everyone in the world today is exposed; for or against, we must take sides. And the history of the future will differ according to the decision which we make.”
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“The history of modern art is also the history of the progressive loss of art’s audience. Art has increasingly become the concern of the artist and the bafflement of the public.”
—Henry Geldzahler (1935–1994)