Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Alberto Vargas Glorifies 1940s Young American Woman

Posted on April 28, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Vargas poses with Kay Aldridge in a photo published in Cine-Mundial. “One day I will paint a Vargas girl so beautiful, so perfect, so typical of the American Girl, that I shall be able to show it to people … Continue reading →

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

The L.A. Daily Mirror Is Dropping Its Ads

Posted on April 27, 2014 by lmharnisch

I have been using a wonderful plug-in for Firefox called Adblock Plus, which I recommend for everyone. It does a terrific job of block annoying ads. (There are also versions for Google Chrome and for Internet Explorer, for those of … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Tagged | 12 Comments

Imagining the Future

Posted on April 26, 2014 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006. The subject came up today when I was having lunch with Ed Fuentes, so I thought I would repost it. Notice that in this plan, Union Station was to have been … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, City Hall, Downtown, LAPD, Pasadena, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Imagining the Future

Black Dahlia: Fixing a Small Error Before It Becomes a Big One

Posted on April 26, 2014 by lmharnisch

KPCC recently did a story about the LAPD’s archive of crime photos. And whoever wrote the caption took a logical – but incorrect – guess about the people in this photo of the Black Dahlia crime scene. Let’s do a … Continue reading →

Posted in Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, LAPD, Photography | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

City of Chester Sinks After Collision With Oceanic, Aug. 22, 1888

Posted on April 25, 2014 by lmharnisch

A photo of the City of Chester, courtesy of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. Headlines in the Sacramento Daily Record-Union, left, and the Daily Alta California, above.   The rediscovery of the City of Chester, which sank in 1888 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1888, Photography, San Francisco | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood by Sidney Skolsky, April 25, 1944

Posted on April 25, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 25, 1944 HOLLYWOOD, Calif. April 25 — Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon have just finished doing a scene for “Mrs. Parkington,” and watching them on the set with me is Robert Thoeren, who co-authored the screenplay with Polly James. … Continue reading →

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Filming in Downtown Los Angeles

Posted on April 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

The film crews were back on New York Street, my nickname for South Spring around Fourth and Fifth in downtown Los Angeles. This time it’s standing in for San Vicente.

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1944 in Print — Life Magazine, April 24, 1944

Posted on April 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 24, 1944 The 18th birthday of England’s Princess Elizabeth is the cover story in this week’s Life magazine. An early member of Bob Dobbs’ Church of the Subgenius! There’s an editorial on “Negro rights” and a feature on California … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Photography, World War II | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood by Sidney Skolsky, April 24, 1944

Posted on April 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 24, 1944 HOLLYWOOD, April 24 — A funny play could be written about the Hungarian scenario writers in Hollywood. Every time I pick up a trade paper I read where a Ladislaus has sold a story to a studio. … Continue reading →

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1944 on the Radio — ‘The Lone Ranger’

Posted on April 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 24, 1944: Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear! “The Lone Ranger.” Courtesy of otronmp3.com.

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1944 in Print — Hollywood Gossip by Louella Parsons, April 24, 1944

Posted on April 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 24, 1944 AT DINNER THE OTHER EVENING Sid Grauman started talking about “Turn in the Road,” which he bought about 12 years ago after it had taken in $400,000. Sid said he had had several offers for his play, … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Joan Harrison, Hollywood’s Only Female Producer

Posted on April 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 23, 1944 Here’s a feature on Joan Harrison and her collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock. “Young and attractive Joan Harrison is the only woman associate producer in Hollywood today,” the unidentified writer says. From the Miami News.

Posted in 1944, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood Gossip by Louella Parsons, April 23, 1944

Posted on April 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 23, 1944 Don’t get me wrong. Loretta still is a glamor girl and never prettier than she is at this moment, but with a difference. She’s found what any woman would give 10 years of her life to have … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Hollywood by Sidney Skolsky, April 23, 1944

Posted on April 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 23, 1944 Errol Flynn and Peggy Maley are a thing … Judy Garland and Vincent Minnelli are dinner companions … In his next Andy Hardy picture, Mickey Rooney will go for a glamorazon and Dorothy Ford is being considered … Continue reading →

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‘London After Midnight’ — ‘One Reel of Story and Six Reels of Utter Rot’

Posted on April 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

In perusing Film Spectator for 1928, I found this review of “London After Midnight,” one of the most intriguing of the lost silent movies. Oh dear: “The whole thing is too utterly silly to warrant detailed criticism…. There is about … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood by Sidney Skolsky, April 22, 1944

Posted on April 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 22, 1944 HOLLYWOOD, April 22 — Col. Frank Capra’s “The Negro Soldier” had its premiere at the theater in the Ambassador Hotel this week and was highly lauded by all who attended. Brig. Gen. Benjamin O. Davis, highest ranking … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Hollywood Gossip by Louella Parsons, April 22, 1944

Posted on April 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

April 22, 1944 HOLLYWOOD, April 21 — Jean Arthur’s contract with Columbia ends with “The Impatient Years” and she is not re-signing with this company, or any other. Jean is doing what Claudette Colbert did when she announced recently she … Continue reading →

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LAPD Parker Center Cop Shop Files

Posted on April 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

I was given a box of material that was cleaned out of the old press room at the LAPD’s Parker Center headquarters, sometimes called “the cop shop.” The box was a jumble of press releases, photographs, artists’ sketches and other … Continue reading →

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Movieland mystery photo ( Updated + + + + )

Posted on April 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1965 film “Once a Thief,” written by Zekial Marko (our mystery man for Tuesday) and directed by Ralph Nelson, with longtime Alfred Hitchcock cinematographer Robert Burks (“North by Northwest” and “Vertigo” among many others). … Continue reading →

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

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Early Los Angeles Portrait Photographers Capture Life

Posted on April 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

    Garden City Foto Co. demonstrated its setup for high-angle shots in this ad from a Los Angeles city directory.  Long before topnotch stills photographers like Fred Hartsook and Albert Witzel began shooting high-end portraits, many early photographers captured … Continue reading →

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