Category Archives: Downtown

Israel Raids Egypt, Celtics Beat Lakers, April 30, 1969

Posted on April 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

The 1960s were surely the hair decade. Ask your mom if she ever had a hairdo like this model in a Broadway ad.  President Nixon urges "backbone" against student unrest. Israel strikes Egypt. Nixon plays "Happy Birthday" for Duke Ellington. … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown, Environment, Fashion, Front Pages, Lakers, Richard Nixon, Sports | Comments Off on Israel Raids Egypt, Celtics Beat Lakers, April 30, 1969

Union Station Turns 70

Posted on April 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by the Los Angeles Times Dec. 23, 1935: City Hall casts a long shadow over downtown Los Angeles in this photograph showing where Union Station will be built. Notice the large storage tanks of the gasworks in the upper … Continue reading →

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April 30, 1939: Los Angeles Prepares for Opening of Union Station

Posted on April 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

The city made a special effort to examine and celebrate its past during the opening of Union Station. Officials mounted a much more elaborate “parade of progress” than I suspect we would see today.

Posted in 1939, Comics, Countdown to Watts, Downtown, Music, Transportation | Comments Off on April 30, 1939: Los Angeles Prepares for Opening of Union Station

Found on EBay — Angels Flight

Posted on April 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

This 1908 postcard of Angels Flight has been listed on EBay. Notice that it was originally next to the 3rd Street tunnel. Also notice the lookout tower at the top of Bunker Hill. Bidding starts at $3.99.

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Transportation | Comments Off on Found on EBay — Angels Flight

Union Station Turns 70

Posted on April 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles Times file photo Los Angeles' Union Station formally opened May 3-5, 1939, with a three-day festival that included parades and displays of historic locomotives and streetcars. The Daily Mirror will be posting photos of the station's construction and … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Transportation | 2 Comments

Nuestro Pueblo

Posted on April 27, 2009 by lmharnisch
Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo | 1 Comment

A Jewish Pioneer Who Helped Build L.A.

Posted on April 22, 2009 by lmharnisch

Frances Dinkelspiel Frances Dinkelspiel, whose biography of her great-great-grandfather Isaias Hellman has received good notices, is one of the many writers who will be at The Times Festival of Books. For those not venturing to UCLA on Sunday, she will … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Downtown, Religion | Comments Off on A Jewish Pioneer Who Helped Build L.A.

Court Upholds Deal on Chavez Ravine; Moratorium on Death Penalty Fails, April 22, 1959

Posted on April 22, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by John Malmin / Los Angeles Times People cluster between homes on Malvina Avenue in Chavez Ravine for word on being evicted. The battle over Chavez Ravine reads like the same story after a while — a long court fight … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, City Hall, Comics, Dodgers, Downtown, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

Found on EBay — Scottish Rite Cathedral

Posted on April 20, 2009 by lmharnisch

This postcard of the 1906 Scottish Rite Cathedral on Hope Street between 9th and 10th streets in downtown Los Angeles has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $7.99.

Posted in Architecture, Downtown | Comments Off on Found on EBay — Scottish Rite Cathedral

Gold Hunters Dig for Lost Underground Empire of the Lizard People!

Posted on April 18, 2009 by lmharnisch

I thought it would be fun to explore the story of the “Lizard People,” which is to say the excavations on Fort Moore Hill in an unsuccessful search for gold. G. Warren Shufelt usually gets the credit for the enterprise, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown | Comments Off on Gold Hunters Dig for Lost Underground Empire of the Lizard People!

Did Ancient Lizard Cult Hide Gold Tablets in Tunnels Under L.A.? Jan. 29, 1934

Posted on April 15, 2009 by lmharnisch

Jan. 29, 1934: Gold hidden in network of tunnels under downtown Los Angeles!

Posted in Architecture, Downtown | 2 Comments

Found on EBay — Early Views of Los Angeles

Posted on April 14, 2009 by lmharnisch

This postcard, c. 1908, showing views of Los Angeles, including the courthouse, oil wells, the Plaza, and Echo Park, has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $6.

Posted in Architecture, Downtown | Comments Off on Found on EBay — Early Views of Los Angeles

City Hall Protest Over Chavez Ravine Evictions, April 14, 1959

Posted on April 14, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Chavez Ravine residents threatened with eviction survived another day in their homes. The Times published a short story with a terrible lead on the planned evictions to allow construction of Dodger Stadium: "It was the last of the ninth inning … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Current Affairs, Dodgers, Downtown, LAPD, Politics, Sports | Comments Off on City Hall Protest Over Chavez Ravine Evictions, April 14, 1959

Nuestro Pueblo, April 14, 1939

Posted on April 14, 2009 by lmharnisch
Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo | Comments Off on Nuestro Pueblo, April 14, 1939

January 10, 1909: Addicted to Gambling

Posted on April 12, 2009 by lmharnisch

January 10, 1909: If you strip away the moralistic tone used by the anonymous Times reporter, the problems of the young men caught up in gambling (in this case horse racing) a century ago are quite modern. Wrecked on the … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, 1909, Downtown, Fashion, LAPD | Comments Off on January 10, 1909: Addicted to Gambling

Nuestro Pueblo — April 10, 1939

Posted on April 10, 2009 by lmharnisch
Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo | 1 Comment

Coming Attractions — Last Remaining Seats

Posted on April 2, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Tickets for the Los Angeles Conservancy's annual Last Remaining Seats have gone on sale. Tickets are available to members only ($80/$16) through April 14 and go on sale to the public ($100/$20) April 15. But surely most Daily Mirror … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Film, Hollywood | Comments Off on Coming Attractions — Last Remaining Seats

Christine Jorgensen Tries to Marry, March 31, 1959

Posted on March 31, 2009 by lmharnisch

  Christine Jorgensen and Howard J. Knox attempted to get married, but could not obtain a license.  The Times headline writers had fun with this: Ex-GI becomes GI-RL. Har har har. And the same day, an ad for the upcoming … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Architecture, Downtown, Front Pages, Sports | 1 Comment

Trouble Was His Business — Raymond Chandler

Posted on March 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

Tour Casts New Light on Raymond Chandler’s Old L.A. * A Minnesota couple trace the steps of the novelist’s best-known character. April 4, 2004 By Erika Hayasaki, Times Staff Writer Bonnie Olson stood in the lobby of the Oviatt Building … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Raymond Chandler | 1 Comment

New Museum Planned; ‘Mein Kampf’ an Ignorant Book, March 26, 1939

Posted on March 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

No, it didn’t get built, and The Times didn’t elaborate on the project. We can simply add the "Island House" to the long list of plans that were never pursued. Los Angeles police officials estimate there are 10,000 people on … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, art and artists, books, Comics, Downtown, Front Pages, Hollywood, LAPD, Sports | Comments Off on New Museum Planned; ‘Mein Kampf’ an Ignorant Book, March 26, 1939