Category Archives: #gays and lesbians

November 21, 1959: Matt Weinstock, Nov. 21, 1959

Posted on November 21, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 21, 1959: Matt Weinstock has the story of a man who keeps getting tickets for not having a front plate on his French Panhard. The problem is there’s no place for a license plate. Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Columnists, Comics, Matt Weinstock, Music, Rock 'n' Roll | Leave a comment

November 21, 1919: Wife Divorces ‘Girlish’ Army Officer

Posted on November 21, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 21, 1919: Woman divorces Army officer who wears a girdle. “I always wanted a form like yours,” he wrote. “You will have quite a girl for your hubby.” Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #gays and lesbians | Leave a comment

November 15, 1909: Finds ‘Husband’ Is Woman

Posted on November 15, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 15, 1909: Dr. Alice Bush of Oakland sues for divorce, charging that her husband, R.K. Morgan, failed to disclose something rather important. Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #gays and lesbians, Homicide | Comments Off on November 15, 1909: Finds ‘Husband’ Is Woman

Nov. 13, 1959: Paul V. Coates – Confidential File

Posted on November 13, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 13, 1959: Paul Coates talks to three men in their 20s who are doing well, live in good neighborhoods and are respected by neighbors and the police. The catch? They’re heroin dealers. Continue reading →

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October 31, 1957: Trick or Treat murder

Posted on October 31, 2025 by lmharnisch

October 31, 1957: The Trick-or-Treat Murder. Joan and Goldyne planned for months on killing hairdresser Peter Fabiano on Halloween. Investigation revealed that Fabiano had recently reconciled with his wife, Betty, after separating over her relationship with Joan. Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Homicide, LAPD, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , | Comments Off on October 31, 1957: Trick or Treat murder

Paul V. Coates — Confidential File, Aug. 7, 1959

Posted on August 7, 2025 by lmharnisch

August 7, 1959: Paul Coates writes that he is hopelessly under the influence of ad slogans. Continue reading →

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Lugosi to Appear as Weird Scientist

Posted on May 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

        Feb. 17, 1953: This is how I got here. I started researching the Lionel Atwill sex scandal of 1941 and discovered that before his career was derailed, Atwill planned to produce a film of the novel … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, 1953, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 23, 1961

Posted on February 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

    Feb. 23, 1961: Mildred and Gordon Gordon celebrate the sale of their suspense novel "Operation Terror" with … ice cream bars. In their early days, they had to give up ice cream bars because they were too expensive … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, 1961, Animals, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, Feb. 23, 1961

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 13, 1961

Posted on February 13, 2011 by lmharnisch

       Feb. 13, 1961: An employee at a missile component company was studying Russian and while on a trip to New York decided to buy a Soviet newspaper to test his skill. Then he took the newspaper to … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, 1961, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, Feb. 13, 1961

The Loud Family, Seven Years After TV Series

Posted on January 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

        Jan. 6, 1980: Years before there was MTV’s “The Real World” (or MTV, for that matter), there was Craig Gilbert’s “An American Family,” the story of the Loud family of Santa Barbara, which aired on PBS … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, broadcasting, Film, Hollywood, Television | Comments Off on The Loud Family, Seven Years After TV Series

Death in Miami

Posted on November 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

One magazine, October 1954 In August 1954, a couple parking at a North Miami “lovers lane” found the body of a 27-year-old man in a pool of blood.  About 500 yards away, police located a 1950 convertible with blood spatters … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #gays and lesbians, 1954, Crime and Courts, Homicide | 6 Comments

Pages of History

Posted on July 22, 2010 by lmharnisch

  "I was seeing Pershing Square, Los Angeles, now for the first time…the nervous fugitives from Times Square, Market Street SF, the French Quarter — masculine hustlers looking for lonely fruits to score from, anything from the legendary $20 to … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, art and artists, books, Downtown, Parks and Recreation | 2 Comments

Paul V. Coates, Confidential File, July 5, 1960

Posted on July 5, 2010 by lmharnisch

  July 5, 1960: I have to hand it to Paul Coates. For this column, he tries to beat an 80-year-old con woman at her own game. Here’s his Jan. 28, 1960, piece about her. Notice the Page 1 story … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #gays and lesbians, Columnists, Front Pages, Homicide | 1 Comment

LAPD Captain Accused of Corruption

Posted on June 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

  June 10, 1910: An AMA convention in St. Louis finds out what a Nautsch dancer is. On the jump, the complicated case of Police Capt. Charles E. Dixon and Hampshire Hotel operator William D. Gage. Dixon, the head of … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #gays and lesbians, City Hall, health, LAPD | Comments Off on LAPD Captain Accused of Corruption

Death Reveals Woman Posed as Man

Posted on May 25, 2010 by lmharnisch

May 25, 1910: Louis Rogers drank and cursed with other workmen and held her own at hard labor. Only in death was it revealed that Rogers was a woman. It would be interesting to know more about her, but I … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – One Magazine

Posted on May 12, 2010 by lmharnisch

A lot of 34 issues of One Magazine from 1953-55, including the first issue, has been listed on EBay. One, a historic magazine that dealt with gay issues, was published in Los Angeles and figured in a landmark 1st Amendment … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, April 20, 1960

Posted on April 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Census Takers' Woes Myriad in a Big Way      Census takers take, among other things, oaths.     Before beginning their tours of duty, they solemnly swear that they are not Communists, fascists, blabbermouths or mixed up in payola.  … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Columnists, Front Pages, Nightclubs, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, April 20, 1960

Found on EBay – Julian Eltinge

Posted on March 31, 2010 by lmharnisch

This postcard of female impersonator Julian Eltinge advertising his appearance at Los Angeles’ Mason Opera House in October 1913 has been listed on EBay. The photo shows him in “The Fascinating Widow,” one of his most famous roles. Bidding on … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Stage | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Julian Eltinge

Luring Gay Bachelors Into the Seas of Matrimony

Posted on February 17, 2010 by lmharnisch

  “Oh, Man!” by Clare Briggs.   Feb. 17, 1920: Here we have another story about the Bachelors Ball. The Times’ account gives the entire guest list and describes many of the elaborate costumes. One of the highlights of the … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, art and artists, Comics, Downtown | Comments Off on Luring Gay Bachelors Into the Seas of Matrimony

Charles Champlin on ‘Cruising’

Posted on February 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

      Feb. 10, 1980: Charles Champlin writes, “The principal complaint, artistically, about 'Cruising' is that it is not very clear at the rudimentary level of exposition of character and event. The problem, as with [William] Friedkin's 'Sorcerer,' which … Continue reading →

Posted in #gays and lesbians, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment