Category Archives: Architecture

Movieland Mystery Photo – Help the Los Angeles Public Library!

Dear Brain Trust: Our friends at the Los Angeles Public Library photo collection are trying to identify this photo. I know you can do it!

Posted in Architecture, Libraries, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Molestation Suspect Questioned in Killing of Girl, 9

Jan. 25, 1942: Detectives Harry Fremont and Jack Dwight are questioning Leo M. King, accused of molesting a 5-year-old girl, in the death of Dorothy Lee Gordon. The case of Dorothy Gordon, an African American child who was kidnapped and … Continue reading

Posted in 1942, Architecture, Art & Artists, Cold Cases, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Nuestro Pueblo, World War II | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

The Black Dahlia at 65

Photo: Lobby of the Biltmore Hotel, Jan. 9, 2012, 6:30 p.m. Credit: Larry Harnisch/L.A. Daily Mirror. I wandered over to the Biltmore on Monday night to keep my annual appointment. I’m not compulsive about being there, and I don’t bother … Continue reading

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Architecture, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, Downtown, Film, History, Hollywood, LAPD | Tagged , | 24 Comments

The Bradbury Building and the Mystery of ‘China Girl’ [Updated +]

This is an establishing shot from the 1942 feature “China Girl,” which was obviously filmed in the Bradbury Building. Or was it? [Update: If this is a set, as it appears to be, where did Twentieth Century-Fox build it? People … Continue reading

Posted in 1942, Another Good Story Ruined, Architecture, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography, Uncategorized | Tagged | 26 Comments

The Black Dahlia: Biltmore Hotel

Photo 1: Biltmore Hotel, Jan. 9, 2012, 6:30 p.m. Credit: Larry Harnisch Photo 2: Biltmore Hotel, 1940s The top photo shows the old lobby of the Biltmore on Monday as it was on the anniversary of the night Elizabeth Short … Continue reading

Posted in 1947, Architecture, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Interior Design, LAPD | Tagged , | 19 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo

… and this movie would be?

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo

And this movie would be? Perhaps you would like a hint….

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , | 15 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo

I was watching this movie the other night and thought: “Hey! Wait a minute. That’s…..” The film shouldn’t be too hard to identify. But the location …  hmmmmmm. As I often say, living in Los Angeles is like living in … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Location Sleuth, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , | 28 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Photo: 1206 N. Kingsley Drive via Google’s Street View. I was watching a certain film the other day and what should flash by but a California driver’s license. Google would reveal the answer, so the character’s name has been snipped. … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Location Sleuth | Tagged , , | 27 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Los Angeles City Hall is in the background. Where was this shot and what’s the movie?

Posted in Architecture, City Hall, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

L.A. Christmas Card, 1911

Photo: Olive and 5th via Google’s Street View. Notice the vacant lot where Philharmonic Auditorium used to be. Demolition is forever. This truly awesome 1911 Christmas card, showing Philharmonic Auditorium and part of what is now Pershing Square, has been listed … Continue reading

Posted in 1911, Architecture, Downtown, Preservation, Theaters | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Found on EBay – Mullen and Bluett

This photo of a window display at Mullen and Bluett, at Broadway and 6th Street, has been listed on EBay. This photo is undated and I would have pegged this as the 1940s, but The Times clips shows that Timely … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Fashion, Found on EBay, Photography | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Mullen and Bluett

Location Sleuth – ‘Between Midnight and Dawn’

Hey, it’s the Florentine Gardens! Here it is via Google’s Street View. I was watching the 1950 Columbia film “Between Midnight and Dawn” and several locations caught my eye. The first one is an aerial view during the credits that … Continue reading

Posted in 1950, Architecture, City Hall, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Location Sleuth | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Found on EBay – Chocolate Shop

217 W. 6th St. via Google Street View. A wooden box from the Chocolate Shop has been listed on EBay. The shops were located at 211 W. 5th St., 217 W. 6th St., 731 S. Broadway and 20 E. Colorado … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Batchelder Tile, Downtown, Food and Drink, Found on EBay | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Scientists to Build Computer From 1830s Drawings

Photo: The lobby of La Concha Motel, designed by Paul Revere Williams. Credit: The Neon Museum The first in a planned series of monthly lectures in the newly reopened Globe Lobby is sold out. The next lecture is Dec. 8, … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Books and Authors, Chicago, Crime and Courts, Museums, Music, Preservation, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Scientists to Build Computer From 1830s Drawings

Found on EBay – Ambassador Hotel

This postcard of the Ambassador Hotel has been listed on EBay. Wouldn’t it be neat to go there? Oh wait – we let L.A. Unified tear it down. Bidding starts at $5.

Posted in Architecture, Found on EBay, Preservation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

A Look at Paul Revere Williams

Image: “Paul Revere Williams: A Legend in Architecture.” Credit: Dave Kelly My Times colleague Scott Harrison digs up some archival photos from the construction of the Los Angeles Aqueduct. Chris Carola of the Associated Press takes a look at the … Continue reading

Posted in African Americans, Architecture, Crime and Courts, Museums | Tagged | 1 Comment

L.A. Mystery Photo [Updated]

Well? Any ideas? This is the floor of the Bradbury Building.  I took a picture of it during an art class given Saturday by Marion Eisenmann, known to Daily Mirror readers through the Artist’s Notebook. Marion asked me to make … Continue reading

Posted in 1893, Architecture, Art & Artists, Interior Design, Marion Eisenmann, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Suspect in After-Hours Sex at Museum: ‘I Get Around’

Image: The Charleston Museum, where Michael L. Miller was arrested on charge of having sex at 3 a.m. Neale Gulley of Reuters reports that the Buffalo Transportation Pierce Arrow Museum in Buffalo, N.Y., is building Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1927 design … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Food and Drink, Museums, Music, Native Americans, Preservation | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Suspect in After-Hours Sex at Museum: ‘I Get Around’

Times to Reopen Globe Lobby!

Photo: Hugo Ballin mural in Los Angeles Times Globe Lobby. Credit: Larry Harnisch/LADailyMirror.com The Times has announced that it will reopen the Globe Lobby on Oct. 24, weekdays from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Very cool news.

Posted in Architecture, Art & Artists, Downtown | Tagged , | 2 Comments