Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Ida May Park Finds Direction in Films

Posted on March 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Ida May Park in Photoplay. Virtually forgotten today, Los Angeles-born Ida May Park earned the distinction of being one of the first women to direct feature films in early Hollywood, as well as write and produce, before being pushed … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 53 — Imagine My Surprise

Posted on March 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Crime That Transfixed Los Angeles.” Wolfe is using the “Laura” format, … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on March 26, 2018 by lmharnisch

  This week’s mystery movie has been the 1948 Warner Bros. picture “Romance on the High Seas,” with Jack Carson, Janis Paige, Don De Fore, Doris Day, Oscar Levant, S.Z. Sakall, Fortunio Bonanova, Eric Blore, William Bakewell, Franklin Pangborn, Avon … Continue reading →

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

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 52 — The Numbers Game

Posted on March 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Murder That Transfixed Los Angeles.” Wolfe is using the “Laura” format … Continue reading →

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March 25, 1907: Young Bike Messengers a Key Part of L.A. Drug, Sex Trade

Posted on March 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Technology has changed, but people have not. Simply because they lived nearly a century ago doesn’t mean Angelenos were unable to indulge their vices, they simply procured them in a different manner. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 2006, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Food and Drink, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 51 — Slinging Hash

Posted on March 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob (and were are those pesky thugs, anyway?), the Mogul (missing in action so far) and … Continue reading →

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Dec. 4, 1911: Man Arrested for ‘Masquerading in Female Attire’

Posted on March 24, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 4, 1911 Clarence Westfall, 22 years old, was taken into custody at San Pedro yesterday afternoon when a boat from San Diego docked. He was arrested for having masqueraded in female … Continue reading →

Posted in 1908, 1911, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Fashions, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 50 — Trying to Make It Real Compared to What

Posted on March 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Murder That Transfixed Los Angeles.” Wolfe is using the “Laura” format, in … Continue reading →

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March 23, 1907: At L.A. Orphanage, a Page From Dickens

Posted on March 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. For some time, the teachers at the Casco Street School had been concerned about the pupils from the nearby Christian Orphanage. But finally the problems became too great to ignore. “One small … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1912, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Education, Food and Drink, LAPD, Pasadena, Religion, Streetcars | 3 Comments

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 49 — Family Ties

Posted on March 22, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files,” more properly titled “Stuff I Scraped Out of ‘Severed’ Thanks to John Gilmore, Who Calls My Book … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 48 — An Army of One

Posted on March 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul (and where is that darn Mogul, anyway?) and the Murder That Transfixed Los … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 48 — An Army of One

Acrobats

Posted on March 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Americans at the turn of the century lacked many things, but they had some amazing live entertainment. Here’s a snip of a performance courtesy of Edison Studios, 1904. These guys rock. I … Continue reading →

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Anne Redding: SBCC Faculty Lecture on ‘Crime Across the Curriculum’

Posted on March 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Anne Redding, courtesy of Santa Barbara City College. Anne Redding, chair of the School of Justice Studies at Santa Barbara City College, will present the annual faculty lecture tomorrow on “Crime Across the Curriculum.” Redding’s lecture will examine the impact … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 47 — Wax On, Wax Off

Posted on March 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files (which have been mostly ignored so far): The Mob (a bit of that), the Mogul (no sign … Continue reading →

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March 20, 1907: St. James Raises a Church — Burned in 1973 as Hate Crime Against Gays

Posted on March 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. The Methodist Episcopal congregation, formed from a merger of the Centennial and Central churches, planned a wonderful new building at 22nd Street and Union. Although the congregation studied the idea of a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1917, Architecture, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Religion, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Second Universal City Celebrates Its Centennial

Posted on March 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Universal City in the Washington Times, Feb. 10, 1915. Note: This is an encore post from 2015. In an age where businesses come and go, bought up by larger competitors or going under due to bad financial decisions, finding one … Continue reading →

Posted in 1915, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Second Universal City Celebrates Its Centennial

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on March 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1946 20th Century-Fox picture “The Dark Corner” with Lucille Ball, Clifton Webb, William Bendix, Mark Stevens, Kurt Kreuger, Cathy Downs, Reed Hadley, Constance Collier and Eddie Heywood and His Orchestra. The screenplay was … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 33 Comments

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 46 — Snooze Alarm

Posted on March 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Murder That Transfixed Los Angeles.” Wolfe is using the “Laura” format, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 46 — Snooze Alarm

Black Dahlia: Blogging ‘Black Dahlia Files’ Part 45 — Nothing but Compost

Posted on March 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I’m blogging in real time as I read Donald H. Wolfe’s “The Black Dahlia Files: The Mob, the Mogul and the Murder That Transfixed Los Angeles.” Wolfe is using the “Laura” format … Continue reading →

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March 18, 1907: In L.A. Schools, Young Ivan and Josefina Learn English

Posted on March 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. “Who was the first man?” asked the teacher of an American boy. “Washington,” was the reply. He was reminded of Adam and observed: “Yes, if you count foreigners.” Henrietta B. Freeman paid … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1910, 1912, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Education, LAPD, Music, Streetcars | Comments Off on March 18, 1907: In L.A. Schools, Young Ivan and Josefina Learn English