Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Black L.A. 1947: ‘Why Negro Girls Stay Single’ by Pauli Murray

Posted on June 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Update, March 28, 2023: Pauli Murray’s essay in Negro Digest is online at Archive.org. June 19, 1947: The Sentinel publishes a few paragraphs on Pauli Murray’s essay, which appeared in the July 1947 issue of “Negro Digest.” Murray’s essay is frequently … Continue reading →

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

June 19, 1907: Soothing Music Helps Cures Insanity, Doctor Says

Posted on June 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 19, 1907 Los Angeles What shall we do with the insane? Don’t give them drugs… give them music! (Well, some music). Dr. E.C. Dent of the hospital for women on Ward’s … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Food and Drink, Medicine, Music, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Napoleon

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1932 Warner Bros. film “The Mouthpiece,” by Frank Collins, directed by James Flood and Elliott Nugent. The film features Warren William, Sidney Fox, Aline MacMahon, John Wray, Mae Madison, Ralph Ince, Morgan Wallace, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 31 Comments

June 18, 1947: Actor Jon Hall Says Tale of Being Shot Down in Plane Was a Hoax

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The day before, The Times reported a curious incident in which a bullet tore into the propeller of the plane shortly after it took off for … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Aviation, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

June 18, 1907: Immigration Agent Accused of Poisoning Neighbor’s Dog

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 18, 1907 Los Angeles The victim: A collie named Baby The plaintiff: Hazel G. (or Ella M.) Schurger, 1156 S. Flower. The suspect: J.J. Brady of the Immigration Bureau, a next-door … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Animals, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Fashions, Immigration, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged , , | Comments Off on June 18, 1907: Immigration Agent Accused of Poisoning Neighbor’s Dog

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mary Andrews Clark Home Provides Affordable Housing

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

306 Loma Drive, via Google Street View. Long a beautiful site at 306 Loma Drive in Los Angeles, the Mary Andrews Clark Memorial Home has been a site of affordable housing for more than 100 years. Built by Sen. William … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Sept. 30, 1886: ‘An Orgie Such as Even the Most Salacious Pen of Ancient Rome Never Dared Describe’

Posted on June 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

Sept. 30, 1886: We decided to dig out the original quote from Joe Mozingo’s history of the Los Angeles Times in Sunday’s paper. And let it be said that the editorial pages of frontier newspapers were not known for their … Continue reading →

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June 17, 1947: Bank Robber Shot in Head During Gunfight With LAPD Officers

Posted on June 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post and originally appeared in 2005 on the 1947project. In the spring of 1968, Times reporter Charles Hillinger went up to San Luis Obispo for a story about a prison facility for elderly convicts, like … Continue reading →

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June 16, 1947: LAPD Officers Hidden in Bar Kill Watchman Stealing Liquor

Posted on June 16, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. This was a follow-up to Kim Cooper’s original post on Wanzy Patterson, an unfortunate watchman who was helping himself to liquor while guarding a bar. Two … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Crime and Courts, Food and Drink, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

June 16, 1907: Lawyer Edith Foulkes Handles Her Own Divorce Case

Posted on June 16, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 16, 1907 Los Angeles Despite the old saying—a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client—Edith Foulkes is a smart woman, at least in the courtroom. She can’t make … Continue reading →

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June 15, 1947: Visiting the Edgar Kaufmann House in Palm Springs

Posted on June 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Tract developments may be sprawling across the Valley, but The Times’ Sunday Home section for June 15, 1947, features an unusual house designed for the California … Continue reading →

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June 15, 2005: Remembering UCLA Professor Eric Monkkonen

Posted on June 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The Times reports the death of UCLA professor Eric Monkkonen, who spent years studying murder in the U.S. and focused on Los Angeles. Among his many … Continue reading →

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June 15, 1907: Grieving Widow Cuts Off Hand to ‘Free Husband’s Soul’

Posted on June 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 15, 1907 Los Angeles Helen Hurley paused at the doors of St. Vibiana’s Cathedral. In pain, she shoved her left wrist inside her dress so that it wouldn’t show as she … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: The Sentinel’s Hotel Listings

Posted on June 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

The Golden West Manor Motel, 3700 S. Western, via Google Street View. June 12, 1947: The Western Motel, at 37th Street and South Western Avenue, advertised in the Sentinel that it was “clean, comfortable, modern” with “special accommodations for theatrical … Continue reading →

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June 14, 1907: 3 Berkeley Students Walk Home to L.A. in 27 Days

Posted on June 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 14, 1907 Los Angeles Like many young men, Stuart, Sayre and Maynard decided to walk home from school—but it was a bit farther for these college friends because they were going … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Education, Hollywood, LAPD, Transportation | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

‘Little Shoes’: An Author’s Journey of Discovery in Unlocking a Family Tragedy From 1930s L.A.

Posted on June 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

A family’s history is tricky even in the best of circumstances; the past may be sanitized and rewritten for consumption by the next generation. When tragedy is involved, family stories become murky or are simply locked away. So it was … Continue reading →

Posted in 1937, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: Ask Evangeline — In Love With a Married Man

Posted on June 13, 2018 by lmharnisch
Posted in 1947, African Americans | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

June 13, 1947: California Takes First Steps to Reduce Smog

Posted on June 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

A sample card from the Ringelmann Smoke Chart. Note: This is an encore post and originally appeared in 2005 on the 1947project. Shall we talk about noir? Let’s start with the skies over Los Angeles, which are so dirty that … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Environment | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: Who Is This Man?

Posted on June 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. I recently obtained an original copy of The Times’ March 28, 1971, story “Farewell, My Black Dahlia,” which includes the account of the “Boy on the Bicycle.” Here’s a color picture of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment