Category Archives: Architecture

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 2178 High Tower Drive, L.A.’s First Community Elevator

Posted on March 20, 2023 by lmharnisch

The Tower appeared in the March 24, 1939, installment of Nuestro Pueblo by Joseph Seewerker and Charles Owens of the Los Angeles Times. Note: This is an encore post from 2020. Both marketing gimmick and necessity, the elevator shaft that … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Magic Castle

Posted on January 30, 2023 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Sitting gracefully below Yamashiro restaurant just above Franklin Avenue, the Magic Castle stands as a glorious reminder of the beauty and elegance of old Hollywood.  Almost like magic it appeared on the … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Clock Tower Enters Its Second Century

Posted on January 2, 2023 by lmharnisch

A landmark both as one of the first buildings in the original Cahuenga Valley area known as Colegrove and for its dramatic appearance looming over the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Cahuenga Avenue, what is now the L.A. Security … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Christmas House Offers Simple Family Joys of Holiday Season

Posted on November 28, 2022 by lmharnisch

The Christmas House in Boyle Heights, courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library. Note: This is an encore post from 2019. Long before the inauguration of Instagram and trying to win social media by posting the most elaborate or flashy … Continue reading →

Posted in 1938, Architecture, Film, Fire Department, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Nuestro Pueblo | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Studio Club Provides Home For Movie-Struck Girls

Posted on November 7, 2022 by lmharnisch

The Studio Club in Photoplay, 1917. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. T he advent of the 20th century offered the possibility of more freedom and opportunity for women. For decades, women had advocated for the right to … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Egyptian Theatre, Where Grauman Put the ‘Show’ in Show Business, Turns 100

Posted on October 25, 2022 by lmharnisch

A postcard showing Sid Grauman and the Egyptian Theater, listed on EBay. On Oct. 18, Hollywood’s Egyptian Theatre turned 100 years old. Built and operated by legendary showman Sid Grauman, the spectacular theater introduced major Hollywood premieres and radio broadcasts … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mabel Normand Studio Leads the Way

Posted on September 30, 2022 by lmharnisch

One of the first film studios constructed for use solely by a female performer, the Mabel Normand Studio still stands strong at the triangle intersection of Fountain Avenue, Bates Avenue, and Effie Street in East Hollywood, more than 100 years … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Little-Known Figures of Hollywoodland

Posted on July 20, 2022 by lmharnisch

The Patrick M. Longan residence at 1305 Durand Drive, designed by John De Lario, courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library. Although a heavily advertised, exclusive real estate development owned by such investors as Harry Chandler, M. H. Sherman and … Continue reading →

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

Posted on July 14, 2022 by lmharnisch

The Hollywoodland Sign, in a photo published in the Los Angeles Evening Herald, Dec. 8, 1923. Note: This is an encore post from 2017. Originally constructed as a publicity gimmick and branding symbol to help generate sales for a real … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywood Bowl Celebrates 100 Years

Posted on July 5, 2022 by lmharnisch

100 years ago, the Hollywood Bowl hosted its first official summer Symphonies Under the Stars concert, inaugurating a tradition that continues today. Constructed as a way to celebrate the arts in a magnificent outdoor setting, the Hollywood Bowl sprang to … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Norman Kerry, Preservationist

Posted on May 16, 2022 by lmharnisch

Norman Kerry in 1924. Note: This is an encore post from 2019. Long before billionaire investor Ron Burkle purchased and restored such historic architectural properties as Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ennis-Brown House, Harold Lloyd’s Greenacres, and Bob Hope’s Palm Springs and … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘Hollywood’s Architect | The Paul R. Williams Story’ – A Moving Portrait of Renowned Black Leader

Posted on February 14, 2022 by lmharnisch

Courtesy of KCET/PBS SoCal. Note: This is an encore post from 2020. The documentary is online here. Long renowned for its excellent documentaries and intelligent programming, KCET PBS SoCal premieres another strong work with its moving portrait of pioneering African … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – United Artists Theatre

Posted on February 7, 2022 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2012. Los Angeles and Hollywood have been the Mecca and Medina of movies, where their acolytes came to worship, work and learn in the teens and 1920s.  After making movies, reverent places of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1926, 1927, Architecture, Art & Artists, Downtown, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Preservation, Religion, Theaters | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: On the Frontiers of Businesses Run and Owned by Women

Posted on January 31, 2022 by lmharnisch

At a time when women faced enormous hurdles and obstacles in the workplace, possessing fewer opportunities and earning lower wages than men, the progressive and woman-owned and operated Averill Morgan Co. recognized the strength of working women and immigrants by … Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 22, 2021 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2011. I picked up “The Big Picture,” Melba Levick and Stanley Young’s 1988 book about Los Angeles murals, not realizing what a terribly sad book it would be. As Young notes: “Most artists … Continue reading →

Posted in 1988, Architecture, Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Downtown, From the Stacks, Hollywood, Latinos, Photography, Preservation, San Fernando Valley, Sports, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 3, 2021 by lmharnisch

I’m happy to recommend Bunker Hill Los Angeles: Essence of Sunshine and Noir, by my Crime Buddy Nathan Marsak, published in 2020 by Angel City Press. The book is full of historic photos and vintage ephemera, and the text is … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Einar Petersen, Forgotten Artist

Posted on October 25, 2021 by lmharnisch

Image: Lobby of the New Rosslyn Hotel, showing murals by Einar Petersen. Note: This is an encore post from 2011. Fame is an odd thing. An artist might be successful and popular in his lifetime and forgotten with the decades, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1915, Architecture, Art & Artists, Downtown, Food and Drink, Hollywood Heights, Interior Design, Mary Mallory, Obituaries, Photography, San Francisco | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Olvera Street, Salute to Los Angeles’ Spanish Past

Posted on October 4, 2021 by lmharnisch

A postcard of the Avila Adobe, listed on EBay for $1.89. “A people that has lost touch with its historical past, forgotten its traditions and wasted its heritage is as unfortunate as a man who has lost his memory. Without … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory/ Hollywood Heights: First Permanent Film Studio Was an Abandoned Roadhouse

Posted on September 29, 2021 by lmharnisch

When early moving picture companies set down roots in the farming community of Hollywood, they employed simple structures like barns, warehouses, and even an abandoned roadhouse as studios. These early production entities ventured west in 1909 and 1910 to escape … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Vice Raid and Early TV in Hollywood’s Biggest Storehouse

Posted on August 24, 2021 by lmharnisch

The Hollywood Storage Building as seen in Google Earth. Originally Los Angeles’ tallest building when opened in 1926, the Hollywood Storage Building at the southwest corner of Highland Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard towered over the rapidly expanding film city. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1926, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Television | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment