Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame: Craig Phoenix

Don Cantrell

After a period of several varsity sports in the mid-1930s, Craig

Phoenix, Class of ’37 at Newport Harbor High, went on to become one of

the most popular gentlemen in the harbor area as manager of the Lido

Theater for many years.

His smiling face became a familiar picture every week to hundreds of

students and their parents and they came to admire his kindly approach to

people at the theater.

The entire Phoenix family contributed numerous sports accomplishments

and fond memories to the annals of Harbor High athletics during the ‘30s.

The father, Allan, was a key groundsman for the high school and is

recalled by old-timers as the man who cared for a pet skunk that followed

him often around the football field. The football players valued his care

of the gridiron.

Craig became one of the top two tennis players in Orange County out of

the prep net battles of ’37. He and a doubles partner went undefeated in

the seasons of ’35 and ’36. He also lettered in varsity football and

basketball in 1935 and ’36.

He loved exciting tennis from his prep years, but has become

astonished over how the game has changed since the early days. There were

no big money tournaments in his time.

One of his favorites in recent years has been Pete Sampras, but Craig

is also amazed at the play of so many young players coming up through the

ranks today.

It is fair to say that Phoenix learned the game on his own in school

days. The tennis team had an adviser, not a coach, who was basically a

biology teacher.

“We all seemed to learn on our own,” Phoenix said. “I was fortunate,

as I lived just a block from the school and played every weekend and most

of the summer with people who showed up at the courts. I picked up a lot

of experience that way and some were good players.

“I would play with the teachers after school,” he continued. “They

always played doubles and whenever they needed someone to fill in, they

would invite me to come out after school, so I got my playing time in

that way.”

Interestingly enough, Phoenix recalled that athletic director Ralph

Reed was so involved with coaching football and track from 1930-37 that

he had a math teacher named Lee Trine coaching basketball.

“I don’t recall who coached baseball,” Phoenix said.

Phoenix, who later became a sharp golfer, said, “When I started at

Harbor High, it was only 3 years old, so you couldn’t expect much to work

with, but each class that followed had things a little better than the

one before and today I understand it is a first-class school.”

Always a man of humility, Phoenix, when reviewing the Pilot’s plan to

honor him with its Hall of Fame, indicated he couldn’t say much for

himself except to say the athletic years at Harbor High, “were a lot of

fun.”

He was a member of the ’36 grid team that featured the all-league end,

6-foot-4 Walt Kelly and the basketball team that was also sparked by

Kelly.

His older brother, David, was one of the few Newport gridders ever to

confront the all-time great Jackie Robinson at Pasadena City College when

it was battling Santa Ana in football. With some humor, Dave, reflecting

back, was overwhelmed trying to tackle the powerful Robinson, who went on

to fame in baseball for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Craig’s oldest sister, Christine, was one of the super versatile

female athletes ever to play for Newport in the ‘30s. Her sister, the

late Katherine, was also a fine athlete, but not on the scale of

Christine.

Craig Phoenix and his wife, Paula, who worked for Newport Beach Police

Department for several years, have been retired for years in Oregon.