Townsend Harris Hall Prep School was a public preparatory school located in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

The school is named for Townsend Harris, who besides his many diplomatic accomplishments, had helped found the Free Academy of the City of New York, later to become City College, and was a strong proponent of free education. Townsend Harris was formed in 1849 as a one-year preparatory school for CUNY. The Free Academy's introductory year gradually evolved and in 1904 became a full-fledged, 3-year high school, housed on three floors of what is now Baruch College (in the East Side Manhattan neighborhood of Kips Bay). The school was the most selective school in New York. It required entrance exams to enter into the school. The school was still in its quarters at 23d Street and Lexington Avenue, occupying a spartan campus on the 9th to 12th floors of the building which now houses CUNY's Baruch College. Those who graduated from Townsend Harris were guartenteed a spot in the College of the City of New York. It moved to Harlem, NY in 1906. In 1930 as a result of over crowding, the school moved back to 23rd St. The school operated as an All Boys School for its duration. The school had a significant amount of Jewish and Eastern European students. Most students were ready to graduate by the age of 15/16. CUNY_School_of_Medicine_-_Townsend_Harris_Hall_(48170427627)

CUNY_School_of_Medicine_-_Townsend_Harris_Hall_(48170427627)

Academics

Townsend Harris condensed four years of high school into three. From here students would automatically get accepted into the City College of New York. The school eventually gained a reputation as being elitist and obsolete. At its time, it was considered to be NYC's most prestigious examination school.

Closing

This original incarnation, known as Townsend Harris Hall, survived until 1942 when it was closed by mayor

Fiorello La Guardia Fiorello Henry LaGuardia (; born Fiorello Enrico LaGuardia, ; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the House of Representatives and served as the 99th Mayor of New York City fro ...

for budgetary reasons. Although it is speculated it was closed because a relative of Mayor Laguardia was not admitted to the school. New York City eliminated 75 teachers and 1000 students with its closing. Townsend Harris closed with about 10,000 graduates. In 1980, a group of alumni from Townsend Harris Hall went on a mission to reopen the school. In 1984, a school was opened in Queens, NY, and associated with Queens College which took on a similar name of

Townsend Harris High School Townsend Harris High School at Queens College (THHS) is a public magnet high school for the humanities in the borough of Queens in New York City. Students and alumni often refer to themselves as "Harrisites." Townsend Harris consistently ranks a ...

Notable alumni

Scholars

Manfred Halpern Manfred Halpern (February 1, 1924 in Mittweida, Germany – January 14, 2001 in Princeton, USA), a transformation theorist, noted scholar of the Middle East, and author of the foundational study of post-imperial politics in the Middle East, The Pol ...

, political scientist expert in modern Middle East * Donald M. Friedman was a scholar of English Renaissance literature at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

Science and technology

Morton Deutsch Morton Deutsch (February 4, 1920 – March 13, 2017) was an American social psychologist and researcher in conflict resolution. Deutsch was one of the founding fathers of the field of conflict resolution. A ''Review of General Psychology'' survey, ...

(1920-2017), social psychologist who was one of the founding fathers of the field of

conflict resolution Conflict resolution is conceptualized as the methods and processes involved in facilitating the peaceful ending of conflict and retribution. Committed group members attempt to resolve group conflicts by actively communicating information abou ...

. * Theodore Hall ('40), physicist and one of the most infamous atomic spies for the Soviet Union. * Herbert Hauptman ('33), mathematician who shared the 1985 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his application of mathematical models to determine crystal structures. *

Robert Jastrow Robert Jastrow (September 7, 1925 – February 8, 2008) was an American astronomer and planetary physicist. He was a NASA scientist, populist author and futurist. Education Jastrow attended Townsend Harris High School. He also attended the ...

, cosmologist and author who was first director of

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

's Lunar Exploration Committee and the first director of the

Goddard Institute for Space Studies The Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) is a laboratory in the Earth Sciences Division of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center affiliated with the Columbia University Earth Institute. The institute is located at Columbia University in Ne ...

. * Sidney H. Liebson ('35), physicist and inventor of the Halogen Geiger Counter. Developed the first equipment used to detect enemy radar, for which he received a U.S. Navy award. *

William Nierenberg William Aaron Nierenberg (February 13, 1919 – September 10, 2000) was an American physicist who worked on the Manhattan Project and was director of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography from 1965 through 1986. He was a co-founder of the Ge ...

