Category Archives: Homicide

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011, Part 2

Posted on August 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Capt. Ed Jokisch. Credit: Jokisch family   This is Part 2 of my interview with the late Ed Jokisch.

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Obituaries, World War II | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Changeling Stories — Part 4

Posted on August 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles Times file photo Louisa Northcott, the mother of Gordon Northcott, isn’t portrayed in “Changeling,” but played a key role in the actual case. Above, she’s booked in jail. Los Angeles Times file photo Louisa Northcott with one of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Changeling, Crime and Courts, Film, Homicide | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Changeling Stories — Part 3

Posted on August 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photograph by Tony Rivetti Jr. / Universal PicturesAbove, Colm Feore as Police Chief James Davis, “Changeling,” set in 1928. Los Angeles Times file photoAbove, Police Chief James Davis, 1926. Northcott signs confession. I don’t care much for the press passes … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Changeling, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Changeling Stories — Part 1

Posted on August 4, 2011 by lmharnisch

Police Capt. Jones and LAPD officers search the lake in Lincoln Park for the body of Walter Collins, Los Angeles Times, April 6, 1928. The boy claiming to be Walter Collins poses with Christine Collins, Aug. 18, 1928 Several regular … Continue reading →

Posted in 1928, Changeling, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Changeling Stories — Part 1

A Shot in the Dark

Posted on July 30, 2011 by lmharnisch

Note: This is a post I wrote in 2007 for the Daily Mirror when it was on latimes.com. I’m gradually transferring material over to the L.A. Daily Mirror.   April 28, 1957 Los Angeles Let’s park here and sit in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, 2007, Cold Cases, Homicide | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Robbers Kill LAPD Officer in Shootout, July 24, 1934

Posted on July 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

Stanford Avenue and 33rd Street via Google maps’ street view. Stanford Avenue and 33rd Street is one of those little pockets of old houses in Los Angeles that looks like it hasn’t changed much since 1934, when two men in … Continue reading →

Posted in 1934, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

El Segundo Revisited

Posted on July 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

orman Frederick Gagnon looks like an excellent suspect in the unsolved killing of two El Segundo police officers last year. In an incident quite similar to the El Segundo case, Charles H. May and a female companion (The Times, fortunately, … Continue reading →

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Death in El Segundo

Posted on July 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

July 22, 1957Los Angeles Note: This is a post from 2007. We’re heading west on Rosecrans Avenue. It’s early Monday morning, a few moments after 1:30 a.m., and the streets are dark. There’s nobody out but a few drunks and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Time Traveling With the L.A. Daily Mirror [Updated]

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Pier Angeli and friend with a reminder on Daylight Saving Time, 1958 I decided to import my old lmharnisch blog, devoted mainly to dissecting “The Black Dahlia Files” by Donald “Fake Document” Wolfe. Now there are posts going back … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, 2008, 2009, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, Film, History, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Photography | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Bill James’ ‘Popular Crime’: Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on July 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

I have procrastinated about looking at Bill James’ “Popular Crime” because, as curious as it may seem, I don’t care much for “true” crime books. Even when they are well done (which is almost never) the subject matter is depressing … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Another Good Story Ruined, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Donald Wolfe, History, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Leesa Jo Shaner – Update

Posted on July 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Leesa Jo Shaner An attempt to resolve one of the nation’s most baffling unsolved crimes is quietly unfolding in federal court in Tucson: The mystery of Leesa Jo Shaner, who vanished May 29, 1973,  on her way to the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1973, Cold Cases, Homicide | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Attorney Storms Office, Seizes D.A.’s Bugging Equipment

Posted on July 15, 2011 by lmharnisch

July 15, 1941: Defense attorney Samuel Rummel (shot to death Dec. 11, 1950) breaks a door and seizes a dictograph wired to a microphone in his office in the William Fox Building, 608 S. Hill. Rummel was defending Deputy Charles … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Cold Cases, Comics, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, Jimmie Fidler, Lee Shippey, Mickey Cohen, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Attorney Storms Office, Seizes D.A.’s Bugging Equipment

7|12|2011 #history #museum #cold cases [Updated]

Posted on July 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 19, 1890: Edison’s talking doll in the Sydney Journal. RECOMMENDEDRon Cowen in the Washington Post has a great story about scientists using optical scanning to recover a primitive recording made by Thomas Edison about 1889 for a talking doll. … Continue reading →

Posted in Cold Cases, History, Homicide, Museums | Tagged , , | Comments Off on 7|12|2011 #history #museum #cold cases [Updated]

Maria Ridulph: McCullough Denies Kidnapping, Killing Girl

Posted on July 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

Ted Gregory and Isolde Raftery of the Chicago Tribune, reporting from Seattle, have a jailhouse interview with Jack Daniel McCullough, suspected in the 1957 killing of Maria Ridulph. “You gotta have evidence. They have nothing,” McCullough tells Trib.

Posted in 1957, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, Seattle | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Maria Ridulph: Ex-Cop Had History of Abuse, Records Show

Posted on July 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

John O’Connor of the Associated Press files a story from Springfield, Ill., about affidavits submitted against Jack Daniel McCullough in the kidnapping and killing  of Maria Ridulph. McCullough, a former police officer, was fired over accusations that he molested a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, Maria Ridulph | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Maria Ridulph: Ex-Cop Had History of Abuse, Records Show

The FBI Thins Its Files

Posted on July 6, 2011 by lmharnisch

I had the strangest experience Saturday when I was going through Ernest Hemingway’s FBI file. I was sure the buro had posted Louis Armstrong’s dossier — it’s brief and not terribly interesting except for the fact that it exists. Or … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, African Americans, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, History, Homicide, LAPD, Libraries | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The FBI Thins Its Files

Man Held in 1957 Cold Case Killing of Maria Ridulph

Posted on July 2, 2011 by lmharnisch

Dec. 3, 1957-April 26, 1958 Sycamore, Ill Note: Jack Daniel McCullough has been charged in the 1957 killing of Maria Ridulph. Here’s an article I wrote about the case in 2007. Maria E. Ridulph* was a 7-year-old girl from Sycamore, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, Cold Cases, Homicide | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and history – Part 1

Posted on June 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

I was extremely fortunate to attend Wednesday night’s showing of “Zoot Suit” and hear remarks by the panel that preceded the show. Betto Arcos moderated a session with director Luis Valdez, Rose Portillo (Della), Edward James Olmos (El Pachuco) and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, 1943, 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Latinos, Music, Stage, Theaters, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Daily Mirror Is Moving

Posted on June 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

I’m moving to LADailyMirror.com Henry Fuhrmann, one of the assistant managing editors at The Times, likes to say: “Always take the high road. The view is nicer up there.” Henry is my friend, as well as my supervisor, and he … Continue reading →

Posted in Countdown to Watts, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, UFOs, World War II | 23 Comments

Mack Ray Edwards’ Legacy of Grief

Posted on June 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

Note: The Times is reporting that Mack Ray Edwards is a suspect in the 1961 disappearance of 7-year-old Ramona Price outside Santa Barbara. Here’s a 1959 column that Paul Coates wrote about one of Edwards’ victims. Today marks an anniversary that … Continue reading →

Posted in 1957, 1959, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Paul Coates | 1 Comment