Author Archives: lmharnisch

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About lmharnisch

I am retired from the Los Angeles Times

Feb. 12, 1959: Paul Coates – When VD Was ‘Cured’

Posted on February 12, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 12, 1959: After World War II, many Americans assumed that penicillin had eliminated venereal disease (STDs to you youngsters). And, no, it was still around. This column originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was republished on … Continue reading →

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‘Dear Los Angeles’: 1,000 Quotes in Search of a Book

Posted on February 11, 2019 by lmharnisch

We have Edwin Mims, long-forgotten teacher, author and head of the English Department at Vanderbilt University, to thank for what may be the most famous quip about Los Angeles. Mims, who died in 1959 at the age of 87, was … Continue reading →

Posted in 2018, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Rah! Rah! Hollywood Celebrates Pennants

Posted on February 11, 2019 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Hollywood has always been creative in promoting its films and personalities to the public. Employing posters, lobby cards, window cards and photographs, silent film production companies hyped upcoming films. With the success … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on February 10, 2019 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1942 MGM film “Eyes in the Night,” with Edward Arnold, Ann Harding, Donna Reed, Horace McNally, Katherine Emery, Allen Jenkins, Stanley C. Ridges, Reginald Denny,  John Emery, Rosemary de Camp, Erik Rolf, Barry Nelson, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, Animals, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , | 73 Comments

Ed Fuentes: We Lose a Member of the Brain Trust

Posted on February 8, 2019 by lmharnisch

Dear friends and members of the Brain Trust. We lost a charter member with the death of Ed Fuentes, who apparently suffered a fatal heart attack, according to Facebook. Ed was the subject of my first column at The Times … Continue reading →

Posted in 2012, 2019, Art & Artists, Brain Trust, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Feb. 6, 1959: Matt Weinstock – Looking for the Real ‘77 Sunset Strip’

Posted on February 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 6, 1959: The wildly popular Warner Bros. TV show “77 Sunset Strip” has people visiting the location at 8532 Sunset Blvd., next to Dino’s, and writing letters. Lots of letters. Kookie, man. Weinstock’s column was originally published in the … Continue reading →

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Feb. 6, 1959: Paul Coates — Butch Harris Joins Cub Scouts at Last

Posted on February 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 6, 1959: Paul Coates writes a happy ending to the Lewis “Butch” Harris saga. This comes after the Sentinel reported a different outcome. Coates’ column originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was republished on latimes.com in … Continue reading →

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Feb. 3, 1939: Nuestro Pueblo

Posted on February 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 3, 1939: Nuestro Pueblo, by Joe Seewerker with illustrations by Charles Owens, was one of my favorite discoveries in The Times. The columns were collected and published in a book that is also one of my favorites. It’s a … Continue reading →

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March 1902: A ‘Cure’ for Anorexia

Posted on February 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

March 5 1902: Apparently lying with a cinder block on the stomach is a “cure” for the “emaciated” woman. “The bony woman is, ninety-nine times out of a hundred, the typical creature we know at a glance and summarize as … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: George Hodel and Rachmaninoff – A Meeting That Never Occurred

Posted on February 6, 2019 by lmharnisch

So here we have a passing mention of piano prodigy George Hodel, age 9, meeting Sergei Rachmaninoff “accompanied by the Russian minister of culture.” I’m particularly interested in this line because Rachmaninoff (Kristof Konrad) shows up in “I Am the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1917, 1919, 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: George Hodel Boy Genius, and Rachmaninoff

Posted on February 6, 2019 by lmharnisch

Do you love research? Of course you do or you wouldn’t be reading the Daily Mirror. But do you love research about the Hodel family? Possibly not.

Posted in 1917, 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Music | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Feb. 4, 1959: Matt Weinstock ‘A Taxpayer Votes No!’

Posted on February 5, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 4, 1959: Anecdotes, a poem and some amusing stories. Another light column to finish the day at the L.A. Mirror, courtesy of Matt Weinstock. The column originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was published on latimes.com … Continue reading →

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Feb. 4, 1959: Paul Coates Visits Americans Jailed in Raid on Mexican Casino

Posted on February 5, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 4, 1959: Paul Coates does more reporting on the case of Americans being held in Tijuana after a raid on a gambling casino in Rosarito Beach. The story originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was republished … Continue reading →

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Feb. 4, 1959: Airliner With 72 Aboard Plunges Into East River; Dodgers Sign Contracts

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 4, 1959: Plane crashes were much more common 60 years ago. The late Eric Malnic, who specialized in covering them for the L.A. Times, once noted that “we haven’t had a big plane crash in years.” In sports, Wally … Continue reading →

Posted in Dodgers, Keith Thursby, Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Feb. 3, 1959: Matt Weinstock on Pool Sharks, Young and Old

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 3, 1959: Matt Weinstock on difference between looking good on a dinky bar-sized pool table and a regulation table. This post originally appeared in the L.A. Mirror in 1959 and was republished on latimes.com in 2009. It is available … Continue reading →

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Feb. 3, 1959: Paul Coates on Americans Held in Raid on Mexican Casino

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 3, 1959: Paul Coates could dig into real reporting and in this column he is looking at the case of 20 Americans seized in a raid on a casino and held in an unheated city jail in Tijuana  — … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Paul Coates | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Feb. 3, 1959: The Day the Music Died

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

I’m a day late but trying to catch up. Here’s the Mirror’s front page from 1959. This post originally ran on latimes.com and is available via Archive.org.

Posted in 1959, Aviation, Music | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Feb. 1, 1959: Art Aragon Suspected of Fixing Fight

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Feb. 1, 1959: Art Aragon was suspected of winning a fight too easily, and Keith Thursby has the story.. This post originally appeared on latimes.com in 2009 and is available via Archive.org.

Posted in 1959, Keith Thursby, Sports | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

February 1959: Television Recorder! TV Set as Flat as a Picture! Amazing Predictions for the Future!

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Note: This post originally appeared on latimes.com in 2009 and is available via Archive.org. February 1959: Speaking of the future, RCA’s David Sarnoff describes an astounding “television recorder!” “Westinghouse’s Gwilym Price expects [recorded] tapes to reproduce shows in three dimensions … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, Education, Futurism, Television | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1932 RKO film “Hell’s Highway,” with Richard Dix, Tom Brown, Rochelle Hudson, C. Henry Gordon, Oscar Apfel, Stanley Fields, John Arledge, Warner Richmond, Chas. Middleton, Louise Carter, Sandy Roth, Clarence Muse and Fuzzy  Knight. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 35 Comments