Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide – The Queens Cocktail

Posted on December 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2017. Joe Vogel asks if there was a Queens Cocktail. The answer is yes. According to the Jamaica Long Island Daily Press, Jan. 24, 1935, the Queens Cocktail debuted at the Hotel Commodore … Continue reading →

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News Quiz, 1947: How Many Stories of the Year Do You Know?

Posted on December 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. I think of it as a report card from the past. For the last few months, the 47P has explored stories that seemed important or unusual, … Continue reading →

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Dec. 30, 1907: Old Soldiers of the Civil War, Held as Drunks, Get Free Run of Jail

Posted on December 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 30, 1907 Los Angeles James Sullivan, 64, was a prisoner of the Confederates held at Belle Isle, Libby and Andersonville, where he and war correspondent Albert D. Richardson escaped by tunneling … Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — The Bronx Cocktail

Posted on December 29, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Dec. 20, 1934: In case you doubted me (but you wouldn’t, would you?), here’s a recipe for the Bronx Cocktail, from the Amsterdam Evening Recorder, courtesy of FultonHistory.com. In case you plan … Continue reading →

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Dec. 29, 1907: The City Grows

Posted on December 29, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 29, 1907 Los Angeles The Times real estate pages feature homes under construction around Washington Boulevard west of Hobart Boulevard. “This section is just being built up with a splendid class … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Architecture, Real Estate, Streetcars | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide — The Brooklyn Cocktail

Posted on December 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Yes, the Manhattan cocktail once had competition from drinks named for the other boroughs. Here’s a recipe for the Brooklyn Cocktail, from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 7, 1937. The Brooklyn Cocktail … Continue reading →

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Architectural Ramblings

Posted on December 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Dec. 28, 2006 Los Angeles As promised, here are some photos of a few neighborhoods I visited recently.   Views of South Pasadena

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: The Harvey Wallbanger

Posted on December 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

A vintage 1972 iron-on transfer of Harvey Wallbanger himself, on EBay for $12. Note: This is a repost from 2013. We have been looking at some historic drinks for this holiday season. To the millennials in the audience: This is … Continue reading →

Posted in 1971, Food and Drink, Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Dec. 27, 1947: Youth Questioned in Georgette Bauerdorf Killing

Posted on December 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The last words her neighbors heard were “Stop, stop, you’re killing me!” as she fought hard for her life. The housekeeper found the body in … Continue reading →

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Dec. 27, 1907: Oklahoma Lynching — A Grim Record for New State

Posted on December 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 27, 1907 Henryetta, Okla., by the Associated Press A little more than a month after Oklahoma achieved statehood, James Garden became a wretched statistic: the first black to be lynched there. … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: This Week’s Jukebox Hits

Posted on December 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Dec. 25, 1947: “Call It Stormy Monday” by T-Bone Walker is on the hit parade. On the jump, “Railroad Porter Blues” by Eddie Vinson and “Money’s Getting Cheaper” by Johnny Moore’s Three Blazers.

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Drinking Guide: A Brief History of the Tom and Jerry

Posted on December 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

A recipe for the Tom and Jerry from the San Francisco Call, June 30, 1912. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Over on Facebook, Christopher McPherson asked whether the Tom and Jerry was named for the MGM cartoon … Continue reading →

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Dec. 26, 1947: No Sympathy for Alcoholics!

Posted on December 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. On Christmas Eve 1947, the LAPD arrested 35 adults for drunk driving, 2 juveniles for drunk driving, and 19 for being drunk in an automobile. Of … Continue reading →

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Dec. 26, 1907: Minister Rejects New ‘Godless’ U.S. Coins

Posted on December 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 26, 1907 Pittsburgh, by direct wire to The Times As Christmas celebrations concluded at Knoxville Presbyterian Church, the congregation presented the Rev. W.A. Jones with $100 ($2,052.36 USD 2005). A banker … Continue reading →

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Dec. 25, 1947: The Times Christmas Poem

Posted on December 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The Times’ front-page Christmas and Easter poems are as forgotten today as their author, James M. Warnack. I’ll leave it to my theological betters to parse … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Books and Authors, Obituaries, Religion | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Los Angeles Celebrates Christmas, 1913

Posted on December 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Dec. 25, 1913: The Times carries a biblical passage across the nameplate (notice the artwork of the new and old Times buildings) and a Page 1 cartoon by Edmund Waller “Ted” Gale. … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1964 film (copyright 1963) “7 Faces of Dr. Lao,” with Tony Randall, Barbara Eden, Arthur O’Connell, John Ericson, Noah Beery Jr., Minerva Urecal, Frank Kreig, Eddie Little Sky, Lee Patrick, John Qualen, Peggy … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 56 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘White Christmas’ Soothes the Home Front in 1942

Posted on December 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds and Virginia Dale in “Holiday Inn.” Note: This is an encore post from 2015. Recognized today as one of the top selling singles and pieces of sheet music of all time, Irving Berlin’s “White … Continue reading →

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Dec. 24, 1947: LAPD Seeks 700 Officers and L. Ron Hubbard Answers the Call

Posted on December 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Dec. 24, 1947 One of the applicants appears to have been future Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Records show that he was fingerprinted Dec. 31, … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: 6 Reasons Dr. George Hodel Didn’t Kill Elizabeth Short — No. 6 No Connection

Posted on December 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Elizabeth Short contrasted with the unidentified woman found in George Hodel’s photo album. Not at all the same. Here are six reasons Dr. George Hodel did not kill Elizabeth Short that you will need to know before watching the TNT … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments