Art Christ Basso, BHS 1950

Art Basso was born in 1932 to Christiano Basso and Mary Sartori, in Burbank, CA., and passed away in his sleep on February 22, 2018. He was raised in the house at 501 East Cypress Ave (the duplexes now belonging to Emanuel Church), and attended George Washington & Emerson Elementary School, John Muir Junior High, Burbank High Senior High School (BHS). While at BHS (1947 – 1950) he ranked as an all-city football player, playing with friends, Pete Lipera, Paul Cameron, and John Julian, under the coaching of Les Bruckner. 

Art and his football crew, were some of the first football players to whitewash the letter “B” up on the Verdugo Mountains. In 2013, Burbank football claimed victory over rival Burroughs high school. Art’s grandson, Mack Maisner (a senior then at BHS) went up to the mountain with friends, dragging a blue tarp over the letter “B”, coming home and stating, “Grandpa Art will be proud of me”!



After high school, Art joined the United States Air Force and served as airplane mechanic, for four years, at: Grandview AFB Kansas City, MO., Lackland AFB San Antonio, TX., Chanute AFB Champagne, Il., and Ernest Harmon AFB Newfoundland, Canada. It was clear to him that he was passionate about working with hands, and upon returning home, he gained employment at Hydraulic Research, originally at 2321 N. Naomi St. Burbank. Shortly after, he married Marcia Corliss (North Hollywood High School 1953) and adopted her daughter, Patti (BHS 1975).  Soon to follow were sons, Chris (BHS 1980) and Ted (BHS 1985), with Hydraulic Research relocating to Valencia on Rye Canyon Road.

Art left Hydraulic Research when his hands-on engineering work converted to CADAM, to work in the entertainment industry, building mobile dressing rooms, and the housing for the generators on the tractor trailers that go on location.  

He also had a love for building and flying model airplanes at the Sepulveda Dam, and in the evenings would take his kids to the Burbank Airport to watch the last of the day’s landings and take-offs. His pride and joy was his house, that he almost single-handedly extended over 1000 sq.feet. 

After long tour of being single, he got remarried to Viola Garcia, whose daughter and son-in-law have a grandchild Zachery. Other grandchildren include Ted’s twin girls, Paige and Presley, and Patti’s two children Mallory (BHS 2011), and Mack (BHS 2014).

If any of us learned anything from Art, it was to be your best person every day, always put your best foot forward, work hard and honestly, and when you see something out of place, fix it without blame. He will be dearly missed by all that knew him, as he was always generous with his time to help others when they needed him.