Category Archives: Downtown

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: 20th Annual Hollywood Film Noir Festival Salutes L.A.

Posted on April 17, 2018 by lmharnisch

Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in “The Blue Dahlia,” which launched the festival.  Dark dives, shady dames, and sleazy P.I.s populate the sordid underbelly of the sunny City of the Angels in Noir City: Hollywood, the Film Noir Foundation’s 20th … Continue reading →

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March 9, 1907: Man Says It’s Worth a $25 Fine to Beat His Wife

Posted on March 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. March 9, 1907 Los Angeles The Insanity Begins Led by I. Newerf and J.B. Dudley, the automobile owners of Los Angeles are fighting a new city ordinance that bans parking within 40 … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1909, 1910, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Downtown, LAPD, Streetcars | Tagged | 3 Comments

March 1, 1907: L.A. Businesses Running Out of Space to Dump Garbage

Posted on March 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. March 1, 1907 Los Angeles Downtown businessmen are at a complete loss over what to do with the garbage from their operations and want the city to either take it or designate … Continue reading →

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Jan. 30, 1947: Salesman on Main Street Corner Sets Off Riot

Posted on January 30, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2006 for the 1947project. The rewrite desk in action: The Examiner: Free Cash, Nylons and Gum— Then They Took Him Away! Dollar bills, nylons and bubble gum pelted persons at 6th and … Continue reading →

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Jan. 27, 1907: L.A. Studies Elevated Trolley Line to Ease Traffic

Posted on January 27, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. Jan. 27, 1907 Los Angeles One thing you can say about Angelenos: We love to talk about traffic. The only thing we love more is to commission studies and draft plans to … Continue reading →

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The Floods

Posted on January 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2007. Jan. 9-10, 1907 The worst storm in 23 years blew across Southern California with the force of a gale, dumping more than an inch of rain in Pasadena, killing an Orange County … Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 20, 2017 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2011. I picked up “The Big Picture,” Melba Levick and Stanley Young’s 1988 book about Los Angeles murals, not realizing what a terribly sad book it would be. As Young notes: “Most artists … Continue reading →

Posted in 1988, Architecture, Art & Artists, Books and Authors, Crime and Courts, Downtown, From the Stacks, Hollywood, Latinos, Photography, Preservation, San Fernando Valley, Sports, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: T.L. Tally – L.A.’s Pioneer Film Exhibitor, Part 2

Posted on November 20, 2017 by lmharnisch

  “The Great Corbett Fight” at Tally’s theater.   Former Texan T. L. (Thomas) Tally pioneered early film exhibition practices in the film metropolis of Los Angeles, catering to the needs of his audiences. Always enamored with technology, he seemed … Continue reading →

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Chinese Massacre – Oct 24, 1871

Posted on October 24, 2017 by lmharnisch

At top, an account of the massacre in the Daily Southern Cross of Auckland, New Zealand, Dec. 9, 1871, Above, a detail of a Los Angeles map displayed in the Globe Lobby of the Los Angeles Times Building showing the … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: ‘Horror at the Cecil Hotel’

Posted on October 17, 2017 by lmharnisch

Just a quick reminder, since Investigation Discovery aired the first episode of “Horror at the Cecil Hotel” last night. There is nothing to show that Elizabeth Short (“the Black Dahlia”) ever set foot in the Cecil Hotel. She was last … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Downtown, LAPD, Main Street, Television | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: T.L. Tally – L.A.’s Pioneer Film Exhibitor, Part 1 (Updated)

Posted on October 16, 2017 by lmharnisch

T.L. Tally, Moving Picture World, 1915. Los Angeles has stood at the forefront of not only motion picture production, but the fields of exhibition and distribution as well. Former Texan T. L. (Thomas Lincoln) Tally pioneered in these fields, seeming … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Broadway, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Main Street, Mary Mallory, Theaters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Another Good Story Ruined: Gen. Otis’ ‘Death Car’ Rides Again

Posted on September 24, 2017 by lmharnisch

Photo: Times President Gen. Harrison Gray Otis. Credit: Press Reference Library, 1912 Evidently the folks at Esotouric (nee “The Crime Bus”) have neglected their homework when it comes to the bombing of The Times, judging by a recent story. Which … Continue reading →

Posted in Another Good Story Ruined, Books and Authors, Downtown, History, Libraries | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Richfield Building Jazzes Up Los Angeles’ Skyline

Posted on December 12, 2016 by lmharnisch

  The Richfield Building in an undated postcard. Note: This is an encore post from 2013. After years of deprivation, darkness and worry during World War I and its aftermath, America was ready to look toward a shining future of … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Barney Oldfield Sets Up Shop in Downtown Los Angeles

Posted on September 26, 2016 by lmharnisch

  A postcard showing the interior of Barney Oldfield’s saloon on South Spring Street, courtesy of Mary Mallory.   ‘Mile a minute” Barney Oldfield, the first automobile racer to achieve that feat while racing, was quick when it came to … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Film, Food and Drink, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Spring Street | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Mary Pickford Day

Posted on May 16, 2016 by lmharnisch

Note: Mary Mallory is taking this week off, so I’m running a post from several years ago. Los Angeles in 1923 was a bustling, growing, optimistic place.  The town recognized all sorts of interesting people and topics, saluting them with … Continue reading →

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Rediscovering Los Angeles: Why Are L.A. Streets So Narrow?

Posted on February 11, 2016 by lmharnisch

Nov. 14, 1924: This is the second of two articles I have from the Los Angeles Examiner titled “Rediscovering Los Angeles.” Notice that even in 1924 people were complaining about traffic and congested streets. Reporter W.W. Kane notes:

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Rediscovering Los Angeles: Pennies Arrive in L.A., 1881

Posted on February 10, 2016 by lmharnisch

In going through my old files, I discovered several copies of a feature that appeared in the Los Angeles Examiner titled “Rediscovering Los Angeles.” These pieces were written by W.W. Kane, apparently based on interviews with early residents. This should … Continue reading →

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Midnight Show at the Follies Burlesque — July 29, 1939

Posted on January 19, 2016 by lmharnisch

Somebody bought a ticket for the July 29, 1939, midnight show at the Follies Theatre and got to see Betty Rowland, “the ball of fire.” The ticket stub is listed on EBay for 99 cents.

Posted in 1939, Downtown, Theaters | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – Mary Pickford Day

Posted on December 28, 2015 by lmharnisch

Note: Mary Mallory is taking this week off, so I’m running a post from several years ago. Los Angeles in 1923 was a bustling, growing, optimistic place.  The town recognized all sorts of interesting people and topics, saluting them with … Continue reading →

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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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