Tag Archives: #LAPD

FBI Smashes Nazi Spy Ring in Beverly Hills: 3 Sent Coded Letters to Third Reich

Posted on January 29, 2012 by

Jan. 29, 1942: The FBI accuses Dr. Hans Helmut Gros, his wife, Frances, and Albrecht Rudolf Curt Reuter of belonging to a Nazi spy ring. According to allegations, Gros, of 328 N. Maple Drive, sent letters to purported relatives that … Continue reading →

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Posted in 1942, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Jimmie Fidler, LAPD, Streetcars, Theaters, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

L.A. Detectives Meet New York Mobster’s Plane at Burbank Airport

Posted on November 8, 2011 by

Nov. 8, 1941: Waxey Gordon, whose real name was Irving Wexler (d. 1952, Alcatraz), lands at Lockheed Air Terminal (now Burbank Airport), where he is greeted by detectives from the district attorney’s office, the LAPD and airport police. Gordon, accompanied … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Aviation, Chicago, City Hall, LAPD, San Francisco, Suicide, Theaters, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 10

Posted on September 28, 2011 by

Image: Racial incidents between servicemen and African Americans in San Diego.   Credit: The National Archives at Riverside. To recap briefly, I have been digging into the historical basis of the movie “Zoot Suit,” which I saw this summer in the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, 1943, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Found on EBay – ‘Thicker’n Thieves’

Posted on September 22, 2011 by

Every so often, Charles Stoker’s “Thicker’n Thieves shows up on EBay for way too much money. There was a time when you could pick up a copy for $8 or $10 in almost any used book store in Los Angeles … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Found on EBay, LAPD | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Heiress Beaten to Death in Silver Lake

Posted on September 15, 2011 by

2153 Moreno Drive, via Google’s street view. Sept. 15, 1941: The murder house is on one of those narrow, curving streets above Silver Lake Reservoir, 2153 Moreno Drive. Her husband came home from work and found her beaten to death … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Cold Cases, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, World War II | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Widow Accused of Killing Ft. MacArthur Officer, Sept. 3, 1941

Posted on September 3, 2011 by

Sept. 3, 1941: OK, Maj. Tucker,  let me get this straight. You and your wife, Marie, got home from  a party, where both of you had been drinking. She was in the bedroom and you were in the kitchen making … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011, Part 3

Posted on August 23, 2011 by

Image: Ed Jokisch retires, Feb. 18, 1972. Retirement cartoons are an LAPD tradition. This is what they looked like in the 1970s. Credit: Ed Jokisch family. This is Part 3 of my interview with the late Ed Jokisch. Note: Toward … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

LAPD Pistol Team – 1934 [Updated]

Posted on August 21, 2011 by

Photo: The LAPD pistol team puts on a demonstration at the Auto Club headquarters in 1934. Credit: “Three Cars in Every Garage: A Motorist’s History of the Automobile and the Automobile Club of Southern California,” Page 164. Did they really … Continue reading →

Posted in 1934, Books and Authors, LAPD, Photography, Transportation | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011, Part 2

Posted on August 14, 2011 by

Photo: Capt. Ed Jokisch. Credit: Jokisch family   This is Part 2 of my interview with the late Ed Jokisch.

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Obituaries, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011

Posted on August 7, 2011 by

Photo: LAPD homicide detectives in a gag photo, Christmas 1946. Ed is on the left in the back row. Credit: Ed Jokisch   I received word Saturday that my friend, retired Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, has died at the age … Continue reading →

Posted in 1914, Crime and Courts, Downtown, LAPD, Obituaries, World War II | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

‘Grim Sleeper’ 911 Call

Posted on August 2, 2011 by

Barbara Ware, killed at the age of 23, whose body was found Jan. 10, 1987. Note: Since the “Grim Sleeper’s”  911 call is back in the news, here’s a post I wrote about it in 2009.   I thought it … Continue reading →

Posted in 1987, Grim Sleeper, LAPD | Tagged , | 3 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 6

Posted on August 2, 2011 by

Image: Los Angeles Conservancy’s Last Remaining Seats Program for “Zoot Suit” Credit: Jose Legaspi In Part 5, we looked at the story of Joe Dacy Coleman, “patient zero” in the Zoot Suit Riots, which led to a report at the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, African Americans, Black Dahlia, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, Stage, Streetcars, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Coming Attractions: ‘Zoot Suit’ and History

Posted on August 1, 2011 by

Image: Los Angeles Conservancy’s Last Remaining Seats Program for “Zoot Suit” Credit: Jose Legaspi   Coming on Tuesday in our continuing examination of “Zoot Suit” and history: A June 9, 1943, radio address by Mayor Fletcher Bowron on the Zoot … Continue reading →

Posted in Coming Attractions, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

‘Zoot Suit’ and History — Part 5

Posted on July 26, 2011 by

Cartoon: A troubling moment in “Mary Worth’s Family,” June 1, 1943. Credit: Los Angeles Times June 1, 1943: It is impossible to accurately determine, so long after the fact, why a May 31, 1943, brawl between zoot-suiters and sailors wasn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Books and Authors, Fashion, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Robbers Kill LAPD Officer in Shootout, July 24, 1934

Posted on July 25, 2011 by

Stanford Avenue and 33rd Street via Google maps’ street view. Stanford Avenue and 33rd Street is one of those little pockets of old houses in Los Angeles that looks like it hasn’t changed much since 1934, when two men in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1934, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Found on EBay – Biscailuz Badge

Posted on July 20, 2011 by

An example of what is sometimes known as a “Biscailuz badge” has been listed on EBay. These are presentation badges that weren’t intended for deputies, but were only given to celebrities and other notables by Los Angeles County Sheriff Eugene … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Courts, Found on EBay, LAPD | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 2

Posted on June 28, 2011 by

May 9, 1943: Al Capp satirizes zoot suits in a series about “Zoot-Suit Yokum.” In Part 1, we saw that in 1942, The Times originally portrayed zoot suits as a youthful fad, but that attitudes hardened toward them once the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Fashion, Film, LAPD, Latinos, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and history – Part 1

Posted on June 27, 2011 by

I was extremely fortunate to attend Wednesday night’s showing of “Zoot Suit” and hear remarks by the panel that preceded the show. Betto Arcos moderated a session with director Luis Valdez, Rose Portillo (Della), Edward James Olmos (El Pachuco) and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, 1943, 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Latinos, Music, Stage, Theaters, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Architectural Rambling – The Van Griffith Estate

Posted on June 22, 2011 by

The Times Sunday Business section featured the former home of Van M. Griffith (d. 1974), the son of Griffith Park donor Colonel Griffith J. Griffith.  (For some reason, the early stories in The Times refer to him as “Dan Griffith” … Continue reading →

Posted in 1925, Architecture, City Hall, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Obituaries, Politics, Real Estate, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on June 20, 2011 by

Photograph by Howard Decker [Update: Howard says: The beautiful bride is Kris Harmon, on her way into the church in Brentwood to marry Ricky Nelson on April 20, 1963.] Our good friend Howard Decker (a.k.a. Fibber of the Brain Trust) … Continue reading →

Posted in Brain Trust, LAPD, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments