Category Archives: Hollywood Heights

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Nell Brinkley, Queen of Early American Comics

Posted on April 8, 2013 by lmharnisch

When Americans think of classic illustrators from the early 20th century, names such as Charles Dana Gibson, Harrison Fisher, Haskell Coffin, James Montgomery Flagg, and John Held Jr. spring to mind. Forgotten by almost everyone, but in every way these … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Comics, Fashions, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywoodland Opens

Posted on April 1, 2013 by lmharnisch

By the early 1920s, real estate development was booming all around Los Angeles. For decades, the city had boldly advertised itself as a mecca in which average citizens could earn their share of the American dream under glorious sunshine and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1923, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Hollywoodland Opens

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: The Flapper Speaks to American Women

Posted on March 25, 2013 by lmharnisch

The Flapper – via Wikipedia. Life changed quickly in the United States post-World War I. Nowhere was this more evident than in the role and actions of young women emancipating themselves from the corseted way of life to more boldly … Continue reading →

Posted in 1922, Fashions, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Earl Carroll’s Swanky Sunset Boulevard Theater

Posted on March 18, 2013 by lmharnisch

Photo: Earl Carroll at the groundbreaking for his nightclub, with Jack Benny, Eddie Cantor and W.C. Fields. Courtesy of James Curtis. In the late 1930s, Earl Carroll reigned as Broadway’s exotic showman, producing splashy musical revues featuring statuesque, sultry showgirls. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1938, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Nightclubs | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Donald Biddle Keyes, Cameraman

Posted on March 11, 2013 by lmharnisch

Most motion picture still photographers picked up cameras at young ages, intrigued at how they could paint with light. Many yearned to do more than just snap shots in a portrait studio or for a newspaper. They hankered for excitement, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Celebrity Politicians, Hollywood’s Honorary Mayors 2

Posted on March 4, 2013 by lmharnisch

Oct. 25, 1954: Betty White becomes honorary mayor of Hollywood. During the 1930s and 1940s, neighborhoods and cities surrounding Los Angeles named celebrities as honorary mayors to help gain their areas vital city services like flood control, better roads, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: The Non-Smoking Gun – George Hodel Files Part 21

Posted on February 27, 2013 by lmharnisch

She was going to shoot me and commit suicide “Tamara”!!!!!!! Well, that’s sort of juicy, isn’t it? Of course, it seems to involve Tamar Hodel rather than one of Dr. George “Evil Genius”Hodel’s alleged killings, but still juicy. Another day … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1950, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: The Non-Smoking Gun – George Hodel Files Part 21

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Studio City’s La Fonda Wayside Inn

Posted on February 25, 2013 by lmharnisch

The bread-and-butter businesses of most municipalities are those providing goods and services, with restaurants near the top of the list. Running a restaurant is extremely difficult, because costs are high, profit margins are low and public tastes can often be … Continue reading →

Posted in 1927, Food and Drink, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Douglas Fairbanks, Author

Posted on February 18, 2013 by lmharnisch

Douglas Fairbanks: “Teaching his dog to smile.” Douglas Fairbanks exploded onto the filmmaking scene in 1915 after a successful career on Broadway as a dashing leading man. His jaunty joie de vivre and flashy acrobatics wowed audiences on stage and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1918, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Hollywoodland’s Kanst Art Gallery

Posted on February 11, 2013 by lmharnisch

  The Hollywoodland housing development possessed many unique features when it opened in 1923. The neighborhood was the first themed housing development built on hillsides, the first to include a shopping center in its environs, and the first to house … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art & Artists, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Hollywoodland’s Kanst Art Gallery

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Charles Butterworth, Professional Silly Ass

Posted on February 4, 2013 by lmharnisch

Comedy in films has evolved in over a century of production. Beginning with rather crude and slapstick humor, easily understood by immigrants, the film industry developed increasingly sophisticated styles of comedy as it matured. Drawing-room comedies of the mid- to … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Pressbooks to Sell Movies

Posted on January 28, 2013 by lmharnisch

From the beginning of the motion picture industry, film companies devised all types of advertising to entice consumers to buy movie tickets. Posters, lobby cards and window displays, glass slides, sheet music and photographs could be employed by exhibitors to … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Charlie Chaplin Comes to Hollywood

Posted on January 21, 2013 by lmharnisch

Oct. 16, 1917: An architect’s rendering of Chaplin’s studios in The Times Ninety-five years ago, comedian Charlie Chaplin constructed the first beautiful studio lot in Hollywood, the first to offer style to filmmaking. What had been merely an industry housed … Continue reading →

Posted in 1917, Architecture, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Happy Birthday, Mack Sennett!

Posted on January 17, 2013 by lmharnisch

Mary Mallory notes that today is Mack Sennett’s birthday. Read Mary’s post on Sennett here.

Posted in 1880, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Jerry Giesler, Miracle Man

Posted on January 14, 2013 by lmharnisch

Photo: Walter Wanger, left, and Jerry Giesler. Courtesy of Mary Mallory. Long before Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., Richard “Racehorse” Haynes, or F. Lee Bailey hit the scene, soft-spoken, circumspect Jerry Giesler iced his competition as Los Angeles’ top criminal defense … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Courts, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: There Is a Lake in Toluca Lake

Posted on January 7, 2013 by lmharnisch

Photo: Janet Blair sits on the little platform off the banks of the Lakeside Golf Club. Courtesy of Mary Mallory Surrounded by homes and the Lakeside Golf Club, Toluca Lake is all but obscured from view by the public. Like … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, San Fernando Valley | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Pickford Headlines 1933 Rose Parade

Posted on December 31, 2012 by lmharnisch

Photo: Mary Pickford in the 1933 Rose Parade. Credit: Courtesy of Mary Mallory Tomorrow sees the 124th annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena,  welcoming the new year with magnificent garlands of fresh flowers. It also acts as the 80th … Continue reading →

Posted in 1933, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Pasadena | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Celebrities in Bloom

Posted on December 24, 2012 by lmharnisch

  Photo: Mary Pickford admires a namesake orchid. Courtesy of Mary Mallory. Flowers, like actors, sometimes have short-lived celebrity. Once their aura of uniqueness fades, many languish or fall by the wayside. Some disappear. Others continue to thrive because of … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Celebrities in Bloom

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Frank S. Hoover, Portrait Photographer and Apartment Developer

Posted on December 17, 2012 by lmharnisch

  Early Hollywood portrait photography developed from the need of stars for portraits to send out looking for roles, and from studios realizing the value of selling their product through stars. Los Angeles and Hollywood photographers recognized for taking photographs … Continue reading →

Posted in 1935, African Americans, Architecture, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights – Altadena’s Lovely Christmas Tree Lane

Posted on December 10, 2012 by lmharnisch

Christmas Tree Lane in a vintage postcard, courtesy of Mary Mallory. Nothing says Christmas like the sight of beautiful outdoor twinkling lights lending a bit of romanticism and happiness to the holiday season. Homes and businesses spiffily decorate themselves. Cities … Continue reading →

Posted in Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Pasadena | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments