Category Archives: Hollywood

Olympics Open at Lake Placid

Posted on February 14, 2010 by lmharnisch

      Feb. 14, 1980: Has it really been 30 years since Bob Fosse’s “All That Jazz” opened? Yes it has.

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A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 14, 2010 by lmharnisch

   Feb. 14, 1952: Hedda Hopper says, "Jean Arthur has collected nearly $500,000 from Paramount since 1947, yet has made only two pictures for that company. Now by mutual consent her contract has been canceled, with a large hunk of … Continue reading →

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UCLA Students Honor John Belushi

Posted on February 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 13, 1980: John Belushi comes to UCLA to receive the Jack Benny Memorial Award for Excellence in Entertainment. Asked if he would do serious movie roles, Belushi replies: "These days, people need comedy."

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A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 13, 1951: Edith Head, the Paramount designer, says: "I don't know why I'm so happy these days unless it's because I've found a waist smaller than Veronica Lake's." The 21 1/2-inch waist belongs to Jan Sterling, Hedda Hopper … Continue reading →

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Home-Schooler Goes to Jail

Posted on February 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

 Photograph by John Malmin / Los Angeles Times July 21, 1959: Dr. R. Bernard Finch escorts police and reporters in a tour of the crime scene in West Covina.  Newsmen at the courtroom door peep through a crack to get … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Education, Film, Hollywood | Comments Off on Home-Schooler Goes to Jail

New Studio Signs Stars, Plans Complex Near Culver City

Posted on February 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

 “Oh, Man!” by Clare Briggs. Location sleuth, Feb. 13, 1920: “A section of Chinatown was practically remodeled early this week to conform to the exigencies of ‘The Heart of a Child,' from Frank Danby's novel, which is Nazimova's current Metro … Continue reading →

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A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 12, 2010 by lmharnisch

Feb. 12, 1950: William Holden tells Hedda Hopper, "It's up to the producers. You know stars are made by them before they're made by the public. And stars are broken by producers before they're broken by the public. Thus it's … Continue reading →

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Movie Star Mystery Photo

Posted on February 12, 2010 by lmharnisch

      Los Angeles Times file photo  Update: Virtually everyone recognized our mystery guest as Louise Beavers. Oct. 27, 1962: Louise Beavers dies at the age of 60.  Nov. 2, 1962: Services for Louise Beavers include her favorite gospel song, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | 76 Comments

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 11, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 11, 1949: Wedding bells for Clark Gable and Joan Crawford? Hedda Hopper says no.

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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

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Film, 1965

Posted on February 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Now showing, a Peter Cushing double feature: “Curse of Frankenstein” and “Horror of Dracula.”  Feb. 10, 1965: Also opening, “Two on a Guillotine.” Directed by William Conrad!

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Recalling the Days of Payola

Posted on February 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

  I was  "blown away" today to see my dad on the front page of the Mirror News. My dad, Norm Prescott, was a big DJ in Boston and New York. We all moved to Los Angeles in 1966. The … Continue reading →

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Strongheart, Dog Sheik of the Movies

Posted on February 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Aug. 2, 1925, Strongheart, the dog sheik of the movies.

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A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 9, 2010 by lmharnisch

     Feb. 9, 1947: Hedda Hopper says, “During his marriage days, I've seen Jack [Carson] wipe the grease paint off after a hard day's shooting and say, 'Well, now I've got to go home and put on $1,000 worth … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 8, 2010 by lmharnisch

     Feb. 8, 1946: Hedda Hopper writes, "Twentieth is readying 'The Ghost and Mrs. Muir' for Rex Harrison's next."

Posted in Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 7, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 7, 1945: Hedda Hopper says John Wayne is replacing Robert Taylor in “They Were Expendable,” based on a book by W.L. White.

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A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 6, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 6, 1944: Hedda Hopper profiles Louis Mayer, who was marking 20 years at MGM. Notice that she mentions Selig’s studio on Mission. And she says she was in Mayer's first picture, “Virtuous Wives.”

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Stuntman Dies in Fall From Plane

Posted on February 6, 2010 by lmharnisch

  “The Days of Real Sport,” by Clare Briggs. Feb. 6, 1920: A ghastly story. Stuntman Earle (or Earl) Burgess  dies after performing stunts on the wing of a plane. He was clinging to the left landing skid when he … Continue reading →

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

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 5, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 5, 1943: As usual, the World War II papers are hard to read. Hedda Hopper says Erich von Stroheim and Zasu Pitts, who worked together in “Greed,”  saw each other for the first time in years.

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Mystery Photo

Posted on February 5, 2010 by lmharnisch

      Los Angeles Times file photo Update: This is Blossom Seeley and Benny Fields in a photo stamped July 8, 1923. Their lives were made into the 1952 film “Somebody Loves Me” with Betty Hutton and Ralph Meeker. Aug. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Food and Drink, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Obituaries, Photography, Stage | 17 Comments