('35), physicist known for holding several government posts in addition to serving as director of the

Scripps Institution of Oceanography The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, US founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for oceanography, ocean and Earth science research ...

and co-founding the

George C. Marshall Institute The George C. Marshall Institute (GMI) was a nonprofit conservative think tank in the United States. It was established in 1984 with a focus on science and public policy issues and had an initial focus in defense policy. Starting in the late 198 ...

. *

Gilbert Jerome Perlow Gilbert Jerome Perlow (10 February 1916 – 17 February 2007), was an American physicist famous for his work related to the Mössbauer effect, and an editor of the ''Journal of Applied Physics'' and ''Applied Physics Letters''. Life Perlow was ...

, physicist who was a pioneer in studies of the

Mössbauer effect The Mössbauer effect, or recoilless nuclear resonance fluorescence, is a physical phenomenon discovered by Rudolf Mössbauer in 1958. It involves the resonant and recoil-free emission and absorption of gamma radiation by atomic nuclei bound in a ...

. He later served as editor of the Journal of Applied Physics. * Jonas Salk ('31), virologist and medical researcher best known for producing the first safe and effective polio vaccine. *

Julian Schwinger Julian Seymour Schwinger (; February 12, 1918 – July 16, 1994) was a Nobel Prize winning American theoretical physicist. He is best known for his work on quantum electrodynamics (QED), in particular for developing a relativistically invariant ...

('33), theoretical physicist who shared the 1965

Nobel Prize in Physics ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then " ...

for his work in developing QED theory.

Writing and journalism

Robert Bleiberg Robert M. Bleiberg (June 21, 1924 – November 3, 1997) was an American editor, publisher and writer. He was the long-time editor, publisher and editorial director of ''Barron's''. Biography Bleiberg was born in Brooklyn in 1924 and graduated ...

, former managing editor and publisher of ''Barron's'' * Bennett Cerf (1898-1971), publisher who was one of the founders of American publishing firm

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

. * Lawrence Cremin ('41), educational historian who received the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for History for ''American Education: The National Experience, 1783-1876''. *

Irwin Edman Irwin Edman (November 28, 1896 – September 4, 1954) was an American philosopher and professor of philosophy. Biography Irwin Edman was born in New York City to Jewish parents. He grew up in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, ...

, professor of philosophy, author, and mentor. * Paul Goodman ('27) *

Hy Hollinger Herman "Hy" Hollinger (September 3, 1918 – October 7, 2015) was an American trade journalist and studio publicist. He covered the entertainment industry for both ''Variety'' (1953–1960, 1979–1992) and ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (1992–2008) ...

, editor and journalist covering the entertainment industry, international editor of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' (1992–2008). *

John F. Kieran John Francis Kieran (August 2, 1892 – December 10, 1981) was an American author, journalist, amateur naturalist and radio and television personality. Early years A native of The Bronx, Kieran was the son of Dr. James M. Kieran and his wife, K ...

, columnist for the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' and panelist on the radio show ''

Information Please ''Information Please'' is an American radio quiz show, created by Dan Golenpaul, which aired on NBC from May 17, 1938, to April 22, 1951. The title was the contemporary phrase used to request from telephone operators what was then called "inform ...

'' * Sidney Kingsley ('24) was a dramatist ('' The Patriots'', '' Detective Story'', ''

Darkness at Noon ''Darkness at Noon'' (german: link=no, Sonnenfinsternis) is a novel by Hungarian-born novelist Arthur Koestler, first published in 1940. His best known work, it is the tale of Rubashov, an Old Bolshevik who is arrested, imprisoned, and tried f ...

''). He received the 1934 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, for '' Men in White''. *

Samuel Menashe Samuel Menashe (September 16, 1925 – August 22, 2011) was an American poet. Biography Born in New York City as Samuel Menashe Weisberg, the son of Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, Menashe grew up in Elmhurst, Queens, and graduated from Tow ...

('42) * Irving Singer was a professor of philosophy at MIT. *

Anatole Shub Anatole Shub (May 19, 1928 in The Bronx, New York City – July 2, 2006 in Washington, D.C.) was an American author, journalist, researcher, editor, news director and Russian public opinion analyst. Shub attended Townsend Harris High School a ...

was an author, journalist, editor, and analyst who was an expert on Russian society during the Soviet era. * William Steig ('22) *

Herman Wouk Herman Wouk ( ; May 27, 1915 – May 17, 2019) was an American author best known for historical fiction such as ''The Caine Mutiny'' (1951) for which he won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction. His other major works include ''The Winds of War'' and ' ...

('30) is an author ('' The Winds of War'', '' War and Remembrance''). He won the 1952

Pulitzer Prize for Fiction The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It recognizes distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life, published during ...

for his novel '' The Caine Mutiny''.

Performing arts and entertainment

* Mason Adams was an actor best known for the TV series '' Lou Grant'' and his

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-Diegetic#Film sound and music, diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, th ...

work in animation and commercials. * Army Archerd ('37) was a columnist and blogger for '' Variety'' (1953–2009). * Bennett Cerf was a publisher and humorist also known for being a panelist on the TV quiz show '' What's My Line?'' *

Warren Cowan Warren Cowan (March 13, 1921 – May 14, 2008) was an American film industry publicist. He co-founded the public relations company Rogers & Cowan in 1954 and founded his own company, Cowan & Associates, in 1994. He was described as "one of ...

was a Hollywood publicist, and co-founder of the

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...

firm Rogers & Cowan. *

Howard Dietz Howard Dietz (September 8, 1896 – July 30, 1983) was an American publicist, lyricist, and librettist, best remembered for his songwriting collaboration with Arthur Schwartz. Biography Dietz was born in New York City. He attended Columbia Colle ...

was a lyricist, best known for his collaborations with composer Arthur Schwartz. Among his songs are " Dancing in the Dark" and " That's Entertainment!". *

Ervin Drake Ervin Drake (born Ervin Maurice Druckman; April 3, 1919 – January 15, 2015) was an American songwriter whose works include such American Songbook standards as "I Believe (1953 song), I Believe" and "It Was a Very Good Year". He wrote in a variet ...

('35) was a composer and lyricist (" I Believe", " Good Morning Heartache", and " It Was a Very Good Year"). Drake also composed the school's Alma Mater. *

Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the 2 ...

was a lyricist, best known for songs written with his brother George Gershwin (" I Got Rhythm", "

Embraceable You "Embraceable You" is a jazz standard song with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. The song was written in 1928 for an unpublished operetta named ''East Is West''. It was published in 1930 and included in that year's Broadway m ...

", and " Someone to Watch Over Me"). He also collaborated on the libretto of ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...

''. * Yip Harburg was a lyricist known for writing songs such as "

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" is one of the best-known American songs of the Great Depression. Written by lyricist Yip Harburg and composer Jay Gorney, it was part of the 1932 musical revue ''Americana''; the melody is based on a Russian-Je ...

", " April in Paris", and "

It's Only a Paper Moon "It's Only a Paper Moon" is a popular song published in 1933 with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by Yip Harburg and Billy Rose. Background It was originally titled "If You Believed in Me", but later went by the more popular title "It's Only ...

". He also wrote all of the songs for '' The Wizard of Oz'', most notably " Over the Rainbow". *

Mark Hellinger Mark John Hellinger (March 21, 1903 – December 21, 1947) was an American journalist, theatre columnist and film producer. Biography Early life Hellinger was born into the Orthodox Jewish family of Mildred "Millie" (nee Fitch) and Pol Helli ...

(expelled) was a film and stage columnist and film producer. *

Sam Jaffe Shalom "Sam" Jaffe (March 10, 1891 – March 24, 1984) was an American actor, teacher, musician, and engineer. In 1951, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in '' The Asphalt Jungle'' (1950) and ap ...

was an actor known for films like ''

Gunga Din "Gunga Din" () is an 1890 poem by Rudyard Kipling set in British India. The poem is much remembered for its final line: "You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din". Background The poem is a rhyming narrative from the point of view of a Briti ...

'' and '' The Asphalt Jungle'' and the TV series '' Ben Casey'' * Frank Loesser is an Oscar,

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

, and

Pulitzer Pulitzer may refer to: *Joseph Pulitzer, a 20th century media magnate *Pulitzer Prize, an annual U.S. journalism, literary, and music award *Pulitzer (surname) * Pulitzer, Inc., a U.S. newspaper chain *Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a non-pro ...

prize award-winning composer and songwriter best known for ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

'' and ''

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' may refer to: * ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' (book), a 1952 book written by Shepherd Mead and the inspiration for the musical of the same name. * ''How to Succeed in Bu ...

