Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

May 6, 1908: Shocked Judge Grants Divorce; Bodies Found at Indiana Murder Farm

Posted on May 6, 2026 by lmharnisch

May 6, 1908: A judge in Connecticut grants a divorce to Henry Lord with details so shocking that the judge stays the proceedings. And crowds visit the Indiana murder farm. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, May 2026

Posted on May 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

The Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case for May 2026, focusing on whether the LAPD will release its files on the Black Dahlia case. Continue reading →

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Union Station Opens in Los Angeles, May 1939

Posted on May 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

May 1939: Los Angeles didn’t get a Union Station without a fight. First proposed in 1907, a unified depot was bitterly opposed by the railroads for decades. Continue reading →

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May 5, 1939: Union Station Opens

Posted on May 5, 2026 by lmharnisch

A look back at the history of Union Station, including the railroads’ opposition to sharing a depot. Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on May 4, 2026 by lmharnisch

For Monday, our mysterious leading man examines a hypodermic needle. Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

May 1, 1907: Runaway Horses and a Fleeing Motorcyclist on the Dangerous Streets of L.A.

Posted on May 1, 2026 by lmharnisch

May 1, 1907: Miss Gertrude Young, who lives at No. 525 Wall St., was knocked down by a motorcycle yesterday as she stepped from a streetcar at 7th and Hope streets. The rider of the machine hastened away. Miss Young was taken to the Clara Barton Hospital. Continue reading →

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April 30, 1944: A Salute to Forgotten Heroism

Posted on April 30, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 30, 1944: The crew of a Catalina patrol bomber, downed in the ocean in a severe storm, waves off the planes that found them because a rescue would be too dangerous. Continue reading →

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April 30, 1939: Los Angeles Prepares for Opening of Union Station

Posted on April 30, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 30, 1939: Los Angeles prepares for the opening of Union Station. Continue reading →

Posted in 1939, Comics, Countdown to Watts, Downtown, Music, Transportation | Comments Off on April 30, 1939: Los Angeles Prepares for Opening of Union Station

April 29, 1891: ‘The Chinese Murder,’

Posted on April 29, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 29, 1891: The Times reports the death of a Chinese woman named Ah Gue/Goot Gue, who was shot in the abdomen by her husband, Wong Ark/Gam Duck, outside a brothel on Apablasa Street. Ark allegedly killed Gue because she didn’t give him all the money he wanted for gambling. Continue reading →

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April 29, 1907: Blanche Hall Draws Crowds to Burbank Theater in ‘When Knighthood Was in Flower’

Posted on April 29, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 29, 1907: Blanche Hall’s performance of ‘When Knighthood Was in Flower’ draws a mile-long line of people hoping to buy tickets at the Burbank Theater at Main and 6th Street. Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Noir City on the Downbeat

Posted on April 28, 2026 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory writes about the recent Noir City Hollywood, which paired film noir and jazz. Continue reading →

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Reminder — My Next ‘Ask Me Anything’ on the Black Dahlia Case Is May 5

Posted on April 28, 2026 by lmharnisch

Reminder: My Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case will be next Tuesday, May 5, at 10 a.m. at https://www.youtube.com/@lmharnisch/streams Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: TCM Classic Film Festival’s ‘The World Comes to Hollywood’

Posted on April 27, 2026 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory previews the TCM Classic Film Festival, with the theme ‘The World Comes to Hollywood,’ featuring a hand/footprint ceremony for Glenn Close, appearances by Carol Burnett and Faye Dunaway, and a restored print of the long-unseen ‘Letty Lynton’ Continue reading →

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

April 27, 1907: Man Badly Injured in Attack by Mule

Posted on April 27, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 27, 1907: W.S. Stanton was attacked by a vicious mule at the California Truck Company’s stables last night and seriously injured. When he attempted to take the harness off the animal it leaped to one side and kicked him on the thigh, knocking him down, then walked over him, cutting and lacerating the calves of his legs. Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Animals, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Immigration, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on April 27, 1907: Man Badly Injured in Attack by Mule

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on April 27, 2026 by lmharnisch

For Monday, we have two Back of the Head Guys in a mysterious foreign film. Continue reading →

Posted in 1979, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , | 14 Comments

Voices — Christine Collins, April 23, 1931

Posted on April 23, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 23, 1931: Walter Collins is “in good condition,” a prison report says. Collins was the husband of Christine Collins, whose story inspired the Clint Eastwood movie “Changeling.” Continue reading →

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April 23, 1908: Whiskey Is a Health Tonic

Posted on April 23, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 23, 1908: Whiskey is a health tonic! Continue reading →

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April 16, 1938: Child Molested, Killed

Posted on April 22, 2026 by lmharnisch

Trigger warning: This post from 1938 deals with an abuser who died in the gas chamber for killing his young victim. Continue reading →

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April 22, 1908: Beer Is a Health Drink

Posted on April 22, 2026 by lmharnisch

April 22, 1908: Beer is a health drink, especially good for “the weak and the convalescent.” “When beer is pure, there is nothing more healthful.” Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia Book Club for April 2026

Posted on April 21, 2026 by lmharnisch

In the fourth installment of the Black Dahlia Book Club, I looked at the portrayal of Elizabeth Short’s murder in early crime anthologies leading up to Jack Webb’s “The Badge” in 1958. Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Black Dahlia Book Club, books, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments