Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

July 9, 1907: L.A. Converts Abandoned Church to House Inmates From Crowded Jail

Posted on July 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 9, 1907 Los Angeles Grace Methodist Episcopal Church on Hewitt Street was barren; the pastor had gone away and the congregation had moved on. And so the City Council, in struggling … Continue reading →

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July 7, 1947: 4,000 Bikers in ‘Gypsy Tour’ Wreak Havoc in Hollister

Posted on July 7, 2018 by lmharnisch

“Hey, Johnny, what are you rebelling against?” “What’ve you got?”

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July 6, 1947: 1930 Duesenberg Convertible for Sale. Best Offer

Posted on July 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

Sigh.

Posted in 1930, 1947, Transportation | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Mechanical Engineer Publishes First Book

Posted on July 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Hard at work as a mechanical engineer during the day, the former naval aviation researcher still finds time to do a little writing. At the moment … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Books and Authors | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

July 5, 1907: Beer Is the Health Drink, Like ‘Liquid Bread’

Posted on July 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 5, 1907 Los Angeles See here, you pesky temperance workers, beer is “liquid bread.” It’s good for you.

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L.A. Celebrates the Fourth of July 1889 – 1960

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

July 4, 1944: Uncle Sam in a cartoon by Edmund Waller “Ted” Gale for the Los Angeles Examiner and republished in the Milwaukee Sentinel.   Note: This is an encore post from 2014. Here’s a look at how Los Angeles … Continue reading →

Posted in 1863, 1907, 1910, 1947, 1957, 1960 | Tagged | 2 Comments

July 4, 1947: Man Convicted of Dog Atrocity

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post that originally appeared on the 1947project, but in June rather than July. Oops.

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1944 on the Radio — The Fourth of July, 1944

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. July 4, 1944 ”The Make-Believe Sheriff” is the title of today’s episode of “The Green Hornet.” Otrrlibrary.org via Archive.org ”Lum and Abner” are building a health resort on grandpappy’s farm. Otrrlibrary.org via … Continue reading →

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A Wartime Fourth of July: Los Angeles, 1942

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post from 2015. Years ago, in researching Camp Cooke, I bought the diary of a soldier named Harry A. Rankin, who was stationed there in 1942 and early 1943 (and no, he doesn’t mention Elizabeth Short). … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, Black Dahlia, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Can This Be the Fourth of July?

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 4, 1907 Los Angeles And how does Los Angeles celebrate Independence Day? With cricket matches and bagpipe contests.

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Fashions, LAPD, Music, Parks, Streetcars | Comments Off on Can This Be the Fourth of July?

July 4, 1863: Los Angeles Celebrates the Fourth of July With Pic-Nics and Fire-Works

Posted on July 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

The complete July 4, 1863, issue of the Los Angeles Star is available from USC, which scanned  a copy at the Huntington. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. July 4, 1863: Los Angeles plans to celebrate the Fourth … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Sugar Chile Robinson and a Review of ‘Crossfire’

Posted on July 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Sugar Chile Robinson performs at the Lincoln. I should do an entire post on him, but so many stories and only one Larry Harnisch. July 3, 1947: One of the regular complaints in my Twitter feed is about the lack … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, Music | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

July 3, 1947: Flying Saucers Over Beverly Hills!

Posted on July 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. This is where the 1947 Project intersects with other 1947 Project. Mysterious flying discs were reported June 28 over New Mexico, prompting sarcastic letters to The … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Aviation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

July 3, 1907: Head of Anti-Fakers League Says Gunfire Was Real

Posted on July 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 3, 1907 Los Angeles Robert T. Hall, head of the Los Angeles Anti-Fakers League (or Anti-Fakers Society), says shots were fired at him as he returned from an outing to a … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1955 Warner Bros. film “Illegal,” and yes, it is the studio’s second remake of “The Mouthpiece.” With Edward G. Robinson, Nina Foch, Hugh Marlowe, Jayne Mansfield, Albert Dekker, Howard St. John, Ellen Corby, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , | 43 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Emma Lazarus’ ‘The New Colossus’ Calls to All Immigrants

Posted on July 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Construction of the Statue of Liberty, artwork by John Durkin, Harper’s Weekly, Jan. 19, 1884. Written in 1883 to help raise money for building the pedestal on which the Statue of Liberty would stand, Emma Lazarus’ 14-line poem “The New … Continue reading →

Posted in 1884, Hollywood Heights, Immigration, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

July 2, 1947: Man Held in Strangling of Mary Tate

Posted on July 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. This is, of course, a murder frequently tossed into the Black Dahlia file by crime books such as “The Cases That Haunt Us” and “Black Dahlia … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

July 1, 1947: ‘Mom and Dad’ — Elliot Forbes and Sexploitation in the 1940s

Posted on July 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Well, we know where this story is going. Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. I had never heard of this particular cinematic triumph, but it was apparently a fixture of sexploitation … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

July 1, 1907: What Was the Gas Mileage of the Horseless Carriage?

Posted on July 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 1, 1907 Los Angeles If you ever wondered if the Locomobile or Pope-Hartford got great gas mileage, the answer is no, as shown in the results of the 185-mile Lakeside Endurance … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Streetcars, Transportation | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

June 30, 1947: Albert Goldberg Becomes L.A. Times Music Critic

Posted on June 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Thus began a career that endured past his retirement in 1965—making way for Martin Bernheimer—until shortly before his death in 1990 at the age of 91. … Continue reading →

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