Category Archives: City Hall

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 6, 2020 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1931 Warner Bros. picture “Other Men’s Women,” with Grant Withers, Mary Astor, Regis Toomey, James Cagney, Fred Kohler, J. Farrell MacDonald, Joan Blondell, Lillian Worth and Walter Long. By Maude Fulton, dialogue by William … Continue reading →

Posted in 1931, City Hall, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

‘The Lid Off Los Angeles’ – Liberty Magazine Examines Corruption in the LAPD and at City Hall

Posted on June 18, 2020 by lmharnisch

On Nov. 11, 1939, Liberty magazine began a six-part series by Dwight F. McKinney and Fred Allhoff on the Harry Raymond bombing and the reform movement of Clifford E. Clinton. Liberty also published a response by Dist. Atty. Buron Fitts. … Continue reading →

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Downtown Los Angeles, 1950: ‘The Underworld Story’ Part 3

Posted on June 24, 2019 by lmharnisch

Here’s another sequence from “The Underworld Story” filmed in downtown Los Angeles. The camera is across Spring Street, opposite City Hall. Downtown L.A. in ‘Underworld Story’ Part 1 | Part 2

Posted in Architecture, City Hall, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Location Sleuth | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Jan. 5, 1959: LAPD Suspends Officer for – Uh-Oh

Posted on February 16, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 5, 1959: Chief William Parker suspends Officer Charles Wolf serial No. 4115 for 15 days for … oh dear. Banging “a known prostitute and dissolute person” and letting her get possession of his firearm. This material is from the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, City Hall, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Libraries | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Jan. 12-13, 1959: Soviet Leader Mikoyan Visits L.A.

Posted on January 12, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 12-13, 1959: Protests force the plane carrying Deputy Soviet Premier Anastas Mikoyan to divert to Burbank! Mikoyan did a grip and grin with L.A. Mayor Norris Poulson, but Norrie would not be so friendly during Nikita Khrushchev’s time in … Continue reading →

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Dec. 19, 1947: Going Down – City Hall Bans Clever Nicknames for Its Floors

Posted on December 19, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. City Hall’s elevator operators have been having a little too much fun on the job. Instead of calling out the numbers of the floors, they have … Continue reading →

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Dec. 18, 1907: County Coroner Dead Drunk at Bordello

Posted on December 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 18, 1907 Los Angeles Los Angeles County Coroner Roy S. Lanterman was arrested on charges of being drunk and disorderly at the Navajo, a bordello run by Ida Hastings, 309 Ord … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1908, 1909, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Photography | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

1920: Police Raid Party at Ex-Mayor’s Home, Arrest 7 Men in Drag

Posted on December 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Dec. 10,1907 Los Angeles Mayor Arthur C. Harper happens to be in all sorts of trouble. He’s telling the newspapers that he has had enough of politics and won’t seek another term. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1909, 1912, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Downtown, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Nov. 15, 1907: Charles Mulford Robinson Drafts a Los Angeles of the Future

Posted on November 15, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Nov. 15, 1907 Los Angeles Architect Charles Mulford Robinson has drafted a proposal for downtown Los Angeles that is stunning in its ambition. One portion calls for broad boulevard leading from a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Books and Authors, City Hall, Downtown, LAPD, Pasadena, Streetcars | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Oct. 30, 1907: ‘Brat Frat’ Defies Ban by L.A. High School

Posted on October 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Oct. 30, 1907 Los Angeles The young men of Los Angeles High School have issued a direct challenge to the Board of Education, defying its authority by enlisting fraternity members despite a … Continue reading →

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Oct. 28, 1907: Former LAPD Chief Calls It ‘Most Detestable Job Ever Created’

Posted on October 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Oct. 28, 1907 Los Angeles You know the song even if you’ve never seen “Pirates of Penzance”: A policeman’s lot is not a happy one” and that is doubly true for one … Continue reading →

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Oct. 12, 1907: Contractor Leaves Dead Dogs in Street to Break Contract; A Foul Wind From Fertilizer Plant Blows Over Boyle Heights

Posted on October 12, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Oct. 12, 1907 Los Angeles After repeated complaints to police because half a dozen dead dogs had laid in the streets for two weeks, the health department tried to charge C.T. Hanson, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, City Hall, Environment | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Col. John Bryson, 1819 – 1907 | Ex-Mayor Was Millionaire L.A. Developer

Posted on October 11, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Oct. 11,1907 Los Angeles Perhaps John Bryson’s early life was something out of Horatio Alger, but the death of the Los Angeles developer and self-made millionaire could have easily been taken from … Continue reading →

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Sept. 28, 1907: L.A. Motorcycle Club Backs Ban on Loud Pipes

Posted on September 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. Sept. 28, 1907 Los Angeles Members of the Los Angeles Motorcycle Club have written to officials in support of a measure banning loud exhaust pipes on motorcycles. “The motorcycle club says that … Continue reading →

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Sept. 5, 1947: L.A. Turns 166, Becomes Third-Largest City in America

Posted on September 5, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Los Angeles mounted a festive reenactment of its founding, with people taking the roles of padres, soldiers and settlers. On the gaily decorated steps of City … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, City Hall, Environment, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

July 28, 1907: L.A. Seeks to Clear Books of Old Laws on Bear Baiting, Quail Hunting by Streetcar Conductors

Posted on July 28, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 28, 1907 Los Angeles City officials, hampered by a bramble bush of old and unenforced laws, have appointed deputy prosecutor Eddie to prune back outdated and unnecessary regulations from the early … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Animals, City Hall, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Streetcars, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

July 27, 1907: Mayor Harper Calls for More LAPD Officers, New Library, More Schools

Posted on July 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Above, Mayor Harper’s goals for his administration. Note especially item No. 11–more police officers–and item No. 17: new schools. Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 27, 1907 Los Angeles One of Mayor Harper’s promises in taking over … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, City Hall, Education, LAPD, Streetcars | Leave a comment

July 16, 1907: New Restrictions on Boxing

Posted on July 16, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 16, 1907 Los Angeles Under continued lobbying from the Church Federation, the city attorney is preparing new restrictions on prizefighting that local promoters say will kill the sport. “The new ordinance … Continue reading →

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June 7, 1947: Kenneth Hahn Sworn in as L.A. Councilman

Posted on June 7, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. Hahn retired from public service in 1992, after being elected 10 times to the county Board of Supervisors, beginning in 1952. Source: Los Angeles Times, June … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, City Hall, Politics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

June 1, 1907: Former L.A. Councilman Charged With Running Bordello

Posted on June 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. June 1, 1907 Los Angeles Voir dire, in which lawyers question prospective jurors, is a rough and tumble affair, especially when the case involves prostitution. The matter at hand involves Tom Savage, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Streetcars | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment