Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Found on EBay – Hoffman’s Cafe

Posted on July 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

The 700 block of South Spring Street via Google maps’ street view. For years, 743 S. Spring was the home of Levy’s Cafe, but sometime in the early 1920s the address became Hoffman’s. It’s not clear from The Times’ clips … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Food and Drink, Found on EBay, Interior Design | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Hoffman’s Cafe

Nixon Library Releases New Recordings

Posted on July 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

The Associated Press has filed a story on the Nixon Library and Museum’s release of more Nixon recordings. Of course, that’s not good enough for the Daily Mirror, so we tracked them down ourselves. The library has released digital recordings … Continue reading →

Posted in Libraries, Politics, Richard Nixon | Tagged , | Comments Off on Nixon Library Releases New Recordings

Death in El Segundo

Posted on July 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

July 22, 1957Los Angeles Note: This is a post from 2007. We’re heading west on Rosecrans Avenue. It’s early Monday morning, a few moments after 1:30 a.m., and the streets are dark. There’s nobody out but a few drunks and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror’s Discerning Readers

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

I must say, the L.A. Daily Mirror readers are truly outstanding. My traffic indicates that they prefer old type fonts to nude photos by a slight margin. At left, the Selectric OCR font in all its glory. I think the … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Found on EBay, Photography, Witzel | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The L.A. Daily Mirror Is 39 (Days) Old!

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Jack Benny,  forever 39.  e’re celebrating our 39th day at the L.A. Daily Mirror by taking time to thank the readers for their patience as we unpack boxes and get accustomed to the new place. Our numbers are slowly … Continue reading →

Posted in 1939 | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Found on EBay – Arroyo Seco Parkway

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

This postcard of the new Arroyo Seco Parkway, a name that has been restored after decades of being called the Pasadena Freeway, has been listed on EBay. For more than a year, drivers have had to contend with construction of … Continue reading →

Posted in Found on EBay, Freeways, Transportation | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

For Font Freaks

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: IBM Selectric commemorative stamp. Credit: U.S. Postal Service Today’s post on the IBM Selectric got me to thinking about the variety of interchangeable typeballs that were used for fonts. The most memorable was ORATOR, which looked like this:

Posted in 1961, Art & Artists | Tagged | 10 Comments

#history, #museum, 7|21|2011

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: IBM Selectric stamp. Credit: U.S. Postal Service SPOTLIGHT Chicago Tribune cultural critic Julia Keller reflects on the 50th anniversary of the IBM Selectric typewriter, which is being honored with a commemorative stamp. [Does anyone remember the ORATOR font?] She … Continue reading →

Posted in 1961, Architecture, History, Museums | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Marion Eisenmann: Artist’s Notebook

Posted on July 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Olvera Street by Marion Eisenmann, Aug. 8, 2009 Note: I’m reposting artwork that Marion Eisenmann did for the Daily Mirror when it was with the L.A. Times. To visit the old Plaza is to stand at the crossroads of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Art & Artists, Artist's Notebook, Downtown, Marion Eisenmann | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Marion Eisenmann: Artist’s Notebook

Found on EBay – Nudes by Witzel

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

A set of five nude photos (this is the tamest one) by the Witzel studio has been listed on EBay. Witzel was one of the leading portrait studios in Los Angeles and did many early publicity photos for the theater … Continue reading →

Posted in 1911, Found on EBay, Photography, Witzel | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Found on EBay – Biscailuz Badge

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

An example of what is sometimes known as a “Biscailuz badge” has been listed on EBay. These are presentation badges that weren’t intended for deputies, but were only given to celebrities and other notables by Los Angeles County Sheriff Eugene … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Courts, Found on EBay, LAPD | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Biscailuz Badge

Time Traveling With the L.A. Daily Mirror [Updated]

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Pier Angeli and friend with a reminder on Daylight Saving Time, 1958 I decided to import my old lmharnisch blog, devoted mainly to dissecting “The Black Dahlia Files” by Donald “Fake Document” Wolfe. Now there are posts going back … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2008, 2009, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, Film, History, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Photography | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – Mt. Lowe Railway

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Postcards and photos of the railway trip to Mt. Lowe, with its hairpin turns around the mountains, are quite common – but a brass model of the car in HO gauge? That’s a new one on me. This intriguing item, … Continue reading →

Posted in Found on EBay, Streetcars, Transportation | Tagged , | 10 Comments

Coming Tomorrow: Marion Eisenmann

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

City Hall, July 3, 2009, by Marion Eisenmann I’m going to be reposting the artwork Marion Eisenmann did for the Daily Mirror when it was with the L.A. Times. Tomorrow’s sketch will feature Olvera Street. You can contact Marion here.

Posted in 2009, Art & Artists, Artist's Notebook, City Hall, Marion Eisenmann | Tagged , | Comments Off on Coming Tomorrow: Marion Eisenmann

paper.li: Not Ready for Primetime

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

The bots at paper.li that automatically assemble “newspapers”  from Twitter feeds had an attack of the vapors,  so after two days of nothing I deleted the paper and started over. If you have bookmarked it, replace it with this one.

Posted in History, Museums | Comments Off on paper.li: Not Ready for Primetime

James Curtis: L.A. Voices

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Dick Lane and Helen Wallace in “Sioux City Sue,” 1946. In 1975, while still in college, I did a short series of interviews. There was no real purpose to these, other than they were with people who interested me … Continue reading →

Posted in 1975, Books and Authors, Film, Found on EBay, History, Hollywood, James Curtis, L.A. Voices, New York, Stage, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Found on EBay – Florentine Gardens

Posted on July 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

Items from the Florentine Gardens – souvenir photos, matchbooks, menus, cocktail napkins, etc. – aren’t particularly rare, but this item is unusual. According to the vendor, this menu is autographed by Errol Flynn and Sophie Tucker (no, they weren’t an … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Nightclubs | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

How to Dress and Undress a Victorian Lady

Posted on July 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: The Wall Street Journal’s slide show on “How to Dress a Victorian Lady.” Credit: Wall Street Journal. To make sure their bodices are correctly ripped (it’s harder than it looks),  the annual convention of the Romance Writers of America … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Authors, Fashion | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Bill James’ ‘Popular Crime’: Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on July 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

I have procrastinated about looking at Bill James’ “Popular Crime” because, as curious as it may seem, I don’t care much for “true” crime books. Even when they are well done (which is almost never) the subject matter is depressing … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, History, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Found on EBay – C.C. Pierce

Posted on July 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

Would you pay for $46.95 for a page cut from a magazine? Here’s a vendor who thinks someone will. We’re always looking for photographs by the studio of C.C. Pierce and spotted this item on EBay. But, hullo, what’s this? … Continue reading →

Posted in Found on EBay, Photography | Tagged , | Comments Off on Found on EBay – C.C. Pierce