Category Archives: 1943

The ‘Masked Marvel Murder’ – Part 1

Posted on October 2, 2013 by lmharnisch

David Bacon in “The Masked Marvel.” David G.G. Bacon died on the afternoon of Sept. 12, 1943, at the age of 29 with many secrets: A secret diary kept in code, coded annotations in his address book and most of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD | 9 Comments

Conservatives Sexually Frustrated, UCLA Daily Bruin Says

Posted on September 26, 2013 by lmharnisch

Sept. 26, 1943: The Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen ends its strike against the Pacific Electric, with workers returning to their jobs at 2 a.m. Their first task is to untangle a “freight jam which had threatened to undermine the entire … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Comics, Education, Film, Hollywood, Labor, Obituaries, Richard Nixon, Streetcars, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Navy Doctors Defuse ‘Human Bomb’

Posted on September 19, 2013 by lmharnisch

Sept. 19, 1943: In a story delayed for wartime, the Associated Press reports that Allen L. Gordon, 23, of Rock Island, Ill., fire control operator third class, was struck Dec. 2 with a 20-millimeter antiaircraft shell that lodged in his … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, African Americans, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Hollywood, Labor, Medicine, Music, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Escaped Soldier Denies Attacking Former Screen Star

Posted on September 11, 2013 by lmharnisch

Sept. 11, 1943: The Times features the Los Angeles Times-Army Ordnance in Action Show being held at Exposition Park. The Times promised that “visitors will see the massive 32-ton Gen. Sherman tanks whose tough armor and deadly firepower blasted the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Music, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Union Pleads With Streetcar Workers Not to Strike

Posted on September 5, 2013 by lmharnisch

Sept. 5, 1943: Explaining that “war strategies between President Roosevelt and Britain’s Prime Minister Churchill come first,” William P. Nutter of the Brotherhood of Railway Trainmen pleads with dissatisfied employees of the Pacific Electric Railway to stay on the job. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Streetcars, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Union Pleads With Streetcar Workers Not to Strike

Parents Sue Doctor Who Said Baby Girl Was a Boy!

Posted on August 29, 2013 by lmharnisch

Aug. 29, 1943: The family of Marine Cpl. Carroll E. Trego, a radio operator captured in the fall of Wake Island, receives a letter written from a prisoner of war camp in Shanghai. Dr. John M. Andrews is being sued … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Medicine, Streetcars, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

LAPD Women Join Marines

Posted on August 21, 2013 by lmharnisch

Aug. 21, 1943: Two women from the LAPD are joining the Marines: Lucy White, 26, who works in the fingerprinting department, and Margaret Davis, 22, of the record bureau. Judge Benjamin J. Scheinman is leaving the municipal bench to join … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Nightclubs, Stage, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hero Stops Runaway L.A. Streetcar

Posted on August 15, 2013 by lmharnisch

Aug. 15, 1943: Los Angeles’ long-gone streetcar system has achieved sainthood, but here’s an incident suggesting that in reality, it was less than perfect. (Heresy, I know). Shura Cherkassky performs at the Greek Theatre. Hedda Hopper with her version of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Music, Streetcars, Transportation | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Officer Kills Two, Wounds Two in Brawl at Shipyard Workers’ Party

Posted on August 7, 2013 by lmharnisch

Aug. 7, 1943: A zoot suit with a drape shape, reet pleat and stuff cuff in the comics! This is a story that, as presented in The Times, seems straightforward: A Palos Verdes police officer responding to a rowdy party … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Comics, Music, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Officer Kills Two, Wounds Two in Brawl at Shipyard Workers’ Party

Tomahawk Murder: ‘It Must Have Been the Heat’

Posted on July 31, 2013 by lmharnisch

July 31, 1943: Los Angeles — and that is Los Angeles before air conditioning — bakes in a heat wave, temperatures so hot that it’s the reason for murder. “I had a sudden impulse; it must have been the heat,” … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, San Fernando Valley, Suicide, Theaters | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Action by FDR Averts Streetcar Strike!

