Category Archives: #courts

Bullet of Mystery – Part 2

Posted on May 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

In case you just tuned in, I’m posting a small case study of research I did with Caroline Comport on her grandfather Lionel Comport for her master’s thesis. Researching Los Angeles is a treasure hunt, and every time I dig … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1901, Crime and Courts, Pages of History | Comments Off on Bullet of Mystery – Part 2

Bullet of Mystery – Part 1

Posted on May 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

    Los Angeles history in the 1900s is an acquired taste. Most people limit themselves to  the Raymond Chandler era, the 1930s through the 1950s, as if Philip Marlowe moonlighted as a historian. Perhaps they find the city’s horse-and-buggy … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1901, Animals, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Raymond Chandler | 1 Comment

Libel Suit in L.A. Mayor’s Race!

Posted on May 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 12, 1961: Mayor Norris Poulson accused challenger Sam Yorty of being “backed by the underworld” and Yorty responded with a libel suit.   The basis of Poulson's charge was that as an Assemblyman, Yorty supported a … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, art and artists, City Hall, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Politics | Comments Off on Libel Suit in L.A. Mayor’s Race!

Another Good Story Ruined — The Black Dahlia

Posted on May 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

    The Black Dahlia has become so thoroughly transformed into a myth about what happens to nice, small-town girls in big, bad Hollywood  (“achieving in death the fame that eluded her in life”) that it’s almost impossible to write … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, books, Crime and Courts | 4 Comments

Yorty Seeks to Limit L.A. Mayors to Two Terms

Posted on May 3, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 3, 1961: The Times editorial page backs Mayor Norris Poulson, who lost to  challenger Sam Yorty. Although Yorty advocated a two-term limit for mayors, he served three terms and was seeking a fourth when he … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, art and artists, Caryl Chessman, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide | Comments Off on Yorty Seeks to Limit L.A. Mayors to Two Terms

From the Stacks – ‘Portraits of Crime’ (1977)

Posted on April 29, 2011 by lmharnisch

    Two years after writing about  LAPD Det. Ector Garcia, I finally located a copy of his book, “Portraits of Crime,” which arrived in the mail from the U.K. while I was on vacation. No one will ever mistake … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1977, books, Crime and Courts, Downtown, From the Stacks, Hollywood, Hollywood Division, Homicide, LAPD, Pages of History, San Fernando Valley, Venice Division, West Hollywood, Zombie Reading List | 1 Comment

‘The Chinese Murder,’ April 29, 1891

Posted on April 29, 2011 by lmharnisch

April 29, 1891: The Times reports the death of a Chinese woman named Ah Gue/Goot Gue, who was shot in the abdomen by her husband, Wong Ark/Gam Duck, outside a brothel on Apablasa Street. Ark allegedly killed Gue because she … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1891, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Comments Off on ‘The Chinese Murder,’ April 29, 1891

UC May Have to Charge Tuition – Someday

Posted on April 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

          April 27, 1961: The Senate Education Committee turns down a proposed tuition fee for University of California students but says one may have to be imposed — eventually.

Posted in #courts, 1961, Adolf Eichmann, art and artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Education | Comments Off on UC May Have to Charge Tuition – Someday

Last Showing of ‘Heaven Is Here!’

Posted on April 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

  http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=-382479120564900203&hl=en&fs=true   Google has announced that it will be removing its uploaded videos on April 29. I made this little movie about the Black Dahlia case four years ago and at 21 minutes, it's too long to upload anywhere … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1947, Crime and Courts, Film, LAPD | 3 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, April 18, 1941

Posted on April 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

            April 18, 1941: Lee Shippey is hospitalized after what The Times vaguely referred to as “major surgery.” His column continued to appear with guest writers filling in. On the jump: Benjamin “Bugsie” Siegel is … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, April 18, 1941

‘The Apartment’ Wins Oscars for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Director

Posted on April 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

           April 18, 1961: In a ceremony held at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented awards to Elizabeth Taylor for “Butterfield 8,” Burt Lancaster for “Elmer Gantry” and … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Adolf Eichmann, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood | Comments Off on ‘The Apartment’ Wins Oscars for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Director

Paul Coates, April 13, 1961

Posted on April 13, 2011 by lmharnisch

    April 13, 1961: An Anaheim man found some gold-colored flecks in the backyard and tested them for gold by putting them in a half-teaspoon of mercury that he heated over the stove, poisoning his family, Paul Coates says. “Spade … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Front Pages, Homicide, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul Coates, April 13, 1961

Matt Weinstock, April 12, 1961

Posted on April 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

DEAR ABBY: I boiled when I read the letter from the woman who signed herself “Fed Up.” She was annoyed because her clergyman (Protestant) visited her in the hospital after her seventh child was born and asked her if she had ever heard of birth control.
Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, April 12, 1961

Paul Coates, April 12, 1961

Posted on April 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

We drove aimlessly from Beverly Hills, through Hollywood, up one of the canyons and into the Hollywood Hills. There we parked, looking over the city beneath us… and there Dr. Finch kissed me for the first time. It was a kiss such as I had never experienced before … a kiss of tenderness, a kiss of respect … a kiss of love. I got home at 4:15 a.m.
My husband was furious…
Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Paul Coates | 3 Comments

Paul Coates, April 11, 1961

Posted on April 11, 2011 by lmharnisch

        April 11, 1961: Mayoral candidate Sam Yorty sues Mayor Norris Poulson for slander! Life is good (if you’re a newspaper)!  Al Capp interviews a stewardess for American Airlines – none of this flight attendant stuff in … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Adolf Eichmann, City Hall, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Front Pages, Paul Coates, Politics | Comments Off on Paul Coates, April 11, 1961

Liz Renay Sentenced to Prison

Posted on April 11, 2011 by lmharnisch

            April 11, 1961: Liz Renay (d. 2007) is sentenced to prison for violating the terms of her probation for perjury in Mickey Cohen’s tax evasion case. She later said: "I have paid a dear … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Comics, Crime and Courts, Mickey Cohen | 2 Comments

Paul Coates, April 10, 1961

Posted on April 10, 2011 by lmharnisch

      April 10, 1961: Notice the Spade Cooley story. It vanished from later editions, and I couldn’t find the jump, just the Page 1 portion. Paul Coates writes about two Beverly Hills police officers' problems with Police Chief … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, books, Columnists, Crime and Courts, From the Vaults, Homicide, Paul Coates, Zombie Reading List | Comments Off on Paul Coates, April 10, 1961

Matt Weinstock, April 7, 1961

Posted on April 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

       April 7, 1961:  A bail bondsman takes a lesson from “The Untouchables” and finds his missing client in a barber chair, Matt Weinstock says. CONFIDENTIAL TO "HAVING OUR TROUBLES": A very wise woman once told me that … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, April 7, 1961

Daily Mirror Readers — ‘The Brain Trust’

Posted on April 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo courtesy of Howard Decker Most Daily Mirror readers know him as Fibber. His real name is Howard Decker, and here’s a picture of him covering the Spade Cooley trial. He’s the fellow in the background on the right. Howard … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, Photography | 3 Comments

Spade Cooley: ‘I’m not sure, but I think Ella Mae is dead’

Posted on April 5, 2011 by lmharnisch

      Los Angeles Times file photo   Oct. 15, 1949: Spade Cooley and his daughter Melody pose for a publicity photo aboard his yacht.     April 5, 1961: In a switch from its usual policy of keeping … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1961, Crime and Courts, Homicide, Music, Photography | 4 Comments