City to screen "Carrie" this coming Friday

The Hermosa Beach Prom That Ended in Flames

Walk past the Hermosa Beach Community Center and you're passing a piece of local lore that most residents already know: it doubled as the doomed high school in Brian De Palma's 1976 horror classic "Carrie."

It's one of those facts that gets passed along to newcomers—right up there with pointing out celebrity houses or recounting surf break history. But the details of exactly what was filmed here, and how our town became part of horror cinema history, are worth revisiting.