Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Carlos Valdez Lozano: L.A., Friday Night

Posted on September 8, 2014 by lmharnisch

Paramount Ballroom, 2708 E. Cesar Chavez Ave., via Google Street View.   Note: Here’s a post from my Times colleague Carlos Valdez Lozano about an adventure he had with the late George Ramos and former Times reporter Robert J. Lopez. … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Buster Keaton’s ‘The Italian Villa’

Posted on September 8, 2014 by lmharnisch

Note: As many of you know, Mary Mallory’s father passed away, so in her absence we’re running one of her most popular posts, from 2012.  Buster Keaton seemed to have it all in the mid-1920s. His career was riding high, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1926, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + +)

Posted on September 8, 2014 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1934 film “We Live Again,” directed by Rouben Mamoulian, starring Anna Sten and Fredric March.

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

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Cinecon Film Festival Screens Forgotten and Historic Films

Posted on September 5, 2014 by lmharnisch

“Paths to Paradise,” Photoplay, July – December 1925. Another year and another Cinecon Film Festival has come and gone. Started 50 years ago as an opportunity for classic film lovers and collectors to come together to view long unseen films, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, September 5, 1944

Posted on September 5, 2014 by lmharnisch

September 5, 1944: “One Touch of Venus” has been sold to the movies, with Mary Pickford obtaining the rights. Continue reading →

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1943 on the Radio – The New York Philharmonic

Posted on September 5, 2014 by lmharnisch

Sept. 5, 1943: The New York Philharmonic with pianist Claudio Arrau, conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos, performs Darius Milhaud’s (pronounced  “Mil-low”)  “Suite Provencale,” Lizst’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and a Ravel’s orchestration of  Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.”  Courtesy of otronmp3.com. … Continue reading →

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Left in Car While Mother Goes Dancing, Boy, 6, Drinks Fatal Shot of Whiskey

Posted on September 5, 2014 by lmharnisch

Harry Truman, friend of libraries! Sept. 5, 1944 Maria Fierro of 879 1/2 Lookout Drive decided to go dancing with Robert Fierro (apparently her brother) and Robert Gomez at a cafe in the 4600 block of Brooklyn Avenue (now Cesar … Continue reading →

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‘Most Books Are Never Fact-Checked’

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

We are shocked! Shocked! That books aren’t fact-checked! Yes, I mean you, “Hollywood Babylon” and “Severed,” who live on the lowest rungs of the literary ladder. But that goes for you too, “The Fixers,” “Full Service” and “City of Nets.” … Continue reading →

Posted in Another Good Story Ruined, Books and Authors | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Sept. 4, 1781: Los Angeles Is Founded

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Sept. 4, 1926:The Times publishes a map showing the streets of the day, noting the changes made since Ord’s survey. Sept. 4, 1981: Mayor Tom Bradley and actress Bernadette Peters cut the cake for Los Angeles’ 200th birthday Jan. … Continue reading →

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LAPD Parker Center Cop Shop Files DR 73-402-191

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

In case you just tuned in, I was given a box of material that was cleaned out of the old press room after Parker Center closed. The items consist of photos, press releases and random bits of ephemera. There is … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Life Magazine, Sept. 4, 1944

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

The U.S. Secretary of State, who is offstage director for the Dumbarton Oaks conference on postwar security is shown in this excellent portrait by Karsh. Secretary Hull welcomed the delegates to Washington. Last week, Mr. Hull talked with John Foster … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Sept. 4, 1944

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

Sept. 4, 1944 Danton Walter says: Brazil and Colombia plan to cut coffee exports to the U.S. if the OPA price ceiling isn’t lifted … FDR has requested James Byrnes to hold up his resignation until after election day … … Continue reading →

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‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 27

Posted on September 3, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Laura Hunt (Gene Tierney) and Shelby Carpenter (Vincent Price) in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” to take a meandering … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, Sept. 3, 1944

Posted on September 3, 2014 by lmharnisch

“Green Dolphin Street” wins MGM’s annual novel award. The movie was released in 1947, starring Lana Turner and Van Heflin, directed by Victor Saville with a script by Samson Raphaelson. Sept. 3, 1944 Louella Parsons is pushed off Page 1 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1944, Books and Authors, Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

‘Laura’ — The Making of a Film Noir Classic, Part 26

Posted on September 2, 2014 by lmharnisch

  An unidentified actress appears as Diane Redfern in “Laura.” In case you just tuned in, I’m using Louella Parsons’ May 15, 1944, item on Rouben Mamoulian being replaced as the director of “Laura” to take a meandering look at … Continue reading →

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1944 in Print — Hollywood News and Gossip by Louella Parsons, September 2, 1944

Posted on September 2, 2014 by lmharnisch

September 2, 1944 Danton Walker (who turns out to have been Alexander Woollcott’s secretary for a couple of years), says: Several magazines are racing to put out German editions which would be the first published works to give occupied Germany … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: The Masquers Laugh to Win, Part Three: Support From Others

Posted on September 1, 2014 by lmharnisch

The fraternal organization, the Masquers Club, founded in Hollywood in 1925 by eight actors, prided itself on love, loyalty, and support. They lived by the motto: “We Laugh to Win,” a rallying cry whenever a brother was in need. They … Continue reading →

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

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 1, 2014 by lmharnisch

This week’s movie has been the 1935 RKO film “Roberta,” with Irene Dunne, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers and  Randolph Scott. It was directed by William A. Seiter. “ Roberta” was based on Alice Duer Miller’s novel “Gowns by Roberta,” which … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 58 Comments

RIP Chuck Bowden

Posted on August 31, 2014 by lmharnisch

Sad to read that Chuck Bowden died Saturday in Las Cruces, N.M. We overlapped at the local newspapers in Tucson in the early 1980s and for a few years he lived around the corner from me, between Broadway and Sixth … Continue reading →

Posted in 2014, Books and Authors, Obituaries | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

James Ellroy and ‘Perfidia’: A First Look

Posted on August 29, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Following on its exclusive that James Ellroy was scripting a remake of “Laura,” The Hollywood Reporter posted an excerpt of Chapter 2 from Ellroy’s upcoming novel “Perfidia.” It’s a brief selection, and it may not reflect the entire book, … Continue reading →

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