Posted on July 25, 2013 by lmharnisch

July 25, 1943: President Roosevelt intervenes in the planned Pacific Electric Railway strike, saying that he did not want to use Army trucks to transport war supplies. The strike centered on a raise of 13 cents an hour, which has … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Columnists, Labor, Streetcars, Tom Treanor, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Streetcar Strike Could Paralyze Los Angeles!

Posted on July 24, 2013 by lmharnisch

July 24, 1943: Labor problems threaten to paralyze mass transportation in Los Angeles. The Times says that 3,000 Los Angeles Railway workers have ended a 24-hour walkout while 2,500 Pacific Electric workers are scheduled to strike. Marion “More Curves Than … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, Aviation, Comics, Labor, Main Street, Streetcars, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Streetcar Strike Could Paralyze Los Angeles!

Man Shoots Companion in Search for Prowler

Posted on July 19, 2013 by lmharnisch

   Nancy and Sluggo in all their vintage glory. July 19, 1943: The Times publishes a list of casualties from the Army and Navy. Francis Joseph Montclair was a motor machinist second class and is buried in Honolulu. Lt. Cmdr. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Columnists, Comics, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A Night at the Florentine Gardens, 1943

Posted on July 15, 2013 by lmharnisch

Here’s another item from the Florentine Gardens: A 1943 photo of people that has been listed on EBay for 99 cents.

Posted in 1943, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Nightclubs, Photography, World War II | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on A Night at the Florentine Gardens, 1943

Police Smash Marihuana Ring

Posted on July 11, 2013 by lmharnisch

The Times publishes artist Charles H. Owen’s map of the Sicilian invasion. Owens’ artwork is featured in “Nuestro Pueblo,” one of my favorite books on Los Angeles. July 11, 1943: LAPD officers and state narcotics agents raid an apartment at … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, A Kinder, Simpler Time, LAPD, Music | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Teen Convicted in Bloody Killing of Girl, 12

Posted on June 27, 2013 by lmharnisch

June 27, 1943: The “Greatest Generation” isn’t getting enough “bulk.” Let’s rename Bunker Hill as Angels’ Terrace. Or not. The Courtemanche family lived in the old Sepulveda place at 751 N. Palos Verdes St., on a hill above the Wilmington-San … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: David O. Selznick and Madame Chiang Kai-Shek

Posted on April 22, 2013 by lmharnisch

Madame Chiang in a film clip at the Hollywood Bowl, beginning at the 4:22 mark on a newsreel posted on YouTube. Seventy years ago, film producer David O. Selznick staged an over-the-top extravaganza April 4, 1943, at the Hollywood Bowl … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Berserk Negro Kills Two Men on Ranch With Ax

Posted on April 18, 2013 by lmharnisch

April 18, 1943:  Robert Earl Lee, 61, a worker at ranch in the Malibu Hills, surrenders to authorities after killing his employer, Nelson Ross Wolfe, and another ranch hand, Albert Everett Miller, with an ax. Lee, described by The Times … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, African Americans, Animals, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Japanese Lieutenant Killed at Guadalcanal Went to USC

Posted on April 11, 2013 by lmharnisch

April 11, 1943: And here begins one of my favorite “Li’l Abner” episodes: Zoot Suit Yokum. The Times reports a strange encounter on Guadalcanal in which an unidentified Marine took a rifle from a wounded Japanese lieutenant. According to Torrance … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Comics, Film, Food and Drink, Hollywood, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Human Fly Flees Hall of Justice

Posted on April 4, 2013 by lmharnisch

April 4, 1943: Col. Darryl F. Zanuck comes under criticism for trying to return to civilian life. (Zanuck said there wasn’t much chance that he would make more movies of combat.) Sen. Harry Truman (D-Mo.) of the Senate War Program … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Broadway, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Immigration, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment