Category Archives: Hollywood

Black Dahlia: Jay Singletary (Chris Pine) Star Reporter of ‘I Am the Night’

Posted on January 31, 2019 by lmharnisch

I already posted this on Twitter, but here it is for the Daily Mirror readers. Sam Sheridan’s portrayal of hotshot/disgraced reporter Jay Singletary (a tousled Chris Pine, who loses his shirt a lot) is utter b.s. Here’s why: Jay’s backstory … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Film, Hollywood, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Gypsy Rose Lee and ‘The G-String Murders’

Posted on January 28, 2019 by lmharnisch

Photo: Barbara Stanwyck in “Lady of Burlesque.” This is an encore post from 2012. See note below for correction. While being tops in your field can be exciting, an ambitious or intellectually curious person always looks for new ways to … Continue reading →

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 28, 2019 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1943 MGM film “Du Barry Was a Lady,” with Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Gene Kelly, Virginia O’Brien, “Rags” Ragland, Zero Mostel, Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra, Donald Meek, Douglass Dumbrille, George Givot and Louise … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 67 Comments

Jan. 24, 1959: Law Delays ‘Alfalfa’ Burial

Posted on January 24, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 24, 1959: One of the best parts of doing the blog at latimes.com was having UCLA and Cal State Northridge interns who, among other tasks, transcribed the Paul Coates and Matt Weinstock columns. Sometimes I transcribed them myself (this … Continue reading →

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Jan. 22, 1959: Paul Coates on Another Claim to ‘The Brave One’

Posted on January 22, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 22, 1959: Dalton Trumo (blacklisted and using the name Robert Rich) wrote the script for “The Brave One,” but there was a claim by the widow of Juan Duval. The previous entry is here. Coates’ column was published in … Continue reading →

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Jan. 22, 1959: ‘Our Gang’ Star Carl ‘Alfalfa’ Switzer Dies in Fight Over $50

Posted on January 22, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 22, 1959: Carl ‘Alfalfa’ Switzer is shot to death in a fight with Moses Samuel Stiltz. According to police, Switzer borrowed a dog belonging to Stiltz, then lost the dog. Switzer paid $50 for the return of Stiltz’s dog. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, Baseball, Crime and Courts, Dodgers, Film, Hollywood, Keith Thursby, LAPD, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Jan. 22, 1959: ‘Our Gang’ Star Carl ‘Alfalfa’ Switzer Dies in Fight Over $50

Black Dahlia: Stephen Kay Says No LAPD Coverup in Black Dahlia Case

Posted on January 21, 2019 by lmharnisch

Retired LAPD Capt. Ed Jokisch , who was in the Homicide Division in the 1940s, fought back against the claims in Steve Hodel’s “Black Dahlia Avenger” franchise until his death in 2011. This letter from former Deputy Dist. Atty. Stephen … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2003, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black Dahlia: Stephen Kay Says No LAPD Coverup in Black Dahlia Case

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 21, 2019 by lmharnisch

Dear Brain Trust: I received word this week of the loss to cancer of one of our prolific, knowledgeable and veteran contributors, Lee Ann of the trio of solvers Lee Ann, Megan and Thom, who moved with us from latimes.com … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 33 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Bessie Lasky, Painter

Posted on January 21, 2019 by lmharnisch

  Bessie Lasky in her studio, courtesy of Jesse L. Lasky.com. Though overshadowed by her husband, Jesse, Bessie Lasky was as much an artist as he, a multitalented artist in many fields with some renown from the 1920s through the … Continue reading →

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Jan. 21, 1959: Cecil B. De Mille Dies at 77

Posted on January 21, 2019 by lmharnisch

  Jan. 21, 1959: The Mirror brings out an extra when Cecil B. De Mille died of a heart attack at the age of 77.. The post originally appeared on latimes.com in 2009 and is available via Archive.org.

Posted in 1959, Film, Hollywood, Obituaries | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: No Sign of George Hodel or the Black Dahlia in the Fauna Hodel Story 1990

Posted on January 20, 2019 by lmharnisch

If you’re curious about whether “I Am the Night” is indeed “inspired by a true story,” I did a bit more digging into the tale of Fauna Hodel and her unfinished film “Pretty Hattie’s Baby” (spoiler alert – there’s nothing … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1990, 1996, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: New ‘Evidence’ in George ‘Evil Genius’ Hodel Franchise

Posted on January 16, 2019 by lmharnisch

Black Dahlia breakthrough! Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Let us suppose that there was a mathematician. A retired mathematician who once taught at a major university, who published and received tenure, and retired as a well-regarded member … Continue reading →

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January 1939: Vivien Leigh Cast in ‘Gone With the Wind’ (Hedda Hopper Does Not Approve)

Posted on January 16, 2019 by lmharnisch

January 1939: Vivien Leigh is cast as Scarlett O’Hara. Hedda Hopper does not approve. Boy does she not approve. Frankly, was there anybody who was ever worse at casting than Hedda Hopper? She would shamelessly use her column to campaign … Continue reading →

Posted in 1939, Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on January 14, 2019 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie was the 1933 film “A Study in Scarlet,” with Reginald Owen, Anna May Wong, June Clyde, Allan Dinehart, John Warburton, Alan Mowbray, Warburton Gamble, J.M. Kerrigan, Doris Lloyd, Billy Bevan, Leila Bennett, Wyndham Standing and Halliwell … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 33 Comments

Jan. 14, 1939: Thousands at St. Vibiana’s Hold Vigil for World Peace

Posted on January 14, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 13, 1939: About 4,000 worshipers attend a Perpetual Novena for Our Sorrowful Mother at St. Vibiana’s Cathedral. People knelt in the aisles, in the doorways and outside praying for peace and for relief of the poor, The Times says.. … Continue reading →

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Black Dahlia: A Warning About Hollywood and the Black Dahlia

Posted on January 12, 2019 by lmharnisch

Lucie Arnaz in “Who Is the Black Dahlia?” “Inspired by a true story?” A painful lesson about Hollywood and the Black Dahlia. In 1975, the murder of Elizabeth Short was the basis for the TV movie “Who Is the Black … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 1975, Black Dahlia, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Television | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Jan. 12, 1959: Paul Coates Confidential File — East L.A. War Hero Plotted to Kill Batista

Posted on January 12, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 12, 1959: Paul Coates has the story of Guy Louis Gabaldon, a war hero raised in East L.A. who claimed to have plotted to assassinate Cuban leader Fulgencio Batista. Gabaldon was raised by the parents of a Japanese American … Continue reading →

Posted in 1959, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Paul Coates, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black Dahlia: Are There Any Good Books on the Black Dahlia Case? Oh Dear!

Posted on January 9, 2019 by lmharnisch

“Severed”  by pathological liar John Gilmore (d. 2016) was once the go-to book on the Black Dahlia case, but it’s 25% mistakes and 50% fiction. Are there any good books on the Black Dahlia case? No. But there are a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Jan. 9, 1945: The Making of ‘The Blue Dahlia’; Paramount Signs Raymond Chandler for Original Film

Posted on January 9, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 9, 1945: The New York Times reports that Paramount signed Raymond Chandler to write a script. Contrast this with John Houseman’s account of making the film in “Lost Fortnight,” originally published in Harper’s magazine, August 1965, and reprinted with … Continue reading →

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Jan. 8, 1939: ‘Little Buttercup’ — Baby Abandoned at Hospital

Posted on January 8, 2019 by lmharnisch

Jan. 8, 1939: The Times’ Edwin Schallert makes his Oscar predictions, seconding a “Warner landslide” published in The Times two weeks earlier with James Cagney (“Angel With Dirty Faces”) as best actor, Bette Davis (“Jezebel”) as best actress, Michael Curtiz … Continue reading →

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