''. *

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

('10) was an actor known for films like '' Little Caesar'', ''

Double Indemnity ''Double Indemnity'' is a 1944 American crime film noir directed by Billy Wilder, co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler, and produced by Buddy DeSylva and Joseph Sistrom. The screenplay was based on James M. Cain's 1943 novel of the same ...

'', '' Key Largo'' and ''

The Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ� ...

''. *

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

(attended) was a composer, best known for his work with lyricist

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Ton ...

('' Oklahoma!'', ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the childre ...

'', ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. Se ...

''). * Charles Strouse ('43) is an

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

, and Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist best known for composing the musicals '' Bye Bye Birdie'' and ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

'', as well as film scores (''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The co ...

''), and the song "Those Were the Days" for the TV series '' All in the Family''. *

Joseph Vogel Joseph Vogel is an American author, scholar, and popular culture critic. He is the author of several books, including '' Man in the Music: The Creative Life and Work of Michael Jackson'' and ''This Thing Called Life: Prince, Race, Sex, Religion, ...

was a former president of

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

. *

Clifton Webb Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966), known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked extensively and was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, in ...

is a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

winning actor (''

The Razor's Edge ''The Razor's Edge'' is a 1944 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. It tells the story of Larry Darrell, an American pilot traumatized by his experiences in World War I, who sets off in search of some transcendent meaning in his life. The story beg ...

'', ''

Laura Laura may refer to: People * Laura (given name) * Laura, the British code name for the World War I Belgian spy Marthe Cnockaert Places Australia * Laura, Queensland, a town on the Cape York Peninsula * Laura, South Australia * Laura Bay, a bay on ...

'', '' Three Coins in the Fountain''). * Bernie West was a television writer ('' All in the Family'', '' The Jeffersons'') * Cornel Wilde was a director and actor ('' The Greatest Show on Earth'', '' A Thousand and One Nights'', '' The Naked Prey'').

Business, economics, and philanthropy

Kenneth Arrow Kenneth Joseph Arrow (23 August 1921 – 21 February 2017) was an American economist, mathematician, writer, and political theorist. He was the joint winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences with John Hicks in 1972. In economics ...

('36) is an economist who shared the 1972

Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, officially the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel ( sv, Sveriges riksbanks pris i ekonomisk vetenskap till Alfred Nobels minne), is an economics award administered ...

for his work on

social choice theory Social choice theory or social choice is a theoretical framework for analysis of combining individual opinions, preferences, interests, or welfares to reach a ''collective decision'' or ''social welfare'' in some sense.Amartya Sen (2008). "Soci ...

. He proposed his eponymous Arrow's impossibility theorem. *

Eugene Lang Eugene Michael Lang (March 16, 1919 – April 8, 2017) was an American philanthropist who founded REFAC Technology Development Corporation in 1951. REFAC held patents relating to liquid crystal displays, automated teller machines, credit card ...

('34) is a philanthropist, associated with Project Pericles, among others. The Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts is named for him, and he received the

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merito ...

in 1996. * Leon Levy ('39) was a

financial analyst A financial analyst is a professional, undertaking financial analysis for external or internal clients as a core feature of the job. The role may specifically be titled securities analyst, research analyst, equity analyst, investment analyst, ...

and

hedge fund A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...

pioneer with Oppenheimer & Co. (1951–82). He was a philanthropist, predominantly in education, art, and archaeology. *

Alexander Sachs Alexander Sachs (August 1, 1893 – June 23, 1973) was an American economist and banker. In October 1939 he delivered the Einstein–Szilárd letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, suggesting that nuclear-fission research ought to be pursue ...

was a banker and economist, best known for delivering the Einstein–Szilárd letter to

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

, and convincing him to begin research into the construction of a nuclear weapon. *

Bernard L. Schwartz Bernard Leon Schwartz (born December 13, 1925) is the former Chair (official), Chairman of the Board and chief executive officer, CEO of Loral Space & Communications, a position he held for 34 years. He also served as Chairman and CEO of K&F Indu ...

(c:a 1936) businessman and

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

donor activist. *

George Weissman George Weissman (July 12, 1919 – July 24, 2009) was an American businessman and former chairman and CEO of Philip Morris (now Altria). Biography Weissman was born in the Bronx on July 12, 1919. After graduating from Townsend Harris High School, ...

was a businessman and philanthropist who served as president of

Phillip Morris USA Philip Morris USA is the American tobacco division of the American tobacco corporation Altria Group. History Creation The company's namesake Philip Morris was born in Whitechapel, United Kingdom in 1835, the son of a recent immigrant from ...

