Monthly Archives: March 2008

March 18, 1938

Posted on March 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, a first-person account of the Rape of Nanking. Below, Poland and Lithuania hover at the brink of war … Anti-fascists riot in Paris … And in a radio address, Secretary of State Cordell Hull "reaffirmed this country’s intense desire … Continue reading →

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March 18, 1958

Posted on March 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, one of Clark Gable’s lesser pictures is featured at a fund-raiser for the Press Club’s 8-Ball Foundation. When the Mirror and Examiner closed in 1962, the foundation held a benefit to raise money for unemployed journalists. Below, a plane … Continue reading →

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Marilyn Monroe

Posted on March 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Jerry Clark, the chief warden of the retirees’ group known as the Old Farts of The Times, sends along a photo of Marilyn Monroe with Mirror reporter Jack Searles, center, who died March 1. Jerry writes that the mystery reporter … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood | Tagged | 4 Comments

Main Street

Posted on March 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Photograph by Bruce H. Cox / Los Angeles Times Goodfellows (or Good Fellows, the restaurant used both names) Grotto, 341 S. Main St., shortly before it closed. Notice the old-fashioned "Family Entrance." Until it closed on New Year’s Eve in … Continue reading →

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Mystery photo

Posted on March 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles Times file photo OK, who are they? Henry Fonda is one. (Regular reader Callbox Sam). Right. He's the easy one. Henry Fonda's father (William). Sorry. Darren McGavin of "Nightstalker" fame. Sorry, no. Anthony Mann? Sorry, no. Ernest Lehman? … Continue reading →

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Matt Weinstock

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 17, 1958 One morning recently a man found a wallet on West 7th Street and tried to phone the owner, a woman whose name and address were on the enclosed identification cards. Failing to get a response, he handed … Continue reading →

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Paul Coates

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 17, 1958 Victor Romano is a mythical man. He’s a man invented by this column and impersonated by one of my staff. We gave him an occupation: Insurance salesman; a wife, Mary; a child, and a family income last … Continue reading →

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Tourism sociology

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Sociology professor Gwen Sharp, who writes the "Super Happy Funtime Blog," takes a scientific approach to sightseeing in Los Angeles. She graphed her hypothesis–"The richer the person who owned the home, the more awesome it would be to gawk at … Continue reading →

Posted in Science, travel | 1 Comment

Dear Abby

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 17, 1968 Dear Suspicious, You already know what I think because you and I think alike. Tell her to stop playing games–or the next time she goes, she doesn’t need to come back …  Dear B.J.D.,  Most men can’t … Continue reading →

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March 17, 1958

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, the brainstorm of John Pace, general manager of KABC-AM (790), "Airwatch" was announced Dec. 30, 1957. Below, Times writer Walter Ames goes along with Max Schumacher and Donn Reed for a jaunt above Los Angeles’ freeways. Quote of the … Continue reading →

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March 17, 1938

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, as Austrian Jews flee for their lives, only to be turned back at the border, Los Angeles congregations prepare to celebrate Purim. Note the name of Jacob Sonderling, identified in The Times as former chief rabbi of the German … Continue reading →

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March 17, 1908

Posted on March 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, the St. Vincent nine … Below, The Times’ Harry Carr files a firsthand report on the U.S. fleet in Magdalena Bay, Mexico … Quote of the day: "The fleet in the distance really looked like a great smoky factory … Continue reading →

Posted in @news, Front Pages | Tagged , | 1 Comment

March 16, 1958

Posted on March 16, 2008 by lmharnisch

Frances Farmer is interviewed by The Times’ Cecil Smith upon her return to acting in "The Tongues of Angels," a "Studio One" production. Farmer, whose life imploded in the 1940s, says: "I’m better now at my work than I have … Continue reading →

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March 16, 1938

Posted on March 16, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, prepare yourself for a shock: Police Chief James Davis wants–more officers. Below, Hitler calls the expansion of Germany "The greatest achievement of my life" … Austrian Jews are barred from voting. Quote of the day: A wave of lawlessness … Continue reading →

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March 16, 1908

Posted on March 16, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, The Times examines life among the homeless in the railroad yards and encampments of Mojave. Note the particularly unfortunate use of an ethnic slur in the artwork by The Times’ cartoonist Edmund Waller "Ted" Gale … Click on the … Continue reading →

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Dear Abby

Posted on March 15, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 15, 1968 Dear On the Spot, Enjoy your sister, she won’t be around forever but also find time to be with your daughter–you’re not going to be around forever, either … and what’s with "elderly" in the headline! … … Continue reading →

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March 15, 1958

Posted on March 15, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, integration in the Los Angeles City Fire Department is not going well  …  Below, the Coast Guard inspects ships in California’s ports on the theory that 50 men with suitcases could smuggle a terrorist weapon into the country (Gosh, … Continue reading →

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March 15, 1938

Posted on March 15, 2008 by lmharnisch

Below, in the midst of a story about Hitler’s takeover of Austria, we find the sentence: "Strange men embraced." I suppose we would recast that now. On the jump, church bells ring throughout Vienna from the moment Hitler crosses the … Continue reading →

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March 15, 1908

Posted on March 15, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, an early model of electric car is  being sold in Pasadena … Below, “The She-Dogs of Anarchy”–there’s a headline that says: “Read me.”

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Home of the week

Posted on March 15, 2008 by lmharnisch

March 15, 1908Los Angeles Above, a home at the northwest corner of Kingsley Drive and Wilshire Boulevard designed by Frank M. Tyler. There are four rooms and a servants’ suite on the first floor, and four bedrooms and two bathrooms … Continue reading →

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