Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Black Dahlia: A Concert Program Inscribed to ‘Betty Short’ … From 1959. Wut?

Posted on May 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here’s an opportunity to buy a program from a David Rubinoff performance that was inscribed to “Eva and Betty Short” … for $150 …

Posted in 1947, 1959, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Found on EBay | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

May 27, 1947: More Uses for Tomato Soup!

Posted on May 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Here’s a little curio from the pre-Trader Joe’s era: More Uses Found for Good Old Tomato Soup BY MARIAN MANNERS Condensed cream of tomato soup has … Continue reading →

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May 27, 1907: Prospector Rescued in Desert Tells Motorist: ‘This Is the Kind of a Horse’

Posted on May 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 27, 1907 Death Valley, Calif. George Freeman and his wife of Pasadena, accompanied by Charles Fuller Gates of Los Angeles, were motoring out to Death Valley in a Pierce-Arrow along the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Pasadena, Streetcars | 1 Comment

May 26, 1947: Otto Parzyjegla and the Killing of Alfred Haij

Posted on May 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. As tragic as it is, the Otto Parzyjegla case is wonderful example of the distinct contrasts between the murder of Alfred Haij and Elizabeth Short, and … Continue reading →

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May 26, 1907: Inventor of Miracle ‘Hot Air Engine’ Lives Lavishly, Then Vanishes

Posted on May 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Only a few months before, William R. Leroy of Pennsylvania was a struggling inventor, moonlighting as a stevedore in Santa Monica and in the Fullerton oilfields. Walking to work because even the lowly streetcar fare was a luxury, Leroy labored … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Parks, Streetcars | Comments Off on May 26, 1907: Inventor of Miracle ‘Hot Air Engine’ Lives Lavishly, Then Vanishes

May 25, 1947: ‘Gentleman’s Agreement’ and ‘Human Destiny’ Lead L.A. Bestsellers

Posted on May 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. .

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May 25, 1907: From the Recording Horn

Posted on May 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 25, 1907 Los Angeles Sold on the installment plan, $1 a week with the purchase of six records at 60 cents each, the Victor Talking Machines offered performances by Caruso, Melba … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: ‘Dark Baby’ Scare Untrue

Posted on May 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

  May 22, 1947: The London Daily Mail reported that “5,000 Negro-fathered babies were to be sent” to the U.S., according to the Pittsburgh Courier. The Daily Mail also reported that a ship was being provided to bring the children. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, World War II | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

May 24, 1947: Where Is the Overell House?

Posted on May 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Of course, all through this period is the sensational case of Bud Gollum and Louise Overell, who were accused of killing her wealthy parents by blowing … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Architecture, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

May 24, 1907: LAPD Motorcycle Officers Charge Driver and Passengers With Speeding

Posted on May 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 24, 1907 Los Angeles Otis Skinner, the actor starring in “The Duel” at the Mason Opera House,” is under arrest because of a curious regulation in which passengers of a speeding … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: America’s First Black Ballet Company Founded in L.A.

Posted on May 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 22, 1947: I cannot do justice to Joseph Rickard in a brief blog post. It’s enough to say that he was a visionary who began what is probably America’s first black ballet troupe, predating the Dance Theatre of Harlem … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Dance | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

May 23, 1947: Lloyd Osbourne Dies; Inspired Stepfather Robert Louis Stevenson to Write ‘Treasure Island’

Posted on May 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 that originally appeared on the 1947project. The May 23-24 papers are full of great, crazy stories. It’s hard to choose just one: Is it Britain about to partition India, which got buried … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Racism on the Menu as Bullock’s Tea Room Refuses to Serve Blacks

Posted on May 22, 2018 by lmharnisch

The former Bullock’s downtown store at 7th and Hill Streets, via Google Street View. May 22, 1947: The campaign to integrate the tea room of Bullock’s downtown store apparently began with Edith Cotterell, who had an account at the department … Continue reading →

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May 22, 1947: Art Club Calls LACMA Exhibit ‘Subversive Propaganda’

Posted on May 22, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The California Art Club yesterday lambasted the current Los Angeles County Museum art exhibit—the museum’s eighth annual show—as favoring “radical art” and containing “subversive propaganda.” …Edward … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Art & Artists, Museums | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Trash

Posted on May 22, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Note: This is an encore post from 2006.

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 6533 Cahuenga Terrace, Designed for a Diva

Posted on May 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

An overhead view of 6533 Cahuenga Terrace, via Google Street View. Hyperbole reigns in the world of real estate listings, inflating a dump into a dream palace or attempting to gild a lily. Nowhere is this more prevalent than around … Continue reading →

Posted in Another Good Story Ruined, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Music, Stage | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on May 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1970 film “The Boys in the Band,” with Kenneth Nelson, Frederick Combs, Cliff Gorman, Laurence Luckinbill, Keith Prentice, Peter White, Reuben Greene, Robert La Tourneaux and Leonard Frey. Written and produced by Mart … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 44 Comments

May 21, 1947: South Carolina Jury Acquits 28 in Lynching

Posted on May 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. For the record An earlier headline on this post incorrectly reported the length of the jury’s deliberations. It was five hours and 15 minutes, not 15 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

May 21, 1907: J.G. Fleenor ‘Barefoot Burglar’ Talks!

Posted on May 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. In a jailhouse interview before he was taken to San Quentin, James G. Fleenor, the barefoot burglar, set the record straight on his escapes, his relationship with a white woman and how … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Real Estate, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

May 20, 1947: Madman Muntz Sells Cars at a Bargain

Posted on May 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project.

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