Category Archives: Art & Artists

Woman Jailed for Driving Too Slowly

Posted on October 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

Oct. 7, 1941: You’re probably wondering how fast Blanche Roberts was driving. The story doesn’t say anything more specific than “an exceedingly low rate of speed” on the Calabasas Grade. Apparently no one thought to query the reporter — the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Dodgers, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Woman Jailed for Driving Too Slowly

Killer in 1964 ‘Kitty’ Genovese Case Up for Parole

Posted on October 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

March 28, 1964: New Yorkers shrugged as Catherine “Kitty” Genovese was killed. Winston Moseley, convicted in the infamous 1964 killing of Catherine “Kitty” Genovese, is up for parole and Sam Favate takes a look in the Wall Street Journal’s Law … Continue reading →

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Found on EBay – Chinatown Wishing Well

Posted on October 4, 2011 by lmharnisch

This image of a wishing well on Broadway in Chinatown built by professor Henry K. Liu has been listed on EBay. If you have looked at Charles Owens and Joe Seewerker’s “Nuestro Pueblo,” (which you really should) you might recall … Continue reading →

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Errol Flynn: ‘Everything Went Black’ in Mocambo Brawl

Posted on October 1, 2011 by lmharnisch

Oct. 1, 1941: Errol Flynn promises he won’t punch Hollywood columnist Jimmie Fidler anymore. The actor invoked the famous “everything went black” defense for the melee at the Mocambo, in which Fidler’s wife stabbed him with a fork.

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – Batchelder Tile

Posted on September 30, 2011 by lmharnisch

This Batchelder tile, above  left, showing a pair of peacocks, has been listed on EBay. Interestingly enough, it’s the same pattern as the piece on the right, which I found in Aimee Semple McPherson’s quarters at Angelus Temple on a … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art & Artists, Batchelder Tile, Found on EBay, Interior Design, Religion | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – Hotel Lankershim

Posted on September 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

This rather wonderful postcard showing an artist’s conception of what the future might look like has been listed on EBay. Built in 1902, the Hotel Lankershim was often described the city’s largest unreinforced building. After the 1971 Sylmar quake, the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1902, Architecture, Art & Artists, Downtown, Found on EBay, Futurism, Preservation | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

British Library Digitizes Lewis Carroll’s Original ‘Alice’

Posted on September 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Page 37 of Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures Under Ground,” digitized by the British Library. Henry Chu writes a nondupe in the Los Angeles Times about unsuccessful attempts to gain access to Scotland Yard’s records in the Jack the Ripper … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Immigration, Libraries, Museums | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Columnist’s Wife Stabs Errol Flynn With Fork in Nightclub Brawl!

Posted on September 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 22, 1941: Oh look what I found! Our own Jimmie Fidler mixing it up with Errol Flynn at the Mocambo.  And Fidler’s wife, Bobbe, stabs Flynn with a fork!

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Nightclubs | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

John Wayne Gacy Victim May Be Exhumed

Posted on September 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: The last Crown Vic rolls off the Ford assembly line. Leslie Luebbers,the director of the Art Museum at the University of Memphis and head of the Paul Revere William Project will give a lecture on the famed African American … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Architecture, Art & Artists, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Music, Preservation, Transportation | Tagged , , | Comments Off on John Wayne Gacy Victim May Be Exhumed

Heiress Beaten to Death in Silver Lake

Posted on September 15, 2011 by lmharnisch

2153 Moreno Drive, via Google’s street view. Sept. 15, 1941: The murder house is on one of those narrow, curving streets above Silver Lake Reservoir, 2153 Moreno Drive. Her husband came home from work and found her beaten to death … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Cold Cases, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, World War II | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

A Revolution in Research

Posted on September 11, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Rohwer Camp #23. Credit: Butler Center for Arkansas Studies

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California Raises Speed Limit to 55 mph!

Posted on September 10, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 10, 1941: California gets ready to raise the speed limit to 55 mph and the Auto Club will be posting new signs. That’s right, the Auto Club posted highway signage. Jimmie Fidler says: There’s something sadly amiss when an … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Transportation, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Database of Slave Names Going Online

Posted on September 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: “Christ Carrying the Cross Dragged by a Rogue.” The Virginia Historical Society is compiling a database of slaves and owners. The database, which will go online Wednesday, contains the names of 1,400 slaves and 180 owners, according to Eve … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Crime and Courts, Genealogy, History, Libraries, Museums, World War II | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Database of Slave Names Going Online

Hitler Dead Soon, Hungarian Astrologer Says

Posted on September 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 9, 1941: The Times publishes the amazing predictions of Hungarian “astro-philosopher” Louis De Wohl! He says Adolf Hitler is mentally ill. Check. He says Hitler doesn’t have long to live. Well, depending on how you define “long.” And the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Baseball, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, World War II | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Pinball Museum to D.C.: ‘Game Over’

Posted on September 4, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Old-school “Spacelab” game, like one we used to play at the Bum Steer in Tucson many years ago. Credit: Internet Pinball Machine Database (yes, there is one). The National Pinball Museum says “game over” to Washington, D.C. It’s moving … Continue reading →

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Widow Accused of Killing Ft. MacArthur Officer, Sept. 3, 1941

Posted on September 3, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 3, 1941: OK, Maj. Tucker,  let me get this straight. You and your wife, Marie, got home from  a party, where both of you had been drinking. She was in the bedroom and you were in the kitchen making … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Widow Accused of Killing Ft. MacArthur Officer, Sept. 3, 1941

Marion Eisenmann: Artist’s Notebook – Grand Central Market

Posted on September 2, 2011 by lmharnisch

“Grand Central Market” by Marion Eisenmann Note: I’m reposting artwork that Marion Eisenmann did with the Daily Mirror when it was at latimes.com. This one is from 2010. Marion will be giving monthly classes in plein air painting on Thursdays … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Artist's Notebook, Coming Attractions, Downtown, Food and Drink, Libraries, Marion Eisenmann | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Marion Eisenmann: Artist’s Notebook – Grand Central Market

Found on EBay – Cafe Frankenstein

Posted on September 1, 2011 by lmharnisch

A group of slides taken by a Southern California artist has been listed on EBay. Most of the other slides are billboards that the artist apparently did. But this one of the Cafe Frankenstein Coffee House in Laguna Beach c. … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Food and Drink, Found on EBay | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Sept. 1, 1941

Posted on September 1, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 1, 1941: I thought it would be interesting to check in with our friends in 1941, since Pearl Harbor is only three months away. Times editorial cartoonist Bruce Russell’s Labor Day drawing says that it’s unpatriotic to strike in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Sept. 1, 1941

New Light on the Death of Joe Hill

Posted on August 28, 2011 by lmharnisch

Nov. 20, 1915: The Times publishes the account of the execution of Joe Hill (Joe Hillstrom)  by firing squad.   The New York Times has two terrific stories that are well worth your time. The first is Rachel Donadio’s feature … Continue reading →

Posted in 1915, Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Labor, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments