Category Archives: Hollywood

Historic L.A. in ‘Illegal’ | Part 3

Posted on July 11, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here’s another shot of the California State Building lobby and the bank of elevators as Hugh Marlowe exits.

Posted in 1955, Architecture, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Historic L.A. in ‘Illegal’ | Part 2

Posted on July 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

Here’s the footprint of the demolished California State Building, as seen from space in 2011 via Google Earth. Our crime buddy Nathan Marsak also took a tour of the remains, posted on SkyscraperPage.com. Here’s a shot of the bank of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1955, Architecture, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: No Black Writers Invited to Preview of ‘Black Narcissus’

Posted on July 10, 2018 by lmharnisch

July 10, 1947: Earl Griffin, the Sentinel’s Hollywood Spotlight columnist, writes of a press premiere of “Black Narcissus” at the Carthay Circle Theater and notes that “the Negro press has been conspicuous by their absence (not being invited).” Griffin salutes … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Columnists, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Historic L.A. in ‘Illegal’ | Part 1

Posted on July 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

If you are cursed with the memory of having seen “Gangster Squad,” you may recall this ridiculous shot of Spring Street from City Hall. In last week’s mystery movie, “Illegal”  (1955) we have the actual location, now occupied by Grand … Continue reading →

Posted in 1955, Architecture, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘Sins of Hollywood – Tinseltown’s First Sordid Look at Scandal

Posted on July 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

“The Sins of Hollywood,” via Archive.org. Note: This is an encore post from 2015. From its very beginnings, the motion picture industry has endured protests and censorship attacks from conservative members of the American public, those scandalized at seeing women … Continue reading →

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

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 9, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1939 RKO picture “Fixer Dugan,” with Lee Tracy, Virginia Weidler, Peggy Shannon, Bradley Page, William Edmunds, Edward Gargan, Jack Arnold, Rita LaRoy, Irene Franklin, John Dilson and Edythe Elliott. Photography was by J. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 38 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Sugar Chile Robinson and a Review of ‘Crossfire’

Posted on July 3, 2018 by lmharnisch

Sugar Chile Robinson performs at the Lincoln. I should do an entire post on him, but so many stories and only one Larry Harnisch. July 3, 1947: One of the regular complaints in my Twitter feed is about the lack … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, Music | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on July 2, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1955 Warner Bros. film “Illegal,” and yes, it is the studio’s second remake of “The Mouthpiece.” With Edward G. Robinson, Nina Foch, Hugh Marlowe, Jayne Mansfield, Albert Dekker, Howard St. John, Ellen Corby, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , , | 43 Comments

July 1, 1947: ‘Mom and Dad’ — Elliot Forbes and Sexploitation in the 1940s

Posted on July 1, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Well, we know where this story is going. Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. I had never heard of this particular cinematic triumph, but it was apparently a fixture of sexploitation … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Slander, My Sweet: Raymond Chandler, John Houseman and ‘The Blue Dahlia’

Posted on June 29, 2018 by lmharnisch

Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake in “The Blue Dahlia.” Here are the opening paragraphs of the piece I’ve been working on for the last few months as I waited for the clamor to die down about Piu Eatwell’s “Black Dahlia, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1945, 1946, Another Good Story Ruined, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1929 MGM picture “Hallelujah,” with Daniel L. Haynes, Nina Mae McKinney, William Fountaine, Harry Gray, Fanny Belle DeKnight, Everett McGarrity, Victoria Spivey, Milton Dickerson, Robert Couch, Walter Tait and the Dixie Jubilee Singers. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 48 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Virgil Apger, MGM’S Classic Portrait Photographer

Posted on June 25, 2018 by lmharnisch

  Virgil Apger, photo courtesy of Mary Mallory Note: This is an encore post from 2013. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios excelled in most areas of film production, including that of still portrait photography. Several of its head portrait photographers, like Ruth Harriet … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Virgil Apger, MGM’S Classic Portrait Photographer

June 23, 1947: Jim Tully, Hobo Novelist and Prizefighter, Dies at 56

Posted on June 23, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. For me, stumbling across Jim Tully is one of those wonderful accidental discoveries that are a byproduct of research. He’s as obscure and forgotten today as … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Writing on 1940s L.A. That’s Worth a Look: Beth Hahn’s ‘A Girl Like You’

Posted on June 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Is it possible to write fiction about Los Angeles in the 1940s without falling into one of the common traps? I believe Beth Hahn has done it. I have read many works of fiction set in Southern California of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Black L.A. 1947: When Hollywood ‘Toned Down’ Black Actors

Posted on June 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Nina Mae McKinney, above, was “toned down” for MGM’s movie cameras in filming “Hallelujah,” Harry Levette said. June 19, 1947: Harry Levette, a longtime Sentinel columnist, sports editor and publicist, reflects on the Lafayette Players. The Lafayette Players was established … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, Stage, Theaters | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Black L.A. 1947: When Hollywood ‘Toned Down’ Black Actors

June 21, 1947: ‘The Drunkard,’ L.A.’s Favorite Melodrama

Posted on June 21, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. In the summer of 1933, expecting nothing but a brief run and modest ticket sales, two theater people from Carmel, Preston Shobe and Galt Bell, hatched … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Food and Drink, Hollywood, Stage, Theaters | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Black L.A. 1947: Lottie Grady, Pioneering Black Actress in Theater and Film, Visits Los Angeles

Posted on June 20, 2018 by lmharnisch

“Dat Lovin’ Rag,” courtesy of the University of Colorado Boulder Music Library. June 19, 1947: Lottie Grady, one of the first African American actors to perform on Broadway, visits Los Angeles and is interviewed by the Sentinel. Grady performed on … Continue reading →

Posted in 1907, 1947, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, Stage | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1932 Warner Bros. film “The Mouthpiece,” by Frank Collins, directed by James Flood and Elliott Nugent. The film features Warren William, Sidney Fox, Aline MacMahon, John Wray, Mae Madison, Ralph Ince, Morgan Wallace, … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 31 Comments

June 18, 1947: Actor Jon Hall Says Tale of Being Shot Down in Plane Was a Hoax

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project. The day before, The Times reported a curious incident in which a bullet tore into the propeller of the plane shortly after it took off for … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Aviation, Hollywood | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mary Andrews Clark Home Provides Affordable Housing

Posted on June 18, 2018 by lmharnisch

306 Loma Drive, via Google Street View. Long a beautiful site at 306 Loma Drive in Los Angeles, the Mary Andrews Clark Memorial Home has been a site of affordable housing for more than 100 years. Built by Sen. William … Continue reading →

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