Category Archives: City Hall

Black L.A. 1947: Bert McDonald Dies; First Black Deputy City Atty.

Posted on March 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

The latest records by Jimmy Rushing, Duke Henderson and King Perry are at 1065 N. Fairfax Ave. 1065 N. Fairfax Ave., where you got the latest hip 78s in 1947, via Google Street View. March 13, 1947: The Sentinel publishes … Continue reading →

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Feb. 13, 1907: Hotel Alexandria Celebrates 1st Anniversary

Posted on February 13, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. Feb.13, 1907 Los Angeles An enormous masked ball for the city’s elite was staged on Mardi Gras at Kramer’s Studio and Dancing Academy, 1500 S. Figueroa.

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Black L.A. 1947: Four African Americans File for City Council 7th District Race

Posted on January 29, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jan. 30, 1947: An ad in the Sentinel announces a preview of a model home in Carver Manor, a housing development designed by Paul R. Williams at 135th Street and Avalon Boulevard. Stanford Avenue in Carver Manor, via Google Street … Continue reading →

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Black L.A. 1947: LAPD Detectives Cleared of Brutality Against Drunk Woman

Posted on January 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

Jan. 9, 1947: The Sentinel reports on the ruling by the Los Angeles Police Commission in the case of Edythe L. Galloway, 434 E. 48th St. On Nov. 6, 1946, the Police Commission voted to investigate the allegations of brutality … Continue reading →

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The Mayor Departs From His Prepared Remarks

Posted on January 4, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. Jan. 4, 1907 Los Angeles Mayor-elect Arthur C. Harper stood before 200 members of the Municipal League and their friends in a dinner at Levy’s who were eager to hear what he … Continue reading →

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Some Nice Boring Statistics

Posted on January 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. Jan. 2, 1907 Los Angeles Some diligent soul at The Times dug through the number of marriage licenses and divorces and put together a small story that traced the city’s growth through … Continue reading →

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Olympics: Scenes From the 1932 Los Angeles Games

Posted on August 3, 2016 by lmharnisch

Several years ago, I bought a group of German images showing the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics and the 2016 Rio Games seemed like a good time to share them.

Posted in 1932, City Hall, Photography, Sports | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Fire Up the Lindbergh Beacon!

Posted on December 14, 2015 by lmharnisch

It’s December, which means it is time to fire up the Lindbergh beacon atop City Hall. Here it is, illuminating the skies over Los Angeles in 2014. Update: I wrote this post a week ago and put it on the … Continue reading →

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Lindbergh Beacon Shines Over Downtown Los Angeles

Posted on December 10, 2015 by lmharnisch

We were pleased to see the Lindbergh beacon fired up on City Hall last night. We were so taken with the moment that we made our first Periscope broadcast with it. Here’s the link to watch it on your desktop.

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Black Dahlia: Going Digital

Posted on September 11, 2015 by lmharnisch

  I am slowly digitizing all the interviews I have conducted into Los Angeles in the 1940s and it’s so nice to hear them again. This week, I did Fred Okrand (d. 2002) of the ACLU; Betty Rowland, the 1940s … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, City Hall, History | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 12, 2015 by lmharnisch

  This week’s mystery movie has been the 1934 RKO picture “Bachelor Bait,” with Stu Erwin (Friday’s mystery guest), Rochelle Hudson (Wednesday’s mystery guest), Pert Kelton (Thursday’s mystery guest), Skeets Gallager (Friday’s mystery guest) and Burton Churchill (not shown). It … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , | 40 Comments

Mayor Garcetti Fires Up the Lindbergh Beacon

Posted on December 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

And yes, here is the Lindberg beacon atop City Hall, illuminating the skies over Los Angeles for Christmas Eve 2014.

Posted in 2014, City Hall, Downtown | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Mayor Garcetti: Where’s the Lindbergh Beacon?!

Posted on December 8, 2014 by lmharnisch

A not great photo by me showing the Lindbergh beacon in December 2006. Update: Mayor Eric Garcetti says: Checking on it right now–I love the beacon and will be sure it gets lit if it hasn’t been. Dec. 9, 2014: … Continue reading →

Posted in 2006, City Hall | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Sept. 4, 1781: Los Angeles Is Founded

Posted on September 4, 2014 by lmharnisch

  Sept. 4, 1926:The Times publishes a map showing the streets of the day, noting the changes made since Ord’s survey. Sept. 4, 1981: Mayor Tom Bradley and actress Bernadette Peters cut the cake for Los Angeles’ 200th birthday Jan. … Continue reading →

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‘While the City Sleeps’ — John Bengtson Edition

Posted on May 8, 2014 by lmharnisch

John Bengtson, who has researched and written so much about early movie locations in Los Angeles, sends this Spence Air Photo of the Civic Center and weighs in on “While the City Sleeps.” Hi Larry – thank you for the … Continue reading →

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From the Vaults — ‘While the City Sleeps,’ Part V

Posted on May 7, 2014 by lmharnisch

This is the last in our series of posts on the 1928 Lon Chaney film “While the City Sleeps.” We have previously looked at the history of the film, the plot (convoluted), the reviews (mixed) the condition of this print … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Architecture, City Hall, Film, Hollywood, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

From the Vaults — ‘While the City Sleeps,’ Part IV

Posted on May 6, 2014 by lmharnisch

  In the three previous posts on the 1928 Lon Chaney film “While the City Sleeps,” we took a brief look at the production history and the plot, the critical reaction (mostly mixed) and the curious condition of the print, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, City Hall, Film, From the Vaults, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

From the Vaults: ‘While the City Sleeps’ — Part I

Posted on April 30, 2014 by lmharnisch

It’s worth spending a bit more time on our recent mystery movie “While the City Sleeps” for several reasons. It’s not widely available and most copies seem to be missing large chunks of the film, making the complex narrative even … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, City Hall, Film, From the Vaults, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Imagining the Future

Posted on April 26, 2014 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006. The subject came up today when I was having lunch with Ed Fuentes, so I thought I would repost it. Notice that in this plan, Union Station was to have been … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, City Hall, Downtown, LAPD, Pasadena, Streetcars | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Imagining the Future

What Happened to the Lindbergh Beacon on L.A. City Hall?

Posted on January 2, 2014 by lmharnisch

Joining us in our question,  blogger Militant Angeleno also asks “What happened to the Lindbergh Beacon on City Hall?” The Militant says: “Leaving the Lindbergh Beacon off during the holiday season makes Huell Howser’s angel cry.” Here’s video.

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