Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Black Dahlia: ‘Severed’ Author John Gilmore Dead at 81 (Updated)

Posted on January 12, 2017 by lmharnisch

John Gilmore is dead? Really? Hidden in yet another rehash of the Black Dahlia case for the 70th anniversary of Elizabeth Short’s killing is word from Tony Mostrom in L.A. Weekly that “Severed” author John Gilmore died in October. This … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2016, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Black Dahlia: The Brits Get It Wrong (Again)

Posted on January 11, 2017 by lmharnisch

  Remember what I said Monday about the Brits having a huge appetite for gruesome crimes but a distaste for the facts?  Here we have an even better example, from the Sun. I won’t critique the entire article (why bother) … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Eve Golden’s YouTube Theater: ‘Green Acres’ was genius. I will not entertain counter-arguments

Posted on January 10, 2017 by lmharnisch

Arnold the Pig in a musical moment. Too many people think of Green Acres as just another hick sitcom, like Petticoat Junction and The Beverly Hillbillies (though to be fair, The Beverly Hillbillies could sometimes be genuinely funny). But Green … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Television | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Black Dahlia: The BBC Gets It Wrong

Posted on January 9, 2017 by lmharnisch

We are approaching the 70th anniversary of the killing of Elizabeth Short and it’s no trick for lazy writers to run off five yards of poorly researched copy on the Black Dahlia. The latest example is by James Bartlett for … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 9, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1934 Vitaphone short “Movie Memories,” one of many films to use that title. The film is a compilation of silent clips accompanied by a rather maudlin narration about deceased movie stars. It is not … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 52 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 6600 Hollywood Blvd. Then and Now

Posted on January 9, 2017 by lmharnisch

    Armstrong’s Cafe at 6600 Hollywood Blvd., courtesy of the California State Library. The evolution of one address can reveal the revitalization and resurgence of a growing neighborhood or the mass commercialization and bland homogeneity of a district. 6600 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1922, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: Why Dr. George Hodel Didn’t Kill Jeanne French

Posted on January 4, 2017 by lmharnisch

LA. Weekly has taken a deep dive into the Jeanne French case. I won’t get into all of it here, except to show why Dr. George Hodel didn’t kill Jeanne French.

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Eve Golden’s Radio Theater: Rich Conaty’s ‘Big Broadcast’

Posted on January 3, 2017 by lmharnisch

Photos of Rich Conaty courtesy of WFUV.     I am hijacking the usual YouTube Theater for a tribute to Rich Conaty, who hosted The Big Broadcast radio show—playing hits of the 1920s and ’30s—since 1973. He died of cancer … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Music, Radio | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — The Gibbons-Del Rio House: Like Stepping Into a Dream

Posted on January 2, 2017 by lmharnisch

The Cedric Gibbons home, via Google Street View. Note: This is an encore post from 2014. Celebrity has often been the cachet for creating style, fashion and cultural trends, especially with the advent of films. Stars wearing a particular designer’s … Continue reading →

Posted in 1931, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 2, 2017 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1945 (copyright 1944) Paramount Pictures film “Murder, He Says,” with Fred MacMurray, Helen Walker, Marjorie Main, Jean Heather, Porter Hall, Peter Whitney, Mabel Paige and Barbara Pepper, making it a mini “Double Indemnity” … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 47 Comments

Eve Golden’s YouTube Theater: Poor Judy Tyler. Poor ambitious, talented, dead Judy Tyler

Posted on December 27, 2016 by lmharnisch

  Los Angeles Times, July 5, 1957, Judy Tyler and her husband are killed in a car accident. There have been a lot of careers cut short just as they were starting: from Clarine Seymour to James Dean to the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Nirvana Apartments

Posted on December 26, 2016 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. A few months ago, a friend and I were walking up Orange Drive from the El Capitan Theatre to the Hollywood Heritage Museum and noticed a striking Japanese looking apartment building at … Continue reading →

Posted in 1925, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Nirvana Apartments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 26, 2016 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1938 Twentieth Century-Fox film “Mr. Moto Takes a Chance.” The film is available on DVD from Amazon.

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 46 Comments

Christmas 1966: No Bad News at the Tucson Citizen

Posted on December 25, 2016 by lmharnisch

I finally tracked down the front page from the Tucson Citizen for Dec. 24, 1966, in which it followed the tradition of no bad news on Page 1. And a sample of the Citizen’s weather poem.

Posted in 1966 | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: ‘Heaven Is Here!’ Progress Report

Posted on December 22, 2016 by lmharnisch

A little over a year ago, on Dec. 18, 2015, I walked out the doors of the Los Angeles Times after 27 years, having asked a security guard to take this picture of my farewell. And yes, I’m wearing my … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | 35 Comments

Eve Golden’s YouTube Theater: Who Knew Dick Shawn Could Sing?

Posted on December 20, 2016 by lmharnisch

  A still of Dick Shawn and Renee Taylor in “The Producers,” listed as Buy It Now on EBay for $10. Note: Eve has discontinued her YouTube Theater, but has consented to have me post the entries she has already … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Paramount Pictures’ School of Acting Trains Junior Stars

Posted on December 19, 2016 by lmharnisch

  An ad for “Fascinating Youth.” How do you make a movie star? Can you mold virgin and unproven talent into respected and popular screen performers, or is stardom just a result of some undefinable yet unique charm, personality, or … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 19, 2016 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1956 film “The Wild Party,” with Anthony Quinn, Carol Ohmart, Arthur Franz, Jay Robinson, Kathryn Grant,  Nehemiah Persoff, Paul Stewart, Nestor Paiva, Maureen Stephenson, Michael Ross, James Bronte, William Phipps, Joe Green, Barbara Nichols … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 40 Comments

Eve Golden’s YouTube Theater: Does 1971 Count As An ‘Old Movie?’

Posted on December 13, 2016 by lmharnisch

A scene from The Boy Friend. Note: Eve has discontinued her YouTube Theater, but has consented to have me post the entries she has already written. I hope so, because this is one of my half-dozen very favorite movie musical … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Eve Golden’s YouTube Theater: Does 1971 Count As An ‘Old Movie?’

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on December 12, 2016 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie – which turned out to be one of the most difficult I have ever posted – was the 1934 British musical “Evergreen.” The film stars Jessie Matthews, Sonnie Hale, Betty Balfour, Barry Mackay, Ivor Maclaren, Hartley … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 28 Comments