Monthly Archives: October 2025

Movieland ‘Unsuitable’ Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on October 27, 2025 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1940 Warner Bros. film Castle on the Hudson, with John Garfield, Ann Sheridan, Pat O’Brien, Burgess Meredith, Henry O’Neill, Jerome Cowan, Guinn “Big Boy” Williams and John Litel.

Posted in 1940, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , | 39 Comments

October 26, 1959: Matt Weinstock

Posted on October 26, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 26, 1959: Steve Medved says he was beaten unconscious by the LAPD while being arrested for being drunk. When his trial ended in a hung jury, Medved says, the LAPD began targeting him for drunkenness, Matt Weinstock says. Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, LAPD, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on October 26, 1959: Matt Weinstock

October 26, 1959: Paul V. Coates – Confidential File

Posted on October 26, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 26, 1959: Paul Coates writes that his wife insists on accompanying him on his trips, like his recent one to Japan. Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Paul Coates | Comments Off on October 26, 1959: Paul V. Coates – Confidential File

‘Ask Me Anything’ on George Hodel – October 28

Posted on October 26, 2025 by lmharnisch

Reminder: I will do an Ask Me Anything on George Hodel and Steve Hodel next Tuesday, October 28, at 10 a.m. Pacific time on YouTube. Have questions? Leave them in the comments. Continue reading →

Posted in Ask Me Anything, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases | Tagged , , | Comments Off on ‘Ask Me Anything’ on George Hodel – October 28

October 26, 1942: Lon Chaney’s Ghost Haunts Hollywood and Vine!

Posted on October 26, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 26, 1942: Councilman Norris Nelson tells a story about the ghost of Lon Chaney sitting on a bench at Hollywood and Vine. Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, African Americans, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on October 26, 1942: Lon Chaney’s Ghost Haunts Hollywood and Vine!

October 26, 1907: Women Clean Clothes With Gasoline, Die After Explosion and Fire

Posted on October 26, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 26, 1907: Two women in the West Adams District were badly burned and expected to die after a bowl of gasoline they were using to clean a soiled dress exploded, engulfing their apartment at 42 St. James Park in flames. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Fires, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on October 26, 1907: Women Clean Clothes With Gasoline, Die After Explosion and Fire

October 25, 1982: Millennial Moment: Iranian Exiles Find a Bit of Home in Santa Monica Park

Posted on October 25, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 25, 1982: Times staff writer Bill Overend profiles Iranian exiles who gather in Santa Monica’s Palisades Park on Sunday afternoons, hundreds of people — mostly Jews and some Muslims — who came to the U.S. because of the Iranian revolution. Continue reading →

Posted in 1982, Immigration, Millennial Moments, Parks, Religion | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 25, 1982: Millennial Moment: Iranian Exiles Find a Bit of Home in Santa Monica Park

October 25, 1947: Toyoda of Japan Sells First Postwar Sedan for $5,000

Posted on October 25, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 25, 1947: Toyoda Automobile Co. unveils its first postwar car, a small, four-passenger sedan with 27 horsepower. The company has produced five cars so far, reserved for doctors. Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Comics, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 25, 1947: Toyoda of Japan Sells First Postwar Sedan for $5,000

October 25, 1943: Restaurant Manager Turns Tables on Robbers

Posted on October 25, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 25, 1943: Three bandits who hit a handful of businesses met their match at a cafe at 1306 S. Main St. when they tried to hold up assistant manager Joe D. Poindexter. As one man leaned across the counter to get the cash, Poindexter grabbed his gun, chased them as they fled and shot one of them. Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Comics, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Main Street, World War II | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 25, 1943: Restaurant Manager Turns Tables on Robbers

October 25, 1907: L.A. Bids Adieu to the Boys of Summer as Pacific Coast League Ends Season

Posted on October 25, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 25, 1907: A farewell to baseball season, “deservedly the most popular pastime of the American public.” Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Baseball, Dodgers, Sports | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 25, 1907: L.A. Bids Adieu to the Boys of Summer as Pacific Coast League Ends Season

October 24, 1959: Matt Weinstock

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1959: A driver with a long, majestic beard stopping in Paso Robles during a beard-growing contest for Pioneer Day is the envy of every man, Matt Weinstock says. Continue reading →

Posted in broadcasting, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on October 24, 1959: Matt Weinstock

October 24, 1907: Sanitarium Doctor Tells Patients to ‘Live on Love’ and Forget About Food

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1907: Upon the suicide of Dr. H. Russell Burner, advocate of the “radium milk” cure, his sanitarium was taken over by Dr. F.S. Kurpiers, who is now in trouble with the Health Department. Kurpiers didn’t have a medical license, so he obtained the certificate of Dr. C.H. King, a dying physician who wept as he told authorities that the only way he could support a few relatives was to rent out his license. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Crime and Courts, Medicine | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on October 24, 1907: Sanitarium Doctor Tells Patients to ‘Live on Love’ and Forget About Food

The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 4

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1871: Part 4 of a series on the Chinese Massacre. Continue reading →

Posted in 1871, Chinese Massacre, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 4

The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 3

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1871: Part 3 of a series on the Chinese Massacre. Continue reading →

Posted in 1871, Chinese Massacre, Crime and Courts | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 3

The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 – Part 2

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1871: Part 2 of a series on the Chinese Massacre. Continue reading →

Posted in 1871, Chinese Massacre, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 – Part 2

The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 1

Posted on October 24, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 24, 1871: Part 1 of a series on the Chinese Massacre. Continue reading →

Posted in 1871, Chinese Massacre, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , | Comments Off on The Chinese Massacre: October 24, 1871 — Part 1

October 23, 1957: Matt Weinstock

Posted on October 23, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 23, 1957: An intoxicated woman hails a police car, which provides a ride to jail. She’s freed, but then arrested for a warrant on a traffic ticket on a 1956 car — only she says she never owned a 1956 model, just a 1926 that she sold a year ago. Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Columnists, LAPD, Matt Weinstock | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 23, 1957: Matt Weinstock

October 23, 1947: Hollywood Fashion Designer, Partner Die Within Hours; Family Sues Over Estate of Men With ‘Strange Attachment’

Posted on October 23, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 23, 1947: Robert and Joseph were close — even in death. They shared a home filled with antiques, their bank accounts and were beneficiaries of each other’s wills. In fact, the families sued over their estates, charging that they were too close and had a “strange attachment.” Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on October 23, 1947: Hollywood Fashion Designer, Partner Die Within Hours; Family Sues Over Estate of Men With ‘Strange Attachment’

October 22, 1957: Matt Weinstock

Posted on October 22, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 22, 1957: Yelling “Boy!” for a copy boy has nearly disappeared from the newsroom, Matt Weinstock says. Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Matt Weinstock | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on October 22, 1957: Matt Weinstock

October 22, 1958: Mob suspected in bookie’s killing

Posted on October 22, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 22, 1958: Clifford Rue was a man who was ahead of his time when it came to sports results and behind on the payments to his bookie. Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD, San Fernando Valley | Comments Off on October 22, 1958: Mob suspected in bookie’s killing