Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Assistance League Scouts Film Locations

Posted on October 5, 2020 by lmharnisch

Motion Picture Magazine, 1925. Note: This is an encore post from 2015. In the early days of the motion picture industry, no rules and regulations held down the field’s growth and development as companies basically made it up as they … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on October 5, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1932 film “False Faces,” with Lowell Sherman, Peggy Shannon, Lila Lee, Berton Churchill, David Landau, Harold Waldrige, Geneva Mitchell, Oscar Apfel, Miriam Seegar, Joyce Compton, Nancy O’Neil, Edward Martindel and Purnell Pratt. Screenplay by … Continue reading →

Posted in 1932, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

Los Angeles Times Bombed 1910: ‘A Terrible Roar’

Posted on October 1, 2020 by lmharnisch

Courtesy of University of Southern California, on behalf of the USC Special Collections. Oct. 1, 1910:  The Times Building in flames, as seen from Broadway just south of First Street. Notice The Times Eagle outlined by the fire. Note: This … Continue reading →

Posted in 1910 L.A. Times bombing, Obituaries | Comments Off on Los Angeles Times Bombed 1910: ‘A Terrible Roar’

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Eastern Columbia Brings Style to Shopping

Posted on September 28, 2020 by lmharnisch

One of Los Angeles’ most glorious examples of architecture merging glamour and commerce, downtown’s Eastern-Columbia building turned 90 years old September 12. Designed by Claud Beelman and erected in 1930, it symbolizes the City of Angels’ ascendance to the pinnacle … Continue reading →

Posted in 1930, Architecture, Downtown, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 28, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movies were the 1937 Warner Bros. picture “Confession” and the 1935 German film “Mazurka.” “Confession” stars Kay Francis, Ian Hunter, Basil Rathbone, Jane Bryan, Donald Crisp, Mary Maguire and Robert Barrat. “Mazurka” stars Pola Negri, Albrecht Schoenhals, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, 1937, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 40 Comments

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights, Ernest Torrence

Posted on September 21, 2020 by lmharnisch

Photo: Ernest Torrence and Greta Nissen in “The Wanderer,” listed on EBay at $34.95. Note: This is an encore post from 2011. Long remembered for playing both villainous and comic supporting roles in silent films, Ernest Torrence achieved big success … Continue reading →

Posted in 1933, Film, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Obituaries | Comments Off on Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights, Ernest Torrence

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 21, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1935 Warner Bros. film “The Girl From 10th Avenue,” with Bette Davis, Ian Hunter, Colin Clive, Alison Skipworth, John Eldridge, Phillip Reed, Katharine Alexander, Helen Jerome Eddy, Gordon (Bill) Elliott, Edward McWade, Adrian Rosley … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 49 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Cineconline Brings Entertainment in Troubling Times

Posted on September 14, 2020 by lmharnisch

After isolating through the pandemic, sweltering summer, and blazing fires, Cineconline brought a respite of lighthearted , breezy entertainment. While Cinecon 55 occurred only online, it succeeded beyond its wildest dreams in providing rare films to thousands of film fans. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2020, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 14, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1959 Allied Artists film “The Atomic Submarine,” with Arthur Franz, Dick Foran, Brett Halsey, Paul Dubov, Bob Steele, Victor Varconi, Joi Lansing, Selmer Jackson, Jack Mulhall, Jean Moorhead, Richard Tyler, Sid Melton, Ken Becker, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 58 Comments

Black Dahlia: My 24 Years With L.A.’s Coldest Cold Case

Posted on September 10, 2020 by lmharnisch

UC Irvine professor Miles Corwin, an old friend from the L.A. Times, spent months interviewing me about the Black Dahlia case. Here is Miles’ deep dive, published in the Delacorte Review, into my decades-long journey exploring the life and death … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Labor Day in Los Angeles, 1886

Posted on September 7, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2011. Sept. 7, 1886: The Times publishes a roundup of events marking  Labor Day, but there are no reports of any celebrations in Los Angeles. On the jump, Labor Day, 1891, is celebrated … Continue reading →

Posted in 1886, 1891, 1895, Labor, Transportation | Tagged , | Comments Off on Labor Day in Los Angeles, 1886

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Ethel Barrymore Dons Blackface for ‘Scarlet Sister Mary’

Posted on September 7, 2020 by lmharnisch

Ethel Barrymore in “Sister Scarlet Mary” Stage legend Ethel Barrymore continually sought challenges to advance her craft through her many decades in the theater. In the late 1920s, she took on perhaps her biggest challenge, portraying the lead character in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1930, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Stage | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Ethel Barrymore Dons Blackface for ‘Scarlet Sister Mary’

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 7, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1953 Twentieth Century-Fox film “Vicki,” with Jeanne Crain, Jean Peters, Elliot Reid, Richard Boone, Casey Adams, Alex D’Arcy, Carl Betz and Aaron Spelling. Screenplay by Dwight Taylor from a novel by Steve Fisher. Music … Continue reading →

Posted in 1953, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 63 Comments

Black Dahlia: Annual Halloween Reminder

Posted on September 3, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This encore post from 2018 is still timely. Alas. Somewhere, somebody is already thinking about a Black Dahlia costume for Halloween, so here is my annual reminder: Dressing up like the victim of a grotesque murder is not the … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on August 31, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1953 Twentieth Century-Fox film “Treasure of the Golden Condor,” with Cornel Wilde, Constance Smith, Finlay Currie, Walter Hampden, Anne Bancroft, George Macready, Fay Wray, Leo G. Carroll and Konstantin Shayne. Screenplay by Delmer Daves … Continue reading →

Posted in 1953, books, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 45 Comments

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Hugh Herbert

Posted on August 31, 2020 by lmharnisch

March 13, 1952: Hugh Herbert dies at the age of 66. Note: This is an encore post from 2011. Per an ad in the July 27, 1937, Daily Variety, “Public Screwball No. 1 to the film audiences of the world … Continue reading →

Posted in 1952, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Obituaries, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Hugh Herbert

Black Dahlia: Jacob Edward Fisk, Victim of Long-Running Wikipedia Prank

Posted on August 25, 2020 by lmharnisch

I decided to randomly surf Wikipedia this morning and I’m never disappointed with how bad it is. Example: Some bozo has restored Jacob Edward Fisk as a “suspect” in the Black Dahlia case. Fisk’s name was added as a prank … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Homicide, Wikipedia | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: Jacob Edward Fisk, Victim of Long-Running Wikipedia Prank

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + + +)

Posted on August 24, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1956 film “The Long Arm” (also known as “The Third Key,”) with Jack Hawkins, John Stratton, Dorothy Alison, Geoffrey Keen, Ursula Howells, Newton Blick, Sydney Tafler, Ralph Truman, Maureen Delany, Richard Leech, Meredith Edwards, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1956, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 55 Comments

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Mary Pickford and Miniature Golf

Posted on August 24, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. The 1920s saw a series of fads sweep the nation as the American populace searched out the new and exciting after experiencing hardship and deprivation during World War I and a great … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Mary Pickford and Miniature Golf

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Motion Pictures Promote Suffrage

Posted on August 17, 2020 by lmharnisch

Women began campaigning for universal suffrage in the United States at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention. Over the next seven decades, they would patiently and persistently push the message of enfranchisement through ridicule, patronization, and insults from their opponents. Moving … Continue reading →

Posted in 1920, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments