James Richard Fairall

James Richard Fairall was born on June 15, 1925 in Los Angeles, CA. In his early years, Jim was raised by his grandmother, Myrtle Eva (McElroy) Russell and his Aunt Ruth. He attended John Marshall High School in Los Angeles. Jim went to a Military Academy when he was in elementary school. Around that time, a girl on his street named Ruth began to catch the attention. James would hot rod up and down Ruth's street, while Ruth would welcome the attention, usually in a bathing suit and high heals!

In 1944, their love affair was briefly disrupted when James was deployed to the European front for the Second World War. Though they were separated by thousands of miles, the two kept their romance aflame through the written word, writing letters to each other as often as they could, and until James returned home in 1946. On June 2, 1948, James and Ruth said their wedding vows in front of family and friends at the Chapel of the Roses in Pasadena, CA.

On March 5, 1954 James and Ruth welcomed their first child, a girl, Peggy Lynn Fairall into the world. Two years later, on November 16, 1956, the trio became a foursome when Scott Jay Fairall rounded out their family. Jim was a dedicated husband and father and worked in the Motion Picture Industry since the age of 17. His first job was at Technicolor in Burbank, but most of his career was at Metro-Goldwin-Mayer (MGM) in Culver City, CA. He held the jobs of "Scanner" and "Timer" in the film lab at MGM. He used to ride his bicycle to work which was only about three blocks away (bicycles are common on the studio lot).

In 1979, new joy was brought into the Fairall family when Scott and his wife Elsa brought home the family's first grandchild in James Robert Fairall. Scott and Elsa would have another boy Brian Keith in 1981, while Peggy welcomed the families' first granddaughter Shannon Eileen Kalfell [Wheeler] in 1984. Scott and Elsa would add to the family with the addition of Anthony Michael in 1985, while Peggy gave birth to the family's final grandchild, Heather Nicole Kalfell [Valdes] in 1986.

Jim passed away on August 19, 2021 and is preceded into the afterlife by his beloved wife, Ruth Helen (Logg) Fairall, son Scott Jay Fairall, and daughter-in-law Elsa, along with his mother, Mary (Russell) Hanson. He leaves behind his daughter Peggy, grandchildren Jimmy, Brian, Shannon, Anthony, and Heather. Grandchildren in-law; Linda, Nathalie, Andrew, and Carlos, and 10 great-grandchildren; Andrew, Lorisa, Aydan, Vincent, Logan, Lucas, Zoey, Carlos, Audrey, and Presley. Jim also leaves behind his half-brother Douglas Fairall and his wife Carolyn.

Services in his honor will be held on Wednesday, September 1, 2021 at 12:00 PM at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills in the Old North Church. A graveside service with Military Honors will immediately follow.