Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

On the Brink of the 1960s

Posted on December 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

Hedda Hopper tapes a “Ben-Hur” segment with Stephen Boyd, Francis X. Bushman and Ramon Novarro, but not Charlton Heston. Los Angeles officials struggle once more to deal with congested streets. I have said this before, but it bears repeating: Traffic … Continue reading →

Posted in broadcasting, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Television, Transportation | Comments Off on On the Brink of the 1960s

A Poem for the New Year

Posted on December 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Isn’t this a great drawing? I suppose in 1919 smokestacks meant progress and not pollution.   Enumerators prepare to take the 1920 census and have a few questions. Is a lone man or woman without any known relatives a … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, health, Politics, Transportation | Comments Off on A Poem for the New Year

No Gunfire for New Year’s Eve

Posted on December 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

Joseph’s has a sale on Stickley furniture! Dec. 30, 1909: Rules for New Year’s Eve – No slapping of people on the back, no rude jostling, no disrespectful address of persons one does not know. Most important, “no discharging of … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Fashion, LAPD | Comments Off on No Gunfire for New Year’s Eve

Matt Weinstock, Dec. 29, 1959

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

   Blacklist Blunder           The case of writer Louis Pollock, who was unaware for five years that he was on a film and TV blacklist through mistaken identity, has recalled an even weirder case.           About a year ago a … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, Dec. 29, 1959

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

Incredibly, Old Con Game Still Works           The name of the game is “pigeon drop.”           And, like pinochle, it generally requires three players.           Unlike pinochle, however, two of them must be equipped with glib tongues.  The third player … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Front Pages, LAPD, Mickey Cohen | Comments Off on Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, Dec. 29, 1959

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

Behind the news of Hollywood divorces (which, statistics prove, are no more numerous than those of any other town in America) behind the lurid news that our people sometimes make while blowing off steam, is the story of a job … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

Three Tristans!

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Ramon Vinay, the tenor cast with Birgit Nilsson in "Tristan," said he was too ill to do the entire opera, so Rudolph Bing had Vinay sing Act I, Karl Liebel (likewise under the weather) sing Act II and Albert … Continue reading →

Posted in #opera, broadcasting, Columnists, Sports, Television | 1 Comment

Husband Shoots Wife, Two Others, on Streetcar

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

 “That Guiltiest Feeling,” by Clare Briggs. Dec. 29, 1919: Former Army Capt. Raymond C. Potter gets on a streetcar and shoots his wife because she’s riding with another man. One of his shots goes wild and hits her companion, then … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Transportation | Comments Off on Husband Shoots Wife, Two Others, on Streetcar

Airplanes Arrive for Aviation Meet

Posted on December 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Dec. 29, 1909: Preparations continue for Aviation Week and the railroads are reporting unusually heavy ticket sales to people coming to Los Angeles for the event.  In addition to the airplanes and balloons, the meet will feature a carnival … Continue reading →

Posted in Transportation | Comments Off on Airplanes Arrive for Aviation Meet

Matt Weinstock, Dec. 28, 1959

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

The Pigeon Problem           A woman on the telephone a few days ago asked excitedly, “What should I do about these crazy pigeons?  They’ve moved into our neighborhood (3rd and La Cienega) and they’re all over the place.  One of … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Film, Freeways, Hollywood, Matt Weinstock, Transportation | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, Dec. 28, 1959

Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, Dec. 28, 1959

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Bus Crash felt in Redondo Beach             (News item) TUCSON, Ariz., Dec. 20.  A double-decker bus and a cattle truck collided head on today, killing nine persons and injuring 32.           The bus was a Greyhound special added … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, Dec. 28, 1959

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Dec. 28, 1939: Hedda Hopper calls “Of Mice and Men” one of the best pictures of the year.

Posted in Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Comments Off on A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

The Age of Anxiety and the Age of Maturity

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Dec. 28, 1959: “Should the president have consulted Congress before ordering Americans into action? “Would there be time, in the next war, to consult Congress? “In this new age, what was the role of infantry, battleships and conventional weapons? … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Comments Off on The Age of Anxiety and the Age of Maturity

The Empty Prophecy of Prohibition

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

 Detectives Brown, Barnett and Harry Raymond in a raid on a club in Little Tokyo. Dec. 28, 1919:  The Times analyzes the first six months of Prohibition and finds that many predictions have not come true. Some minor offenses have … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Food and Drink, Front Pages, LAPD, Nightclubs | Comments Off on The Empty Prophecy of Prohibition

An Actress and Her Dog

Posted on December 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

  "Five iron manhole caps, each weighing more than 100 pounds, shot into the air last night when "burn-out gas" in the sewer between Spring Street and the northeast corner of 1st and Main streets blew them higher than the … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, LAPD, Stage, Transportation | Comments Off on An Actress and Her Dog

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on December 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Dec. 27, 1938: “On the ‘Wizard of Oz’ set they've added 50 schoolchildren to the 150 midgets, being sure the kids were the same size. Makes it mighty difficult for Miss MacDonald and her staff of schoolteachers, because the … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood | Comments Off on A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Predictions for the 1960s

Posted on December 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

Dec. 27, 1959: The Times leads with the Nixon-Rockefeller story.    Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.) expresses strong support for Nixon.   Times Political Editor Kyle Palmer, as to be expected, is all for Nixon.   Nixon calls for job training … Continue reading →

Posted in Dodgers, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Politics, Richard Nixon, Sports | Comments Off on Predictions for the 1960s

Angeles Ship Launched

Posted on December 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

  “Wonder What a Man Window-Shopping Things About?” by Clare Briggs. Dec. 27, 1919: The Angeles, an 8,800-ton cargo ship, is launched at the Los Angeles Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. 

Posted in art and artists, Comics, Transportation | Comments Off on Angeles Ship Launched

Minister Vanishes After Predicting Christ’s Return on Christmas Day

Posted on December 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

Dec. 27, 1909: A mob in Hurley, Va., lynches Henry Pennington after he killed Samuel Baker, who was on his way to a Christmas program with his family. Pennington had run away, but Baker’s wife tricked him into coming back … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Downtown, Food and Drink, LAPD | Comments Off on Minister Vanishes After Predicting Christ’s Return on Christmas Day

Matt Weinstock, Dec. 26, 1959

Posted on December 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

Paper in a Trash Pile     Another frantic call came into the county sanitation office the other day.  This time it was a woman on the west side excitedly reporting she'd inadvertently discarded her divorce papers in the trash can.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Matt Weinstock, Politics, Richard Nixon | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, Dec. 26, 1959