Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Education, History, World War II | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 6, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2013. You might have to hunt a bit for Don Normark’s 1999 book “Chavez Ravine, 1949,” but your search will be rewarded. The photos are terrific and the residents’ recollections make the book even … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Cat Movie (Updated)

Posted on December 6, 2017 by lmharnisch

As a bonus, we have another Mystery Cat Movie, totally unrelated to Mystery Cat Movie No. 1 and Mystery Cat Movie No. 2. Brain Trust roll call: Sylvia E (Mystery Cat Movie and mystery drunk doctor), Joe Vogel (Mystery Cat … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 5, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2013. Whenever I’m asked about my favorite books on Los Angeles, my first recommendation is “Nuestro Pueblo,” a selection of features by Times artist Charles Owens and writer Joseph Seewerker that appeared in The … Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 4, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2013. True style never goes out of date, after all. We are being bombarded by stories about Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with videos of long lines at stores and the attendant consumer frenzy. … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 4, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1945 20th Century-Fox film “Hangover Square,” with Laird Cregar, Linda Darnell, George Sanders, Glenn Langan, Faye Marlow and Alan Napier, with a screenplay by Barre Lyndon from the novel by Patrick Hamilton. Music … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 49 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Ivan Mosjoukine, the Man With the Piercing Eyes

Posted on December 4, 2017 by lmharnisch

Ivan Mosjoukine, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Not as well known as other silent film stars like Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, Buster Keaton or Rudolph Valentino, the recently rediscovered Russian motion picture actor … Continue reading →

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Found on Craigslist: Oviatt Display Case (With Alterations)

Posted on December 3, 2017 by lmharnisch

A vendor on Craigslist has listed what is claimed to be a display case from the Oviatt Building for $12,500. Note this disclaimer: “Updated glass shelves and lighting have been added.” So it’s not in original condition.

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Howard Greer Inc., Maison of Haute Couture

Posted on November 27, 2017 by lmharnisch

Howard Greer in Modern Screen, 1933. Long before Adrian left MGM to set up his own couture house, Paramount Pictures’ costume designer Howard Greer established a tony modiste shop on Sunset Boulevard catering to the needs and desires of many … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on November 27, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1945 Paramount film “Two Years Before the Mast,” with Alan Ladd, Brian Donlevy, William Bendix, Barry Fitzgerald, Howard da Silva, Esther Fernandez, Albert Dekker, Luis Van Rooten, Darryl Hickman, Roman Bohnen, Ray Collins, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 41 Comments

L.A. Celebrates a Wartime Thanksgiving, 1943

Posted on November 23, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post from 2013. Happy Thanksgiving! A wartime Thanksgiving in Los Angeles, with many service personnel welcomed into people’s homes for a holiday meal. The Times published cooking tips for war workers, advising cooks who were otherwise … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Food and Drink, World War II | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

An 1890s Thanksgiving in the Kitchen

Posted on November 23, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2011. Happy Thanksgiving! Here’s a traditional roast turkey recipe from the “Every-Day Cook-Book and Family Compendium,” written about 1890 by Miss E. Neill. Be sure your fire is bright and clear and watch out … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: T.L. Tally – L.A.’s Pioneer Film Exhibitor, Part 2

Posted on November 20, 2017 by lmharnisch

  “The Great Corbett Fight” at Tally’s theater.   Former Texan T. L. (Thomas) Tally pioneered early film exhibition practices in the film metropolis of Los Angeles, catering to the needs of his audiences. Always enamored with technology, he seemed … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Broadway, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Theaters | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: T.L. Tally – L.A.’s Pioneer Film Exhibitor, Part 2

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on November 20, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been MGM’s 1929 film “The Kiss,” which was the studio’s (and Greta Garbo’s) last silent film. It stars Garbo, Conrad Nagel and Holmes Herbert. From the story by George M. Saville, scenario by Hans Kraly, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 30 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on November 13, 2017 by lmharnisch

    This week’s mystery movie has been the 1936 RKO film “Two in the Dark,” with Walter Abel, Margo Grahame, Wallace Ford, Gail Patrick, Alan Hale, Leslie Fenton, Eric Blore, Erin O’Brien-Moore, Erik Rhodes, J. Carroll Naish and Addison … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 36 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Studio Club Provides Home For Movie-Struck Girls

Posted on November 13, 2017 by lmharnisch

The Studio Club in Photoplay, 1917. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. T he advent of the 20th century offered the possibility of more freedom and opportunity for women. For decades, women had advocated for the right to … Continue reading →

Posted in 1916, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on November 6, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1948 British film “No Orchids for Miss Blandish,” from the novel by James Hadley Chase, with Jack La Rue, Hugh McDermott, Linden Travers, Walter Crisham, Leslie Bradley, Zoe Gail, Jack Durant, Charles Goldner, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – The Cahuenga Building

Posted on November 6, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. From its days as an elegant bank building to its abandoned and forgotten existence in the 1980s and 1990s, the former Security Trust and Savings Bank at Hollywood Boulevard and Cahuenga Boulevard … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A Reminder From the Daily Mirror

Posted on November 5, 2017 by lmharnisch

Pier Angeli and friend remind the Daily Mirror readers to turn the clock back one hour.

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

Black Dahlia: The Biltmore Hotel, Ghost Hunting and Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on October 31, 2017 by lmharnisch

I think we have found one presumably young and aspiring reporter who apparently believes in doing absolutely no research whatsoever.

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments