Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 31, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1932 RKO picture The Animal Kingdom, with Ann Harding, Leslie Howard, Myrna Loy, William Gargan, Neil Hamilton, Ilka Chase, Henry Stephenson, Leni Stengel and Donald Dilloway.

Posted in 1932, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 29 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 1960 Writers Strike Echoes Today

Posted on July 25, 2023 by lmharnisch

63 years ago, writers and actors were struggling. Looking for a small share of revenue to help fiscally survive, they asked simply for residuals from post-1948 films sold to television, while studios pled poverty. Both unions went out on strike, … Continue reading →

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Reminder – My Next ‘Ask Me Anything’ on the Black Dahlia Case Is August 1

Posted on July 25, 2023 by lmharnisch

Reminder: Boxy and I will be doing a live “Ask Me Anything” on the Black Dahlia case Tuesday, Aug. 1, at 10 a.m. Pacific time. I’ll give an update on the book and talk about two popular subjects: Carl Balsiger … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 24, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1952 Columbia film The Happy Time, with Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan, Marsha Hunt, Kurt Kasznar, Linda Christian, Marcel Dalio, Jeanette Nolan, Jack Raine, Richard Erdman, Marlene Cameron, Gene Collins, and Bobby Driscoll.

Posted in 1952, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: San Francisco Silent Film Festival Shows the Power of Silents

Posted on July 20, 2023 by lmharnisch

Douglas Fairbanks and Marguerite de la Motte in “The Iron Mask.” Returning for the 26th time, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival offered a fascinating and powerful diversity of programming and music at its recently concluded Festival. Full of dramatic … Continue reading →

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

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 17, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1956 Universal picture A Day of Fury, with Dale Robertson, Jock Mahoney, Mara Corday, Carl Benton Reid, Jan Merlin, John Dehner, Dee Carroll, Sheila Bromley, James Bell, Dani Crayne, Howard Wendell, Charles Cane, Phil … Continue reading →

Posted in 1956, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 10, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1930 Columbia picture Rain or Shine, with Joe Cook, Louise Fazenda, Joan Peers, William Collier Jr., Tom Howard, Dave Chason (Chasen), Alan Roscoe, Adolph Milar, Clarence Muse, Nella Walker, Edward Martindale, Nora Lane and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1930, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Brand Library

Posted on July 10, 2023 by lmharnisch

“Aerodrome Replacing Country-House Garage,” Illustrated London News, Oct. 29, 1921, Courtesy of Mary Mallory   Note: This is an encore post from 2012 Unique thematic architectural homes stand out all around the Los Angeles area, like Yamashiro and Frank Lloyd … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood Heights, Libraries, Location Sleuth, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Brand Library

Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, July 2023

Posted on July 4, 2023 by lmharnisch

Here’s the Ask Me Anything for July. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to say hello!

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, July 2023

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 3, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1959 Paramount picture The Black Orchid, with Sophia Loren, Anthony Quinn, Mark Richman, Virginia Vincent, Frank Puglia, Jimmy Baird, Naomi Stevens, Whit Bissell, Robert Carricart, Joe di Reda and Jack Washburn. Introducing Ina Balin.

Posted in 1959, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Sessue Hayakawa’s ‘Dragon Painter’

Posted on July 3, 2023 by lmharnisch

The Dragon Painter, showing at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. In 1919, Sessue Hayakawa ranked as one of America’s top matinee idols. Intense, brooding, and handsome, the actor possessed enormous charisma and talent, securing him almost instanteous success upon … Continue reading →

Posted in 1919, Asians, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Sessue Hayakawa’s ‘Dragon Painter’

Reminder – My Next ‘Ask Me Anything’ on the Black Dahlia Case Is July 4

Posted on June 27, 2023 by lmharnisch

Reminder: I’ll be doing an “Ask Me Anything” on the Black Dahlia case Tuesday, July 4, at 10 a.m. Pacific time. Can’t make the live session? Email me your questions and I’ll answer them! The video will be posted once … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Bert Longworth and ‘Hold Still, Hollywood’

Posted on June 26, 2023 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. In the last forty years, movie collectors and photography connoisseurs have recognized the art and value of Hollywood still photography, most particularly in the gloriously lit and composed portraits of glamorous stars. … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Bert Longworth and ‘Hold Still, Hollywood’

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 26, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1956 Columbia picture Hot Blood, with Jane Russell, Cornel Wilde, Luther Adler, Joseph Calleia, Mikhail Rasumny, Nina Koshetz, Helen Westcott, Jamie Russell, Wally Russell, Nick Dennis and Richard Deacon.

Posted in 1956, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , | 23 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: San Francisco Silent Film Festival 2023

Posted on June 20, 2023 by lmharnisch

Stan and Ollie, showing at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. The San Francisco Silent Film Festival celebrates the glory of world cinema with an impressive slate of newly restored and little seen films July 12 through 16 at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Coming Attractions, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, San Francisco | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: San Francisco Silent Film Festival 2023

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 19, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1951 Universal picture Bright Victory, with Arthur Kennedy, Peggy Dow, Julia Adams, James Edwards, Will Geer, Nana Bryant, Jim Backus, Minor Watson, Joan Banks, Richard Egan, John Hudson, Marjorie Crossland, Donald Miele, Murray Hamilton, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1951, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , | 61 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 12, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1960 Allied Artists film Pay or Die with Ernest Borgnine, Zohra Lampert, Alan Austin, Renata Vanni, Bruno Della Santina, Franco Corsaro, Robert F. Simon, Robert Ellenstein, Howard Caine, John Duke, Vito Scotti, John Marley, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1960, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , | 33 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Jerry Giesler, Miracle Man

Posted on June 12, 2023 by lmharnisch

Photo: Walter Wanger, left, and Jerry Giesler. Courtesy of Mary Mallory. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Long before Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., Richard “Racehorse” Haynes, or F. Lee Bailey hit the scene, soft-spoken, circumspect Jerry Giesler iced … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything for June 2023

Posted on June 6, 2023 by lmharnisch

Here’s the Ask Me Anything for June 2023. Thanks to everyone who stopped by. Anyone seen Steve Hodel lately?

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 5, 2023 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1935 film Mystery of Edwin Drood, with Claude Rains, Douglass Montgomery, Heather Angel, Valerie Hobson, David Manners, Francis L. Sullivan, Zeffie Tillbury, Ethel Griffies, E.E. Clive, Walter Kingsford, Forrester Harvey, Vera Buckland, Elsa Buchanan, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , | 26 Comments