LYNN – Juniors and seniors from across the city were introduced to a legend of mythic proportions Thursday when they came together in Veterans Memorial Auditorium to watch “Harry Agganis, The Golden Greek.””You’re about to see a movie about a Lynn kid, a Classical graduate, who went to BU and played for the Red Sox,” said Agganis Foundation Chairman Thomas Demakis to the nearly 1,600 students whose cheering and jeering drowned him out on more than one occasion. “This is a kid from Lynn who was probably the greatest North Shore athlete ever ? who died tragically at age 26.”View a photo gallery of the premiereThe documentary, written and narrated by sportscaster Clark Booth, deftly weaves together interviews with family, old friends, teammates, film footage and grainy news photos. It shows how a big 16-year-old kid from an immigrant family became a three sport athlete, garnered national attention for his football prowess by his junior year in high school, then again as quarterback at Boston University. Then he surprised everyone signing with the Boston Red Sox.LCHS teammate John Nye called Agganis’ death from a blood clot in his lung, a few short years later, “seismic.” Nearly 60 years later his legacy remains undoubted, undaunted, and according to many, unequaled.Lynn Vocational Technical Institute Athletic Director Joe Skeadas directed students as they entered the auditorium. He said he believed very few if any of the kids knew who Agganis was.”I had a teacher ask me who he was,” he said. “Being a Greek kid from Lynn, of course I know who he is. My father was a pallbearer at his funeral.”School Committee member John Ford said he would never forgive his father for not letting him attend Agganis’ funeral. As a kid, Ford followed Agganis’ career and like everyone was shocked when he died, he said. The students, he added, don’t understand the kind of powerhouse athlete Agganis was. According to the film more than 20,000 fans regularly packed the old Manning Bowl to watch him play while he was still in high school.Dick Johnson, who attended the screening along with Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy, Superintendent Catherine Latham and longtime Boston sportscaster and Agganis Scholar and Athlete Mike Lynch, said while Agganis had natural talent to burn he also worked hard.The summer before he moved into the quarterback position at LCHS he threw 25,000 passes to prepare, Johnson said.”It wasn’t just about talent,” he said.Agganis’ legacy lives on in other ways as well. The Agganis Foundation was formed just after the athlete’s death and since 1955 has given out $1.5 million in scholarships to high school students, Demakis said.When the movie ended and the lights came up Johnson and Lynch fielded questions from the audience. Students asked where Agganis was buried, where he grew up and if there would ever be a holiday in his honor in the city of Lynn. Agganis is buried in Pine Grove Cemetery, he grew up on Waterhill Street in West Lynn and Thursday was Harry Agganis Day, Lynch told them.View photos of the Harry Agganis statue at Lynn City Hall”But you still have to go back to school,” he added.Kennedy said she hoped the students’ school pride would grow into Lynn pride after viewing the movie. Johnson challenged the students to grow their own legacy.”As you walk out look to the left and see Harry Agganis,” he said, referring to a lifesized statue in the lobby. “Take some of his greatness with you. Who among you will shine?”Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected].