Students who attended Anaheim High in the 1940s, and some years beyond, may still remember performances featuring music played on the school’s Robert Morton Theater Pipe Organ. The now treasured instrument, housed in Cook Auditorium, was once played at concerts and other performances, and also provided musical accompaniment for daily announcements.
Alumni and history buffs aren’t the only ones who appreciate the one-of-a-kind Cook Auditorium organ; theater organ enthusiasts also treasurer the instrument. Several experts have examined and chronicled the organ’s history and its various parts, which includes swell shades, ranks, pneumatic valves, chambers, blowers, diaphone beaters and more.
Based on information gathered by these experts, the following history of the Cook Auditorium Robert Morton Pipe Organ has been revealed:
Anaheim High’s 3/12 rank organ (three levels of keyboards and 12 ranks divided between two chambers) was manufactured by the Robert-Morton Company in Van Nuys, California, the second-largest theater organ builder in America. Robert Morton’s are considered one of the top organs ever produced.
The Anaheim High Robert Morton was manufactured in 1928, installed in the (Victoria) Liberty Theater in Oklahoma City, and then purchased by the Anaheim Union High School District for installation in Cook Auditorium in 1940.
This information comes from records kept by experts who have tracked the serial number of the organ’s Spencer blower (#21846) and the opus number of the organ, which is visible on an engraved brass plaque on the organ chest (see attached photo).
(FYI: Cook Auditorium was constructed as part of a Federal Public Works Project to rebuild Anaheim High School after the 1933 Long Beach earthquake. The newly constructed school and auditorium were opened to the public in 1936.)
The Cook Auditorium organ is one of only three public high school theater organs that still exist in Orange County. The auditoriums at Fullerton Union and Santa Ana high schools, which opened in 1896 and 1889, respectively, also house theater organs. Fullerton’s is a Wurlitzer that is fully restored; Santa Ana’s theater organ is in disrepair, as is Anaheim’s.
The Cook Auditorium organ was refurbished once in the 1980s. Unfortunately, the organ was not configured in the correct manner and did not have the best tonal quality. After a few concerts, it was no longer played.
Besides the inadequate refurbishment, the saga of Anaheim High’s theater organ also includes a flood caused by a broken ceiling pipe. When water threatened the organ console, the cables between the console and electro pneumatic relay system were severed so the organ could be removed for the auditorium. The organ always sat stage left at floor level.
Pipes were later damaged when electricians used the chamber as a short cut during their work. Sadly, the organ was also damaged by vandals trying to steal a separate sound system that apparently shared space with the organ’s housings.
A plus side to the ‘80s refurbishment project is the swell shades, which were obtained from the USC Bovart Auditorium. According to the experts, the swell shades are “gangbusters” and they have never seen more in a theatre installation.
Another plus, though not related to the ‘80s refurbishment, is the organ’s original Spencer blower, which is in good working condition. But more than gangbuster swell shades and a good blower are needed to restore the organ to its glorious past.
For now, it’s important to know that theater organs and the music they produce are undergoing a revival as people realize the organs and their intricate pipe work are irreplaceable. Many organ restoration projects are taking place throughout the country, including at Santa Monica High School, where a Wurlitzer donated by the Los Angeles Theater Organ Society was recently installed in the school’s Barnham Hall.
Looking closer to home is the successful restoration of the Fullerton Joint Union High School District (FJUHSD) Plummer Auditorium Wurlitzer Organ, one of the few instruments installed by the Wurlitzer Co. which remains in the original installation site. In 1993, the organ underwent a complete reconfiguration that continued into 2003 as new technologies became available.
This renovation was supported by the Orange County Theater Organ Society (OCTOS) and the FJUHSD Educational Foundation. The activities of the OCTOS include assistance in the maintenance, continuing restoration and enhancement of the instrument. The Society also works with the FJUHSD Educational Foundation in the presentation of concerts which allow the community to enjoy this wonderful musical heritage.
Photos of the Cook Auditorium Robert Morton Organ taken by Anaheim High art instructor Brad Pettigrew, a member of the City of Anaheim Historical Preservation Committee, are available for viewing on the AHSAA website www.anaheimcolonists.com or on the artist’s website at http://Gallery.Me.com\BradleyJ.Pettigrew#Gallery.
