Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

May 20, 1907: James G. Fleenor, L.A.’s ‘Barefoot Burglar,’ Recaptured!

Posted on May 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 20, 1907 Los Angeles Night jailer O.L. Gilpin thought the man in the drunk tank looked familiar—and indeed he was. Despite passing himself off as George Thompson, it was our old … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Streetcars | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: A Note to Fans of Piu Eatwell’s ‘Black Dahlia, Red Rose’

Posted on May 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Dear fans of Piu Eatwell’s “Black Dahlia, Red Rose” (I know there’s at least a few of you because you write to me): Leslie Dillon was absolutely, positively in San Francisco when Elizabeth Short was killed. Nothing else matters. Not … Continue reading →

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

May 18, 1947: Friends Raise Money to Buy Prosthetic Legs for Boy Injured by Unexploded Bazooka Shell

Posted on May 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 that originally appeared on the 1947project. Members of Cub Scout Pack 522-C gathered more than 32 tons in a paper drive to help buy artificial legs for injured pack member Jackie Cooper, … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: Sheriff’s Deputy Reprimanded for Striking Sentinel Staffer With Gun

Posted on May 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Florence Avenue and Hooper Avenue, via Google Street View. May 15, 1947: About 3 a.m. on April 17, 1947, Louis V. Cole of the Sentinel advertising department was delivering tear sheets of that week’s ads when his car stalled. Cole … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

May 18, 1907: Black Worker on Search for Lost Lumber Gets in Fatal Fight

Posted on May 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 18, 1907 Los Angeles William Mullen, a black strikebreaker for the Pioneer Truck Company, was delivering a shipment of lumber when he realized that he had lost some of his load … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1908, African Americans, Animals, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Photography, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on May 18, 1907: Black Worker on Search for Lost Lumber Gets in Fatal Fight

Black L.A. 1947: ‘Whites Only’ Jobs as Black Unemployment Rises

Posted on May 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 15, 1947: The Sentinel calls for a federal fair employment practices act. Below, racial preferences in classified ads in the Los Angeles Times.  

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May 17, 1907: Wife-Beating, Speeding Drivers and a Slashed Burro

Posted on May 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 17, 1907 Los Angeles Note: This is an encore post from 2006. The Le Canns continued their spat in court after Mrs. Le Cann showed Judge Chambers a piece of skin she said was torn from her lip when … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Streetcars | Comments Off on May 17, 1907: Wife-Beating, Speeding Drivers and a Slashed Burro

Black Dahlia: ‘We Got Our Asses Handed to Us’

Posted on May 16, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here’s a follow-up on Episode 5 of “It Was Him.” Wayne Wolfe Jr. sums up my interview on John Cameron’s theory about Ed Edwards and the Black Dahlia case.

Posted in 1947, 2018, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Television | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: World War II Veteran Kills Wife, Commits Suicide

Posted on May 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 15, 1947: Robert B. Hudson, 30, was “ambitious, quiet and conservative in his activities,” the Sentinel said. He was discharged from the service with the rank of staff sergeant after 27 months in the South Pacific. He and his … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Suicide | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black L.A. 1947: World War II Veteran Kills Wife, Commits Suicide

Mason Opera House

Posted on May 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006.

Posted in Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Streetcars | Comments Off on Mason Opera House

May 15, 1907: Police Raid Ladies-Only Gambling Parlor

Posted on May 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles May 15, 1907 Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Curious neighbors noticed recently that a large number of well-dressed women have been taking the streetcar to the end of the line at 54th Street and South … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Marion Davies’ Santa Monica Beachside Cottage

Posted on May 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

Marion Davies’ beach house, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Hollywood Heritage will celebrate Marion Davies’ birthday with a celebration Sunday, Jan. 22., at 2 p.m.  featuring Lara Gabrielle, author of Marion Davies: Captain of Her Soul, and a showing of Zander … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Marion Davies’ Santa Monica Beachside Cottage

1947: When History Shouldn’t Be Segregated

Posted on May 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and is one of my first comments on the 1947project blog, begun by Kim Cooper and Nathan Marsak. At that point, the Sentinel was not online. Where are the black people? I … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on May 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1932 Paramount picture “Million Dollar Legs,” with Jack Oakie, W.C. Fields, Andy Clyde, Lyda Roberti, Susan Fleming, Ben Turpin, Hugh Herbert, George Barbier and Dickie Moore. By Joseph L. Mankiewicz and Henry Myers, … Continue reading →

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

Black Dahlia: ‘It Was Him’ and Edward Wayne Edwards — No Way

Posted on May 12, 2018 by lmharnisch

Before you watch Episode 5 of “It Was Him,” (airing Monday at 9 p.m. on Paramount Net), which attempts to link Edward Wayne Edwards to the Black Dahlia case… Keep in mind: Edward Wayne Edwards was born June 14, 1933. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2018, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Coming Attractions, Crime and Courts, Homicide, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

May 12, 1947: Laura Trelstad Raped, Strangled, Left in Long Beach Oil Field

Posted on May 12, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is one of my first posts – as a comment – on the 1947Project. An encore from 2005. This is a reply to Mother of Three Choked to Death; Body Flung in Signal Hill Oil Field. This is, … Continue reading →

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May 12, 1907: History Deals a Deadly Hand

Posted on May 12, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 12, 1907 We’ve been having fun all week with the Shriners, parading around in their costumes, engaging in peculiar rites and pondering silly questions like “What Makes the Wildcat Wild?” Then … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, African Americans, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Thomas R. LeBlanc, Influential Figure in Los Angeles Music

Posted on May 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

LeBlanc’s Creole Band in an undated photo, via the Sentinel. May 8, 1947: I went down the research rabbit hole on the story of Thomas R. LeBlanc, who was featured in the Sentinel. This is a story that deserves more … Continue reading →

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May 10, 1907: A Murderous Sweep

Posted on May 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. All K. Tanimura wanted to do was clean the carpets at the Hotel Angelus at 407-411 S. Spring St. The sweeper, however, was broken so he sought help from the hotel’s carpenter, … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Homicide, LAPD, Streetcars | 3 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: John Thomas Trains at Main Street Gym for Bout With Enrique Bolanos at Wrigley Field

Posted on May 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 8, 1947: John Thomas begins training at the Main Street Gym for the California State lightweight championship match at Wrigley Field on June 3. Before being drafted into the Army, Thomas was an impressive young fighter and was scheduled … Continue reading →

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