Passings

BOB FRANCY

A teacher and administrator for 39 years in the Newport-Mesa

Unified School District who had stints at all four district high

schools, he was associated most with Estancia High.

He was principal at Estancia from 1970-84 and again for a brief

interim term when he filled in during the late 1990s.

He was also intermim district superintendent and is remembered

fondly by those he worked with for his passion and fairness.

The Costa Mesa resident’s time as Estancia principal coincided

with great athletic success at the school.

He died Sept. 19 of cancer. He was 67.

CHARLIE EATON

One of the founders of the Adpotion Guild Tennis Tournament, his

involvement in the local tennis scene spanned seven decades,

prompting some to consider him the father of tennis in Newport Beach.

Also termed “The John Wooden of Orange County tennis” by Palisades

Tennis Club Owner Ken Stuart, the Lido Isle resident was a teaching

professional at the Lido Isle Tennis Club and the Balboa Bay Club.

He opened the original Palisades Tennis Club in the 1960s.

The Adoption Guild event is one of the oldest tournaments in the

nation. A member of the Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame, Eaton died

July 18 of cancer. He was 85.

DOUG ORR

Known as “the voice of the Sea Kings,” the public-address

announcer for several Corona del Mar High sports, a longtime resident

of Newport Beach and Corona del Mar, was a visible supporter of the

Newport-Mesa athletic scene.

A 1970 Corona del Mar High graduate, he played football for Coach

Dave Holland, with whom he retained a special relationship.

Orr’s love of sports and his caring for people made him a beloved

figure among CdM students, athletes, coaches, administrators and

fans.

He announced home football, boys and girls basketball and boys and

girls volleyball contests for the Sea Kings and was a fixture at

other local events, including the Toshiba Senior Classic.

He died March 6 of heart failure. He was 50.

HOWARD L. HANDY

A Daily Pilot sportswriter from 1969 to 1982, he handled myriad

assignments, most notably on the golf, auto racing and junior college

beats.

His journalism career included a stint at the old Compton Herald.

He also worked for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Rams

and was the media coordinator of the Long Beach Gran Prix for 25

years.

While at the Daily Pilot, he simultaneously officiated and covered

a 1969 high school football game between Marina and South Torrance,

when officials failed to show up. He died Jan. 30 of natural causes

at his Irvine home.

He was 84.

JACK BELL

A 1950 graduate of Newport Harbor High, he earned a spot in the

Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame for his exploits as a football

halfback and as a track and field standout specializing in the low

hurdles.

After high school, he was in the armed forces in the Korean

conflict, earning a nomination for the Silver Star.

He died on June 5 of leukemia.

He was 69.