Monthly Archives: December 2014

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

Note: This is a post from 2013 in which we chatted with author Christina Rice. The book is available for $22.99 for the Kindle, $36.17 in hardback from Amazon or $40 at local independent bookstores such as Vroman’s, which is … Continue reading

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Taking a Sabbatical in 2015

A lesson about time: Laura Hunt’s antique clock has an unfortunate encounter with Waldo Lydecker’s shotgun in “Laura.” As I have said here before: So many stories, only one Larry Harnisch. In September, I put aside a long series of … Continue reading

Posted in 1944, 1947, Black Dahlia, Film, Hollywood, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | 23 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

In 1982, Jim Romenesko, then a young reporter, compiled coroners’ reports on unusual deaths. Jim now runs the JimRomenesko.com blog and notes that he still has a few copies of his self-published book. He is selling them for $15, including … Continue reading

Posted in 1982, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Mayor Garcetti: Where’s the Lindbergh Beacon?!

A not great photo by me showing the Lindbergh beacon in December 2006. Update: Mayor Eric Garcetti says: Checking on it right now–I love the beacon and will be sure it gets lit if it hasn’t been. Dec. 9, 2014: … Continue reading

Posted in 2006, City Hall | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

  Don’t these Art Deco kitty bookends look somewhat familiar from some other movie title? Obviously this movie is “Green Mansions” (MGM 1959).  No, it’s “Little Women” (RKO 1933).  OK, it’s “Man of Two Worlds” (RKO 1934). Or how about … Continue reading

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 57 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Erich von Stroheim’s ‘Paprika’

A copy of Erich von Stroheim’s “Paprika” inscribed to Hugo Ballin has been listed on EBay as Buy It Now for $875. Note: This is a post that originally appeared in 2012. Famed director/actor Erich von Stroheim faced financial disaster … Continue reading

Posted in 1935, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, Education, History, World War II | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

1944 on the Radio — Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge

Dec. 6, 1944: Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge. Courtesy of otronmp3.com.

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

Note: This is a repost from 2013. Glen Creason’s book on maps of Los Angeles shows the many ways people have viewed the city over the years. I interviewed him for The Times in 2012 and fortunately for all concerned, … Continue reading

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Campo de Cahuenga, California’s Birthplace

The 2014 luminaria festival will be held at Campo de Cahuenga Dec. 7 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free. Note: This is a repost from 2012. This year’s luminaria festival will be held Sunday. Driving south down … Continue reading

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Coming Attractions: Hollywood Time Machine

I will be among the guests on Saturday’s broadcast of “Hollywood Time Machine” with Alicia Mayer. The program will air live at http://www.LATalkRadio.com (channel 2) at 6 p.m. EST and will available later as a podcast. I’m one of several … Continue reading

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, LAPD | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The Great TCM Experiment

A portion of the bounty from the Great TCM Experiment of 2014. From mid-August to early November, I conducted the “Great TCM Experiment,” in which I recorded everything on TCM. Yes, everything as in everything.

Posted in Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

Note: This is a repost from 2013. You might have to hunt a bit for Don Normark’s 1999 book “Chavez Ravine, 1949,” but your search will be rewarded. The photos are terrific and the residents’ recollections make the book even … Continue reading

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Georgette Bauerdorf, an Unsolved Murder, Part 31

Georgette Bauerdorf, National Police Gazette, August 1946. At long last, we finish our examination of the Georgette Bauerdorf case with many questions unanswered. Without more information, we can only speculate about many aspects of the killing. For that matter, we … Continue reading

Posted in 1944, 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Hollywood, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Coming Attractions: Afternoon With the Authors

Hollywood Heritage Museum, 2100 N. Highland Ave., will be hosting an Afternoon With the Authors on Saturday, Dec. 6, from noon to 4 p.m. Scheduled guests include: Julia Adams, John Bengtson, Bob Birchard, Jon Boorstin, Angela Cartwright and Tom McClaren, … Continue reading

Posted in Books and Authors, Coming Attractions, Film, Hollywood, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

Note: This is a repost from 2013. Whenever I’m asked about my favorite books on Los Angeles, my first recommendation is “Nuestro Pueblo,” a selection of features by Times artist Charles Owens and writer Joseph Seewerker that appeared in The … Continue reading

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Georgette Bauerdorf, an Unsolved Murder, Part 30

Oct. 21, 1944: Fred Atwood, left, Los Angeles Times. Lulu Atwood, in a photo courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library. In this series of posts on the Georgette Bauerdorf case, we have looked at the history of El Palacio … Continue reading

Posted in 1944, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , , | 13 Comments

1944 on the Radio — NBC Symphony Orchestra

Dec. 3, 1944: Arturo Toscanini conducts the NBC Symphony Orchestra in three movements of the Beethoven Septet in E flat and the Symphony No. 2. Courtesy of otronmp3.com.

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Shopping Guide

Note: This is a repost from 2013. If you enjoy Mary Mallory’s columns (and our survey shows that readers do) you might like this anthology of Hollywood Heights called “Hollywoodland: Tales Lost and Found.” It’s available for the Kindle, but … Continue reading

Posted in Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Georgette Bauerdorf, an Unsolved Murder, Part 29

Oct. 15, 1944: A handout photo of Georgette Bauerdorf, Oakland Tribune. We have been examining the behavior of Georgette Bauerdorf’s killer to see if we could distill something about him, going from least speculative to most speculative rather than chronological … Continue reading

Posted in 1944, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , | 12 Comments