Category Archives: Front Pages

USC wins over No. 1 Notre Dame, 13-0, December 4, 1938

  Heinrich Himmler seizes German Jews’ drivers licenses as Berlin confines Jews to a ghetto. Times "Magic Eye" photos.  "And this is the team whose coach they wanted to fire when the season was one week old."

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Baseball OKs trades between NL-AL, December 4, 1958

You really don’t have to wonder what "She Gods of Shark Reef" is about, do you? Here’s another one of those surprises found in the old files. Baseball approved interleague trading for a short period each winter beginning the following … Continue reading

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Hayakawa reopens S.F. State; Dodgers bid for Joe Torre, December 3, 1968

  Turns out the Dodgers were interested in more than Joe Torre, the manager. They once tried to acquire him as a player. The Dodgers offered the Braves Willie Davis and Tom Haller for Torre and Felipe Alou, according to … Continue reading

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36 homes burn in Malibu fire, December 3, 1958

  I have seen some ugly Page 1 layouts but this headline takes the prize.   Corral Canyon fire, 1958   Corral Canyon fire, 2007. One fire began near Bob Hope Ranch, the other near 20th Century Fox movie ranch … Continue reading

Posted in @news, Architecture, broadcasting, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Real Estate, Sports, Television | 2 Comments

Killers die in gas chamber, December 3, 1938

"There’s nothing to it." — Robert Lee Cannon "So long." — Albert Kessel "That was the most terrible thing I’ve ever seen. I’ve witnessed 52 hangings. I could find nothing humane about it and I never want to watch anything … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, Caryl Chessman, Front Pages, Homicide, Sports | 1 Comment

College campus struggles to reopen; Rams win over Vikings, December 2, 1968

Here’s a 1968 interview with S.I. Hayakawa that aired on ABC. It’s nice to see the late Frank Reynolds, one of my favorite TV news anchors, once again. For all his gifts with language, Hayakawa was not a man given … Continue reading

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December 2, 1958: 90 die in Chicago school fire

Posted in 1958, @news, Front Pages | 2 Comments

Speeding train crushes school bus; UCLA gets new football coach, December 2, 1938

A truck carrying Christmas trees crashes into a streetcar … and a man is charged with buying a cougar cub at a pet store and killing it for the $75 bounty. Robert L. Cannon and Albert Kessel, sentenced to die … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, @news, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Homicide, Sports, Transportation | 1 Comment

Found on EBay –Harvey Milk

The new movie about San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk has brought a bit a ephemera to EBay. Here’s the extra the San Francisco Examiner brought out the day of the shooting. Bidding started at $9.99 and rose quickly.     … Continue reading

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Rams win over Cards, December 1, 1958

The Rams survived the cold of Chicago to edge the Cardinals, 20-14. The statistic that stood out in Cal Whorton’s story was the attendance–only 13,041 watched the game at what Whorton called Comisky Ball Park. Whorton said temperature at game … Continue reading

Posted in Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Sports | 2 Comments

December 1, 1938: California prepares to execute two killers at San Quentin

The secret of Babe Ruth’s happy marriage: White Owl cigars. December 1, 1938: California prepares to use the gas chamber for executions rather than hanging.

Posted in #courts, 1938, @news, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Politics, Religion, Sports | 1 Comment

November 30, 1958: Former deputy strangles wife, kills himself as police close in

This is one of those stories where I wouldn’t change a word. We can only speculate as to who the anonymous rewrite man was, but he did a first-class job. All I can say is the obvious, which is that … Continue reading

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Nuestro Pueblo — Whittier Boulevard

  Nuestro Pueblo visits Whittier Boulevard, although it’s unclear exactly where this giant pepper tree was located on Rancho de Bartolo. I can’t locate anything about the tree’s ultimate demise, but I did find this 1930 story about what I … Continue reading

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History — San Luis Obispo

San Luis Obispo County Tribune Here’s a nice discovery: David Middlecamp at the San Luis Obispo County Tribune has been putting together a history blog, Photos From the Vault. Here’s a cropped version of a 1959 photo showing a gas … Continue reading

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Thanksgiving in Vietnam; Angels’ new general manager, November 29, 1968

  Above, Thanksgiving with the 199th Light Infantry Brigade, southwest of Saigon. The Brookings Institution warns President Nixon: "he will be powerless to do much good for America if the Vietnam War drags on through his administration." The war in … Continue reading

Posted in @news, Dodgers, Front Pages, Sports | 1 Comment

Barbara Graham case revisited, November 28, 1958

Los Angeles Times file photo. Murder victim Mabel Monahan. “As you went in the front door, what was the first thing that attracted your attention?” “Mrs. Graham was striking Mrs. Monahan in the face with a gun. She was standing … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, @news, Film, Front Pages, Homicide, San Fernando Valley | 3 Comments

Thanksgiving, 1980

Lida and Thomas Warne of Whittier celebrate their 74th wedding anniversary, 1980. According to California death records, Thomas George Warne died in 1981 at the age of 100. Lida Warne died in 1987 at the age of 100. And a … Continue reading

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November 27, 1968: O.J. Simpson wins Heisman

O.J. Simpson won the Heisman Trophy as the best college football player of 1968 after a remarkable two-year USC career. Dwight Chapin’s story in The Times portrayed the lack of suspense–even Simpson said he was “pretty confident.” Who could blame … Continue reading

Posted in #courts, @news, broadcasting, Current Affairs, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Sports, Television | 1 Comment

Poison gas kills Disney’s mother, November 27, 1938

  Above, Walt Disney gave his parents a home at 4605 Placidia Ave., Toluca Lake, for their golden wedding anniversary. According to The Times, a faulty furnace connection let carbon monoxide into the house. Disney’s father, Elias, was found unconscious … Continue reading

Posted in @news, Blues, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Music, Religion, Sports | 2 Comments

LAPD honors dead officer’s heroism, November 26, 1958

Note: This is an encore post from 2008. Police Sgt. Gene T. Nash died after a shootout with robbery suspects in an apartment house on Budlong just south of Adams. In a televised ceremony, Police Chief William H. Parker presented … Continue reading

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