Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

July 21, 1907: What the President Is Reading

Posted on July 21, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 21, 1908: President Theodore Roosevelt recommends reading the works of Octave Thanet, the pen name of LGBTQ author Alice French. Continue reading →

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July 20, 1947: Wealthy Woman Gives Estate – Including Homeless Camp -– to Santa Barbara

Posted on July 20, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 20, 1947: Lillian Child sets up a homeless camp on her 17-acre estate. Upon her death in 1951, the estate is deeded to Santa Barbara, including the homeless camp. The mansion was burned down in 1959 by the Fire Department, the camp was later destroyed and a zoo was built. Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1959 | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 20, 2026 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1935 MGM film Mark of the Vampire, with Lionel Barrymore, Elizabeth Allan, Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, Jean Hersholt, Henry Wadsworth, Donald Meek, Jessie Ralph, Ivan Simpson, Franklyn Ardell, Leila Bennett, June Gittelson, Carol Borland, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , | 29 Comments

July 19, 1908: Perkins Estate Overlooks Los Robles Canyon

Posted on July 19, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 19, 1908: The Los Angeles Times real estate section features the new Perkins estate on Hillcrest overlooking Los Robles Canyon. Continue reading →

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July 19, 1907: Covina Celebrates Launch of Streetcar Service

Posted on July 19, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 19, 1907: Covina celebrates the opening of a Pacific Electric streetcar line to Los Angeles with a free community picnic, including a gigantic coffeepot and a 300-gallon bean pot. Militant Angeleno would have been there! Continue reading →

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July 18, 1947: The Timeless, Subtle Wit of Ernie Bushmiller’s ‘Nancy’

Posted on July 18, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 18, 1947: The timeless humor of Ernie Bushmiller in Nancy. Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Art & Artists, Film | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

July 18, 1907: Santa Monica, Ocean Park Must Abate Sewage Discharge Into Ocean

Posted on July 18, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 18, 1907: Officials of Santa Monica and Ocean Park are fighting a lawsuit that seeks to block the discharge of raw sewage into the ocean. Continue reading →

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July 17, 1947: Arnold Schoenberg Gets Commission for ‘Survivor From Warsaw’

Posted on July 17, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 17, 1947: Arnold Schoenberg is hard at work on a composition that will culminate in ‘Survivor From Warsaw.’ Continue reading →

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July 17, 1907: Hollywood Organizes to Catch Serial Arsonist

Posted on July 17, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 17, 1907:
A serial arsonist has been at work in Hollywood, setting six fires in the last three weeks. The community’s small volunteer fire department has been overwhelmed by the crimes. Continue reading →

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July 16, 1947: L.A. County Tired of Paying Welfare, Pays Brink Family to Go Back to Oklahoma

Posted on July 16, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 16, 1947: Los Angeles County fixes the Brink family’s car and pays their expenses to go back to Oklahoma, which officials prefer to paying them $278 a month in relief. Continue reading →

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July 15, 1957: The laughter dies; Abbott and Costello break up the act

Posted on July 15, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 15, 1957: Abbott and Costello break up the act. Abbott was going to retire to his ranch in Ojai. Costello was going solo — he wouldn’t work with anyone else. Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Sign Built and Illuminated November-December 1923

Posted on July 14, 2026 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory has a word for everyone celebrating the Hollywood Sign’s anniversary in July: It was in November-December 1923. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia Book Club – Coming July 21, 2026

Posted on July 14, 2026 by lmharnisch

Reminder: The next installment of the Black Dahlia Book Club is next Tuesday, July 21, at 10 a.m. Pacific time at YouTube.com/LMHarnisch Continue reading →

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July 14, 1907: L.A. Prepares to Celebrate 126th Anniversary

Posted on July 14, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 14, 1907: Los Angeles prepares to mark its founding, with celebrations at the Plaza. Gen. Jose Aguilar, nearly 100, will fire the cannon when the flags of Spain, Mexico and the U.S. are raised. Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 13, 2026 by lmharnisch

For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow. Continue reading →

Posted in 1933, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , | 26 Comments

July 13, 1908: Attempt to Smuggle Chinese Into U.S. Ends in Gunfight

Posted on July 13, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 13, 1908: Four Chinese men dressed as Mexicans try to cross the bridge over an irrigation canal marking the border, guided by at least one smuggler. Immigration agents and the smuggler exchange shots before the smuggler jumps into water and escapes. The four Chinese are jailed in Los Angeles. Continue reading →

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July 9, 1947: Rosenda Mondragon Strangled With Stocking

Posted on July 9, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 9, 1947: Rosenda Mondragon is found murdered. The Times and the Examiner have different accounts of the killing and the actions of her husband, Antonio. Continue reading →

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July 9, 1907: L.A. Converts Abandoned Church to House Inmates From Crowded Jail

Posted on July 9, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 9, 1907: The city rents an abandoned church for a temporarily jail. Continue reading →

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July 8, 1908: Woman’s Body Rescued From USC Dissection Lab

Posted on July 8, 2026 by lmharnisch

July 8, 1908: Marion Jones died owing $29.45 in doctor bills (more than $1,000 in 2026 dollars), so her body was sent to the USC dissection lab. Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: Ask Me Anything, July 2026

Posted on July 7, 2026 by lmharnisch

My Ask Me Anything on the Black Dahlia case for July 2026. Did filmmakers really find the hidden room where Elizabeth Short was killed? (No, they did not). Continue reading →

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