Category Archives: 1950

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 15, 2025 by lmharnisch

Retro Shopping Guide: “The Los Angeles Book” (1950) featuring wonderful photographs by Max Yavno, who was responsible for so many iconic shots of L.A. Continue reading →

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September 20, 1907: Suicide Note — ‘Everything Is Boiling’

Posted on September 20, 2025 by lmharnisch

September 20, 1907: For weeks, Colorado mining investor John Geisel, 57, had confided in his diary as he felt his mind and his life coming unraveled “Good God,” he wrote, “for the first time today I began to fear that I could not control my thoughts.” Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on March 10, 2025 by lmharnisch

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

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 27 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 10, 2024 by lmharnisch

Retro Shopping Guide: “The Los Angeles Book” (1950) featuring wonderful photographs by Max Yavno, who was responsible for so many iconic shots of L.A. Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on September 23, 2024 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1950 Twentieth Century-Fox picture When Willie Comes Marching Home, with Dan Dailey, Corinne Calvet, Colleen Townsend, William Demarest, James Lydon, Lloyd Corrigan and Evelyn Varden.

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 14, 2021 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. “The Los Angeles Book,” with text by Lee Shippey and photos by Max Yavno is one of my favorite books on Los Angeles – but only for Yavno’s photographs. The text is … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on February 8, 2021 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1950 Paramount film “The File on Thelma Jordon,” with Barbara Stanwyck, Wendell Corey, Paul Kelly, Joan Tetzel, Stanley Ridges, Richard Rober, Minor Watson, Barry Kelley and Laura Elliot. Screenplay by Ketti Frings from a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 52 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 9, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. “The Los Angeles Book,” with text by Lee Shippey and photos by Max Yavno is one of my favorite books on Los Angeles – but only for Yavno’s photographs. The text is … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Books and Authors | Tagged , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 20, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1950 Warner Bros. film “Stage Fright,” with Jane Wyman, Marlene Dietrich, Michael Wilding, Richard Todd, Sybil Thorndike, Kay Walsh, Miles Malleson, Hector McGregor, Joyce Grenfell, Andre Morell, Patricia Hitchcock and Ballard Berkeley. With Alistair … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 41 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 6, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1950 MGM picture “Black Hand,” with Gene Kelly, J. Carrol Naish, Teresa Celli, Marc Lawrence, Barry Kelley, Frank Puglia and Mario Siletti. Screenplay by Luther Davis from a story by Leo Townsend. Photography by … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Immigration, Mystery Photo, New York | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 17, 2019 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2014. “The Los Angeles Book,” with text by Lee Shippey and photos by Max Yavno is one of my favorite books on Los Angeles – but only for Yavno’s photographs. The text is … Continue reading →

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Remembering Herbert Berghof

Posted on July 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

Gary writes of Herbert Berghof, as seen in “5 Fingers.” In the mid late 1970’s I took some acting classes at HB Studios near my apartment in the West Village. For the most part we studied the Uta Hagen text … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Stage | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Downtown Los Angeles, 1950: ‘The Underworld Story’ Part 2

Posted on June 19, 2019 by lmharnisch

Here’s another frame from the opening of “The Underworld Story,” last week’s mystery movie. This appears to be one of the Hill Street tunnels, which were demolished in 1955.

Posted in 1950, Architecture, Downtown, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Downtown Los Angeles, 1950: ‘The Underworld Story’

Posted on June 18, 2019 by lmharnisch

“The Underworld Story,” last week’s mystery movie, had quite a few interesting shots of downtown Los Angeles from about 1950. Here’s one from the opening titles. It shows the Fashion League Building, which was at Hill and 2nd streets. Notice … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Architecture, Downtown, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 10, 2019 by lmharnisch

This week’s particularly fun (for me, anyway) mystery movie was the 1950 United Artists release “The Underworld Story,” with Dan Duryea, Herbert Marshall, Gale Storm, Howard Da Silva, Michael O’Shea, Mary Anderson, Gar Moore, Melville Cooper, Frieda Inescort, Art Baker, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 47 Comments

Black Dahlia: Steve Hodel’s Lies on ‘Dr. Phil’; A Case Study

Posted on March 28, 2019 by lmharnisch

Would you like to see how Steve Hodel lies about things that can be easily checked? Of course you would. This is a graphic that appeared during Steve Hodel’s appearance on “Dr. Phil.” It’s helpful, at least for me, for … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Black Dahlia: 6 Reasons Dr. George Hodel Didn’t Kill Elizabeth Short — No. 2 Not Guilty of Morals Charges

Posted on December 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here are six reasons Dr. George Hodel did not kill Elizabeth Short that you will need to know before watching the TNT mini-series “I Am the Night” or listening to the eight-part podcast accompanying the production. Reason No. 2: George … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1949, 1950, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Homicide, LAPD, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: 6 Reasons Dr. George Hodel Didn’t Kill Elizabeth Short — No. 1 Not a Prime Suspect

Posted on December 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here are six reasons Dr. George Hodel did not kill Elizabeth Short that you will need to know before watching the TNT mini-series “I Am the Night” or listening to the eight-part podcast accompanying the production. Reason No. 1: Dr. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1949, 1950, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Television | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Sept. 20, 1907: Suicide Note — ‘Everything Is Boiling’

Posted on September 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Sept. 20, 1907 Los Angeles For weeks, Colorado mining investor John Geisel, 57, had confided in his diary as he felt his mind and his life coming unraveled “Good God,” he wrote, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1883, 1907, 1950, Architecture, Downtown, Suicide | 2 Comments

Black L.A., 1947: Onyx Club Opens in Pasadena; Cafe Was Site of Sensational 1950 Killing

Posted on March 6, 2018 by lmharnisch

March 6, 1947: The Onyx Club opens at 109 S. Fair Oaks in Pasadena. The former site of what was variously called the Onyx Club, Onyx Cafe or Onyx Bar on South Fair Oaks in Pasadena, via Google Street View. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1950, African Americans, Crime and Courts, Food and Drink, Music, Nightclubs, Pasadena | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment