Category Archives: Hollywood

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on May 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

      Los Angeles Times file photo   [Update 2: This is Bramwell Fletcher (d. 1988), whom most people recognize from “The Mummy.”  This publicity photo is stamped Oct. 7, 1930.] [Update: Please congratulate Anne Papineau, Pamela Porter, Lee … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | 30 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 15, 1941

Posted on May 15, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 15, 1941: Harry Bedford-Jones, “one of America’s most prolific writers” (and no, I’ve never heard of him either,) is filling in for Lee Shippey, who is recovering from surgery. Nobody lives in Texas anymore. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 15, 1941

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 14, 1941

Posted on May 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 14, 1941: Harold Lamb fills in for Lee Shippey, who is recovering from surgery. Tom Treanor files a report from Caripe, Venezuela, where he manages to find a cold beer kept in a refrigerator … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 14, 1941

Gary Cooper Dies of Cancer at 60

Posted on May 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 14, 1961: Gary Cooper dies of cancer at his home, 200 Baroda Drive, Holmby Hills. He was 60. “Cooper, Hollywood's homespun hero, was another product of its big star era — the same era … Continue reading →

Posted in 1961, Film, Hollywood, Obituaries | 1 Comment

Hitler Aide Rudolf Hess Flees to Scotland!

Posted on May 13, 2011 by lmharnisch

             May 13, 1941: Rudolf Hess, the Nazis’ No. 2 deputy, bails out  of his Messerschmitt over Scotland. He will commit suicide in Spandau prison in 1987. Ralph Bellamy fills in for Lee Shippey, who … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Hitler Aide Rudolf Hess Flees to Scotland!

Found on EBay – Frank Sinatra

Posted on May 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

A 33 rpm album of the audio from an uncompleted animated feature of “Finian’s Rainbow,” featuring Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, has been listed on EBay. According to The Times’ clips, this project was begun by Maurice Binder … Continue reading →

Posted in art and artists, Film, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Music | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Frank Sinatra

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 12, 1941

Posted on May 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 12, 1941: Producers have a new name for their movie: “Bahama Passage.” The working title may have provoked some unwanted reaction.    Garner Curran fills in for Lee Shippey, who is recovering from surgery, and writes … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Ronald Reagan, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 12, 1941

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

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 11, 1941

Posted on May 11, 2011 by lmharnisch

               May 11, 1941: We decided to poll a vote to decide which of the "funny men" are really funny. Bob Hope won the majority vote for originality. Milton Berle was classed as the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 11, 1941

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 10, 1941

Posted on May 10, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 10, 1941: Times Managing Editor L.D. Hotchkiss has a long piece against using material that is off the record. He says: “The moment any speaker or person being interviewed announces ‘this is off the record,’ … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 10, 1941

Architectural Rambling

Posted on May 10, 2011 by lmharnisch

        I found this postcard of Dr. Alfred G. Schloesser’s Castle Sans Souci in Hollywood (the Times used the addresses 1831 and 1901 Argyle Ave.) and dug into the clips for a little more information.  The castle … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Found on EBay, health, Hollywood, Photography | 1 Comment

‘Citizen Kane’ Opens in L.A.!

Posted on May 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

            May 9, 1941: “Citizen Kane” opens at the El Capitan and the RKO Hillstreet. “Orson Welles strikes out in a dozen new directions with his technique of ‘Citizen Kane.’ Yet what he does can … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Ronald Reagan, Tom Treanor | 1 Comment

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 8, 1941

Posted on May 8, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 8, 1941: John J. McNamara, one of the key figures in the 1910 bombing of the Los Angeles Times and the bombing of the Llewellyn Iron Works , dies in Montana. His brother James had … Continue reading →

Posted in 1910 L.A. Times bombing, 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | 2 Comments

Whatever Happened to the Black Film?

Posted on May 8, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 8, 1981 –  Dale Pollock writes: Whatever happened to the black film? It seems to reside these days in the person of Richard Pryor, the comedian-turned-film star, who is one of the few black … Continue reading →

Posted in 1981, Comics, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 7, 1941

Posted on May 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 7, 1941: Mayor Fletcher Bowron is reelected and another Times endorsement goes down in flames. Still recovering from surgery, Lee Shippey files  a column from the hospital, this time on nurses. Tom Treanor, who … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, City Hall, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Politics, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 7, 1941

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on May 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

      Los Angeles Times file photo   [Update 2: Lawrence Dobkin portrays an unsuspecting heavy in the "Prairie Elephant" episode of "Rawhide" in a photo published Nov. 12, 1961.]  [Update: Please congratulate RJ for identifying our mystery guest! … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | 46 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 6, 1941

Posted on May 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

           May 6, 1941: Westbrook Pegler wins a Pulitzer Prize for "articles on scandals in the ranks of organized labor, which led to the expulsion and conviction of George Scalise" of the Building Service Employees International. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 6, 1941

Coming Attractions — ‘Hollywoodland’

Posted on May 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

    Readers will recognize Mary Mallory as a leading member of the Daily Mirror’s “brain trust.” She’s a photo librarian at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and in her spare time, she has been writing a … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, books, Film, Hollywood, Real Estate | 4 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 5, 1941

Posted on May 5, 2011 by lmharnisch

        May 5, 1941: Lee Shippey writes about some of his hospital experiences – and the cost of healthcare. HEADLINES (and what they mean): From a trade journal: "Hays Office Bans 'The Outlaw' Because of 'Breast Shots' … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, May 5, 1941

Found on EBay — John Barrymore’s Town Car

Posted on May 4, 2011 by lmharnisch

       A photograph of John Barrymore’s 1930 Cord L-29, with a body by Murphy Coach Builders of Pasadena, has been listed on EBay. According to an 1989 article in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal, this car is in the Auburn, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1930, Film, Hollywood, Transportation | Comments Off on Found on EBay — John Barrymore’s Town Car