Category Archives: History

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2025 by lmharnisch

My seventh-grade history teacher, Rene Humbert, was at Pearl Harbor and the anniversary told the class about his experiences. This is his memoir. Continue reading →

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November 22, 1963: Remembering JFK, That Day in Dallas and Baby Boomer Nostalgia

Posted on November 22, 2025 by lmharnisch

November 22, 1963: As we Baby Boomers die off, a dwindling percentage of the U.S. recalls the assassination of President Kennedy. I wish young people could experience — even for a day — the idealism of that era. Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: ‘Making Black Los Angeles’

Posted on December 16, 2024 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2018. I only recommend books that I have read, which is why I haven’t listed Susan Orlean’s “The Library Book” or Stephen Gee’s “Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon.” I look forward … Continue reading →

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A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2024 by lmharnisch

My seventh-grade history teacher, Rene Humbert, was at Pearl Harbor and the anniversary told the class about his experiences. This is his memoir. Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Education, History, World War II | Tagged , , | Comments Off on A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – ‘The Loves of Pharaoh’

Posted on September 12, 2022 by lmharnisch

Photo: Dagny Servaes in “The Loves of Pharaoh.” Credit: American Cinematheque. Note: This is an encore post from 2011. To celebrate the 89th anniversary of the opening of Hollywood’s Egyptian Theatre, American Cinematheque screened the 1922 restored Ernst Lubitsch film … Continue reading →

Posted in 1922, Film, History, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography, Preservation, Theaters | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory: Hollywood Heights – ‘The Loves of Pharaoh’

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 18, 2021 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2018. I only recommend books that I have read, which is why I haven’t listed Susan Orlean’s “The Library Book” or Stephen Gee’s “Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon.” I look forward … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016, African Americans, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 11, 2021 by lmharnisch

Gladwin Hill’s “Dancing Bear: An Inside Look at California Politics,” published in 1968, is a new addition to my annual holiday gift suggestions. I’m generally cool toward books on California politics (the result of reading a zillion stories out of … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Authors, History, Politics, Ronald Reagan | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2021 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils … Continue reading →

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Constantin Bakaleinikoff

Posted on March 1, 2021 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2011. Most people today probably haven’t heard of motion picture musical conductor Constantin Bakaleinikoff, but he was instrumental in setting up theatre orchestras around Los Angeles in the 1920s, before he became music … Continue reading →

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L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: ‘Making Black Los Angeles’

Posted on December 11, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2018. I only recommend books that I have read, which is why I haven’t listed Susan Orlean’s “The Library Book” or Stephen Gee’s “Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon.” I look forward … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016, African Americans, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2020 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Education, History, World War II | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on December 4, 2020 by lmharnisch

Gladwin Hill’s “Dancing Bear: An Inside Look at California Politics,” published in 1968, is a new addition to my annual holiday gift suggestions. I’m generally cool toward books on California politics (the result of reading a zillion stories out of … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Authors, History, Politics, Ronald Reagan | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide

A Firsthand History Lesson on Pearl Harbor

Posted on December 7, 2019 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a repost from 2011. In 1962, I was a seventh-grader at Washington Junior High School in Naperville, Ill. On Dec. 7, Mr. Humbert, our social studies teacher, put aside the regular curriculum to give his young pupils … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Education, History, World War II | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Feb. 12, 1959: Matt Weinstock and ‘The Last Days of Lincoln’

Posted on February 12, 2019 by lmharnisch

It’s a worthwhile experience to put down whatever you’re doing for half an hour today and read something about one of the world’s great men. It doesn’t matter which of the books about him you read. His wisdom and humor … Continue reading →

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‘Dear Los Angeles’: 1,000 Quotes in Search of a Book

Posted on February 11, 2019 by lmharnisch

We have Edwin Mims, long-forgotten teacher, author and head of the English Department at Vanderbilt University, to thank for what may be the most famous quip about Los Angeles. Mims, who died in 1959 at the age of 87, was … Continue reading →

Posted in 2018, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

February 1959: Burbank Installs Time Capsule

Posted on February 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

Note: This post originally appeared on latimes.com in 2009 and is available via Archive.org. Feb. 1, 1959: Burbank installs a time capsule in the “new” Magnolia Boulevard Bridge. It was scheduled to be opened Feb. 5, 2009. This is one … Continue reading →

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Video: David Blight on ‘Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom’

Posted on January 4, 2019 by lmharnisch

I’m late to the party on this book, but I was pleased to run across a Q and A with historian David Blight of Yale on his new biography, “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom.” The session, with Princeton professor Eddie … Continue reading →

Posted in 2018, African Americans, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

L.A. Daily Mirror Retro Holiday Shopping Guide: ‘Making Black Los Angeles’

Posted on December 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

I only recommend books that I have read, which is why I haven’t listed Susan Orlean’s “The Library Book” or Stephen Gee’s “Los Angeles City Hall: An American Icon.” I look forward to reading both of them, but I’m not … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016, African Americans, Books and Authors, History | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

July 14, 1907: L.A. Prepares to Celebrate 126th Anniversary

Posted on July 14, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. July 14, 1907 Los Angeles Led by the Rev. Juan Caballeria (or Cabelleria), the city is preparing to celebrate its 126th anniversary Aug. 2 with concerts, Mass in the Plaza church and … Continue reading →

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Shout Out

Posted on June 7, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2006. General Motors [ISP Redacted] Windows 2000? Upgrade! The Netherlands [ISP Redacted] E! Entertainment [ISP Redacted] “E! Mysteries and Scandals,” my first TV interview, by the guy who did “Real Chases of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2006, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, History, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Comments Off on Shout Out