Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

June 6, 1947: American POW Recognizes Sadistic Japanese Prison Camp Guard in L.A. Store

Posted on June 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. On D-Day plus three years, Los Angeles was torn between the past and the future. And in one instance, the past and its aftermath were the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Crime and Courts, World War II | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: 5 LAPD Officers Injured in 3 Fights

Posted on June 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

June 5, 1947: Christopher W. Bankhead, who was injured in a plane crash during World War II, dies of a heart “ailment” while cutting a customer’s hair at William McKinney’s barbershop, 4012 S. Central Ave. LAPD Officers S. Goldman and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

June 6, 1907: Miner Sues Tenderfoot Prospector for Shooting Pet Horse

Posted on June 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 6, 1907 San Bernardino The miners of the Silver Lake camp out in San Bernardino didn’t take the tenderfoot too seriously. His name was Fred Myton and he presented himself as … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Animals, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on June 6, 1907: Miner Sues Tenderfoot Prospector for Shooting Pet Horse

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 23rd Annual S.F. Silent Film Festival Celebrates World Cinema

Posted on June 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

Kevin Brownlow’s 80th birthday was celebrated with a showing of “Mare Nostrum.” Image courtesy of the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. Coming at a time when walls and words separate more people than ever, the 23rd Annual San Francisco Silent … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo

Posted on June 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

For Tuesday, we have another mystery woman from the Library of Congress. Anybody recognize her?

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

June 4, 1947: Television Comes to Los Angeles

Posted on June 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Those curious metal arrays being installed with great ceremony on the city’s rooftops are antennas, for this is the year of the one-eyed wonder: Television. In … Continue reading →

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Celebrity Politicians: Hollywood’s Honorary Mayors, Part I

Posted on June 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Photo: Hugh Herbert, honorary mayor of Studio City, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Tomorrow is election day. Elections and politics are important to everyone, be they Joe Citizen or Joseph Kennedy. Over the … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Politics, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo

Posted on June 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Eve Golden sends along this picture to see if anybody in the Brain Trust can help the Library of Congress identify our mystery woman.

Posted in Mystery Photo | Tagged | 6 Comments

June 4, 1907: ‘Tiger Fat’ and ‘Nerve Balls’: State Medical Board Charges Chinese Herbalists

Posted on June 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 4, 1907 Los Angeles After months of inquiries that involved undercover investigators posing as patients, the State Board of Medical Examiners has taken action against Chinese herbalists in Los Angeles. In … Continue reading →

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June 3, 1947: Soldiers Fight Army’s Ban on Japanese Brides

Posted on June 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

 Note: This is an encore post from 2005 that originally appeared on the 1947project. It was a tough problem for the armed services. In March, an Air Forces lieutenant at Tachikawa Air Base and “a beautiful Japanese girl” killed themselves … Continue reading →

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June 3, 1907: Runaway Couple, Aided by Minister, Leave Parents at the Altar

Posted on June 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 3, 1907 Los Angeles It was to be one of the grandest society weddings of the season: An orchestra was hired, a caterer had been selected after lengthy interviews, gowns for … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Medicine, Obituaries, Religion | Tagged , , | Comments Off on June 3, 1907: Runaway Couple, Aided by Minister, Leave Parents at the Altar

June 2, 1947: Erwin Walker Pleads Insanity in ‘He Walked by Night’ Killing of CHP Officer

Posted on June 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The Erwin Walker case is the crossroads of several important stories. The victim was Loren Roosevelt, fired in the 1930s as Arcadia’s police chief in an … Continue reading →

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A Theater Rises on Broadway

Posted on June 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 2, 1907 Los Angeles The Hamburger Department Store announces plans for a theater just south of its new building on South Broadway at 8th Street, designed by the architecture firm of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1908, Architecture, Broadway, Downtown, Streetcars, Theaters | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on A Theater Rises on Broadway

June 1, 1947: Sea Monster Overpowers Troops, Destroys Tokyo! L.A. Men Celebrate Armed Forces Radio’s 5th Anniversary With Hoax

Posted on June 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Was “Godzilla” inspired by a 1947 radio hoax?

Posted in 1947, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

June 1, 1907: Former L.A. Councilman Charged With Running Bordello

Posted on June 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 1, 1907 Los Angeles Voir dire, in which lawyers question prospective jurors, is a rough and tumble affair, especially when the case involves prostitution. The matter at hand involves Tom Savage, … Continue reading →

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May 31, 1947: Los Angeles Marks First Memorial Day Without a Civil War Veteran at Ceremony

Posted on May 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Memorial Day, 1947, was a spectacle marked with a parade from Westwood to the veterans cemetery, services for Spanish-American veterans in Pershing Square and even a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Civil War | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

May 10, 1943: Heartbreaking Story of ‘Punky,’ 14, Who Succeeded in Killing Herself on 7th Try

Posted on May 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 that originally appeared on the 1947project. You can’t help but notice in going through old newspapers that suicides and divorces (especially in the days before no-fault divorces) were treated as daily “brites,” … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Obituaries, Suicide | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: DAR Reaffirms Ban on Black Performers at Constitution Hall

Posted on May 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

May 29, 1947:  The Daughters of the American Revolution, holding its annual convention in Washington, affirms its ban on African American performers at Constitution Hall. A story by the Associated Negro Press notes that Eleanor Roosevelt resigned from the DAR … Continue reading →

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

May 31, 1907: Memorial Day

Posted on May 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 31, 1907 Los Angeles In one Memorial Day observance, Col. James H. Davidson of Pasadena addresses the crowd at Memorial Hall. He says, in part: “Another decade or two and taps … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, LAPD, Pasadena, Streetcars | Comments Off on May 31, 1907: Memorial Day

May 30, 1907: Hop Chung, Chinese Laundryman, Presses Zoning Case in Court

Posted on May 31, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. May 30, 1907 Los Angeles Hop Chung is in trouble again. Chung, it seems, is no stranger to the legal system, with a police record going back to 1883. Ten years later, … Continue reading →

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