Legend or Relic ???

Movie star Myrna Loy has passed from legend to relic status on the Venice High campus. For 80 years, a statue she posed for as a Venice student was a landmark on the aging campus. But most Venice students have never seen it; it's been hidden in a storage shed since today's seniors were freshmen.

Myrna Loy (then known as Williams) was a shy 16-year-old dance student when her art teacher asked her to pose for one of three clay statues being created for the school's front lawn.

A few years later, she would begin her career as a dancer at Grauman's Chinese Theater, entertaining audiences between silent movie screenings. Her exotic looks led to roles as sirens and vamps, and in 1934 the "The Thin Man" series helped make her one of America's most popular stars.

But her star faded. Her statue crumbled. Body parts were stolen by pranksters and vandals ignited an explosion that blew off the head of the statue. A fence was erected to protect it, but lack of maintenance turned that into an eyesore. When the statue was finally taken down, it was rotting from the inside out, too damaged to restore. A small group of heartbroken alumni began plotting its return in the late 1990s. It would cost more than $200,000 to re-create the famous statue, but after five years the group had raised less than $10,000.

"Venice High always had the aura of being a little funky, a little tough," said Schwab said. "But I loved it there. And the statue was a big part of who we were."

Rival schools would paint it with their school colors. People would dress it up in outlandish gear. Even to the world beyond Venice High, it was instantly recognizable from the opening scenes of the movie "Grease."

So when Schwab saw an announcement about fundraising efforts in the alumni newspaper last fall, he contributed $75,000 and pledged to match additional donations to help the group reach its fundraising goal, so the new statue can be unveiled next spring.