Category Archives: Comics

Movieland Mystery Photo

Los Angeles Times file photo You may recognize this photo because I ran it a few years ago. But it’s one of my favorites. This fellow was branded with a very certain stereotype that he played in countless films, so … Continue reading

Posted in art and artists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | 59 Comments

Army Clears Strikers at North American Aviation

June 10, 1941: Bill Henry files a color story on soldiers using rifles with bayonets to herd strikers away from the North American Aviation plant. Unfortunately, my new optical character recognition software can’t handle these old clips, so I have … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Transportation, World War II | Comments Off on Army Clears Strikers at North American Aviation

Jim Murray, June 9, 1961

June 9, 1961: Wrestling isn’t even a sport at all. It’s a drama in three acts in which a lot of nice old ladies get rid of all their hostilities and aggressions occasioned usually by the fact their daughters-in-law don’t … Continue reading

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Mayor Accuses LAPD of Spying on Political Supporters

June 9, 1961: Mayor-elect Sam Yorty comes out swinging, with charges that the LAPD was spying on his supporters, and he takes a little shot against The Times. Police Chief William H. Parker quickly disputed Yorty’s allegations, saying they were … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, 1961, art and artists, Comics, Countdown to Watts, Crime and Courts, LAPD | Comments Off on Mayor Accuses LAPD of Spying on Political Supporters

‘Hunchback Killer’ Arrested, June 8, 1941

June 8, 1941: For some time, I have been coming across stories about Alfred Horace Wells in going through the 1941 clips — “hunchback killer” is not a nickname that’s easy to forget. But I haven’t done anything on him … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, 1941, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | 2 Comments

Jim Murray, June 8, 1961

            June 8, 1961: Danny Murtaugh is like the Pirates. Tough, blue-bearded, underslung jaw, he looks like a sulfurous-tempered truck driver. Actually, he is shy and modest and the kind of worrier whose biggest fear … Continue reading

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Tip Poff, July 17, 1932

July 17, 1932: I’ve been meaning to post some of the Tip Poff  gossip columns that The Times used to run in the movie/drama pages of the 1930s. The Times experimented with the column and by 1939 was calling it … Continue reading

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North American Aviation Strike

  June 7, 1941: The strike at the North American Aviation plant, in which Army troops dispersed union activists and took over an essential American defense facility,  is one of the landmark events in Los Angeles history. Because of its … Continue reading

Posted in Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | 1 Comment

Police Chief on His Way Out

           June 6, 1941: Police Chief Arthur Hohmann and Deputy Chief C.B. “Jack” Horrall are about to trade jobs.  Horrall will remain chief through World War II and into the postwar period, finally retiring during the … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, City Hall, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | 1 Comment

Jim Murray, June 6, 1961

            June 6, 1961: Track and field is still a wholesome LIVING sport, not bound down to tradition like, say, baseball. A trophy for everything and everything for a trophy. I don't know whether you … Continue reading

Posted in #Jim Murray, 1961, Columnists, Comics, Track and Field | 2 Comments

Jim Murray, June 5, 1961

        June 5, 1961: It is always a source of wonder to me that a sport as savage and cruel as prizefighting doesn't brutalize its practitioners. Yet, it doesn't. A ballplayer after losing a game is a … Continue reading

Posted in #Jim Murray, 1961, boxing, Columnists, Comics | 1 Comment

June 4, 1941: Burbank Man Invents Death Ray!

June 4, 1941: I’ll admit I’m a sucker for stories about death rays. Evidently The Times’ editors were too since they put this item on Page 1. Promoter Kurt Van Zuyle credited L.E. Riley of Burbank as the inventor. It … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, 1941, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Death Rays, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on June 4, 1941: Burbank Man Invents Death Ray!

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, June 2, 1941

           June 2, 1941: The pajama-clad body of Hungarian-born danseuse Jenny Dolly, who with her sister Rosie was the toast of two continents two decades ago, was found dangling from a wrought-iron curtain rod in her … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Suicide, Tom Treanor | 1 Comment

Jim Murray, June 2, 1961

            June 2, 1961: Parry O’Brien at the age of 29 will be a chief drawing card at the Compton Invitational tonight. He is one of the most durable and remarkable athletes of our time. … Continue reading

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Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, June 1, 1941

                     June 1, 1941: LONDON, May 31. (AP)– German airmen who went belatedly to Iraq to bolster the Axis-inspired war against Britain were reported fleeing the country tonight as Iraqi resistance … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Music, Tom Treanor, Transportation | 2 Comments

Audie Murphy Dies in Plane Crash, June 1, 1971

June 1, 1971: World War II hero Audie Murphy, whose record as the Army’s most decorated soldier launched a movie career, dies in a plane crash with five other people.Murphy was awarded the Medal of Honor, two Silver Stars, a … Continue reading

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Yorty Elected Mayor!

             June 1, 1961: Sam Yorty defeats Norris Poulson in the mayor’s race. Poulson says one reason for his loss was the Memorial Day riot in Griffith Park in which a mob of African Americans … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, 1961, art and artists, Comics, Countdown to Watts, Crime and Courts, Front Pages, LAPD, Parks and Recreation | Comments Off on Yorty Elected Mayor!

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 31, 1941

        May 31, 1941 – Arthur Hohmann, the LAPD’s reform police chief, will step down in June, citing the deaths of his son and his mother. He was replaced by Clemence C.B. “Jack” Horrall, who served as … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, City Hall, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 31, 1941

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 28, 1941

        May 28, 1941: LONDON, May 27 (AP) — The 35,000-ton German battleship Bismarck, one of the newest and most powerful in the world, was smashed and sunk today by British warships and aerial bombers on the … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Nuestro Pueblo, Tom Treanor, World War II | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 28, 1941

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 27, 1941

             LONDON, May 27 (Tuesday.) (AP) — British warships apparently were engaged in a mighty duel with a German battle squadron, including the 35,000-ton Bismarck, in the North Atlantic early today after a British naval … Continue reading

Posted in 1941, art and artists, books, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 27, 1941