Law, politics, and activism

Felix S. Cohen Felix Solomon Cohen (July 3, 1907 – October 19, 1953) was an American lawyer and scholar who made a lasting mark on legal philosophy and fundamentally shaped federal Indian law and policy. Biography Felix S. Cohen was born in Manhattan, New Y ...

was a lawyer, legal scholar, and activist who specialized in federal law as it related to Native Americans. *

Joseph H. Flom Joseph Harold Flom (December 21, 1923 – February 23, 2011) was an American lawyer and pioneer of mergers and acquisitions, specializing in representing companies in takeover battles.Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom * Felix Frankfurter was an

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States An associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is any member of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 18 ...

(1939–62). * Rudolph Halley was an attorney who worked on both the

Truman Committee The Truman Committee, formally known as the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program, was a United States Congressional investigative body, headed by Senator Harry S. Truman. The bipartisan special committee was form ...

(investigating defense spending waste) and

Kefauver Committee The United States Senate Special Committee to Investigate Crime in Interstate Commerce was a special committee of the United States Senate which existed from 1950 to 1951 and which investigated organized crime which crossed state borders in the U ...

(investigating organized crime). He served as President of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

(1951–53). *

James Male James Male ( – January 15, 1947) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life Male was born in around 1896 in New York City, New York. He attended Townsend Harris High School, the City College of New York, and Fordham University, ...

was a lawyer and member of the New York State Assembly. *

Robert N.C. Nix Sr. Robert Nelson Cornelius Nix Sr. (August 9, 1898 – June 22, 1987) was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1958 until 1979. He was the first African Americans in the United States Congress, African ...

was a United States Congressman (1958–79). He was the first African-American Congressman elected from Pennsylvania. *

Maurice Paprin Maurice Sanford Paprin (August 26, 1920 – November 29, 2005) was a New York City real estate developer and social activist. Biography Born to a Jewish family on August 26, 1920. Paprin graduated from Townsend Harris High School in 1936 and Cit ...

'36 A prominent NYC real estate developer who got his start in the business building multi-family apartment buildings in the Borough of Queens. He was a leading figure during President Johnson's Great Society Program and was responsible for bringing to market thousands of high quality affordable housing units in NYC. Most notable among them was the creation of the Schomburg Plaza Apartment Houses on 110th St. & Fifth Ave in Manhattan. *

Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. (November 29, 1908 – April 4, 1972) was an American Baptist pastor and politician who represented the Harlem neighborhood of New York City in the United States House of Representatives from 1945 until 1971. He was t ...

was a United States Congressman (1945–71). He was the first person of African-American descent elected to Congress from New York. *

Igal Roodenko Igal Roodenko ( – ) was an American civil rights activist, and pacifist. Biography Igal Roodenko was born on February 8, 1917, in New York City. His parents, Morris (Moishe) and Ida (Ita)(nee Gorodetsky) were from Zhitomir, near Kiev, ...

was a printer, a radical pacifist, a member of the executive committee of the War Resisters League from 1944 through 1977, and its director from 1968 through 1972. * Robert Wagner was a U.S. Senator from New York (1927–49). He was responsible for proposing many pieces of

New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...

legislation, and several important bills from that era bear his name. *

Nily Rozic Nily Rozic is a legislator from Queens, New York and a member of the New York State Assembly. Rozic represents New York's 25th District, which spans the northeast portions of Queens, including the communities of Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Hillcr ...

is a New York State Assemblywoman *

Sol Ullman Solomon Ullman ( – July 6, 1941) was a Jewish-American lawyer and politician from New York. Life Ullman was born around 1893 in New York City, New York, the son of Samuel and Kate Ullman. Ullman attended Townsend Harris High School and grad ...

was a lawyer, New York State Assemblyman, and assistant attorney general. * William A. Zeck, a retired New York State judge and political official who was a prosecutor at the Nuremberg war-crimes trials

References

External links

{{Authority control Defunct high schools in Manhattan Former school buildings in the United States Magnet schools in New York (state) Public high schools in Manhattan Specialized high schools in New York City University-affiliated schools in the United States