Category Archives: Homicide

The ‘Further Crimes’ of Dr. George Hodel

Posted on May 1, 2009 by lmharnisch

Above: James Ellroy’s inscribed copy of “Black Dahlia Avenger,” as sold on EBay. Steve Hodel’s long-promised sequel to “Black Dahlia Avenger” is evidently headed toward bookstores, according to this item in Library Journal: Steve Hodel with Ralph Pezzullo. Most Evil: … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Homicide | 1 Comment

Death by the Numbers, 1948

Posted on April 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

1948: Knives are almost as popular as guns as a murder weapon. On Sunday, I was part of a Festival of Books panel on California crime, and the final question dealt with gun control. I said I was surprised … Continue reading →

Posted in Homicide, LAPD | Comments Off

James Ellroy at the Festival of Books

Posted on April 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by Leslie Anne Wiggins / Los Angeles Times Leslie Anne Wiggins writes: The L.A. Times’ Patt Morrison gave the audience appropriate warning before James Ellroy’s loud and expletive-filled speech at the Book Festival Sunday: “Seat belts fastened low and … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Homicide | 1 Comment

Masked Mob Seizes Black Rape Suspect From Mississippi Jail, April 26, 1959

Posted on April 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

The Times takes a look at the 1910 Aviation Week at Dominguez Hills. Here's a post from last year about J.S. Zerbe. Gunmen wearing masks and gloves raided the jail in Poplarville, Miss., and seized Mack Charles Parker, 23, … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, art and artists, books, Comics, Countdown to Watts, Dodgers, Film, health, Hollywood, Homicide, Music, Politics, Richard Nixon, Science, Stage, Transportation | Comments Off

Paul Coates — Confidential File, April 23, 1959

Posted on April 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

CONFIDENTIAL FILE Underworld Eyes Bounty on a Killer As one who, from time to time, chronicles the grim game of cops and robbers, I have always believed implicitly that the underworld has a First Commandment: "Never kill a cop." And … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Homicide, Paul Coates, Politics | 2 Comments

Body Found on Pasadena Golf Course, May 22, 1906

Posted on April 19, 2009 by lmharnisch

Posted in Homicide | 2 Comments

State Tax Plan; Dodger Breaks Ankle, April 9, 1969

Posted on April 9, 2009 by lmharnisch

Tommy Davis was a star with the Dodgers, a two-time National League batting champion. Then everything changed with one slide. Davis was headed toward second in a 1965 game at Dodger Stadium, a routine play that forever slowed his career. … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Homicide, Politics, RFK, Richard Nixon | Comments Off

Robbers Kill LAPD Officer, April 7, 1959

Posted on April 7, 2009 by lmharnisch

Two ex-convicts named Napoleon Banks and Howard Green (misidentified as James Calvin in the story above) got drunk and decided to hold up a market at 1451 W. Washington Blvd. They parked their car on a side street with the … Continue reading →

Posted in Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD | 1 Comment

CBS Cancels Hit Comedy Show Over Censorship; Sweet Lou Returns, April 5, 1969

Posted on April 5, 2009 by lmharnisch

A Requiem by Benny Carter is performed at a memorial for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Restaurants lost thousands of dollars to hippies who ate meals but left without paying. The ACLU says Palm Spring police violated the Constitution … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, classical music, Comics, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Sports | Comments Off

Jordan’s King Hussein Visits L.A.; Rams to Play Night Game, April 4, 1959

Posted on April 4, 2009 by lmharnisch

The Times' art department retouched Neil Clemans' photo of Marlon Brando giving the finger to photographers. Let's see if we can get a copy of the original. At left, King Hussein of Jordan waves to photographers in Palmdale after flying … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, @news, Film, Front Pages, Homicide, San Fernando Valley, Science, Transportation | 1 Comment

‘Ma’ Duncan

Posted on March 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by John Malmin / Los Angeles Times Defendants Augustine Baldonado, left, and Luis Moya stand during the arraignment of Elizabeth Ann Duncan, with attorney S. Ward Sullivan, in Ventura County. By Catriona Lavery Elizabeth Ann Duncan hired two men … Continue reading →

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Actress Near Death After Beating; Gehrig in Decline, March 29, 1939

Posted on March 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

Dewitt Clinton Cook, who admitted attacking actress Delia Bogard, was executed Jan. 31, 1941, in the fatal beating of Anya Sosoyeva. Bogard died in 1995 in Los Angeles at the age of 74. Ouch! A Duesenberg Model J sedan for … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Comics, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Nuestro Pueblo, Sports | Comments Off

Matt Weinstock — March 26, 1959

Posted on March 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

Progressive Pains That noise you hear down Santa Monica way is not another hunk of palisades sliding toward the ocean, it’s the indignant uproar over progress, with our without quotes. With the opening of Pacific Ocean Park last year, the … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Columnists, Homicide, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off

Matt Weinstock — March 25, 1959

Posted on March 25, 2009 by lmharnisch

Name Coincidences The name of Sheldon Grossbart appeared in the papers in connection with the tragic death of Brenda Emerson, 16, whose body was found outside a hospital. He is her uncle and he identified her at the morgue. By … Continue reading →

Posted in books, Columnists, Homicide, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off

Paul Coates — Confidential File, March 23, 1959

Posted on March 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

Confidential File Has Anyone Seen Tommy Bowman? Today marks an anniversary that won’t be celebrated in a Redondo Beach home. But I promised an anguished father that I wouldn’t let you forget it. Two years ago today, 8-year-old Tommy Bowman … Continue reading →

Posted in Columnists, Homicide, Paul Coates | Comments Off

Body of Girl, 16, Dumped at Burbank Hospital

Posted on March 22, 2009 by lmharnisch

Posted in Front Pages, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, San Fernando Valley | 2 Comments

Jury Weighs Cleaver Killing; Renting the Coliseum, March 19, 1949

Posted on March 19, 2009 by lmharnisch

Walter Miller slashes his wrists, stabs himself and smashes his head into the backyard incinerator — and lives. The Times asks Andre Kostelanetz: Should Dmitri Shostakovich be allowed to visit the U.S.? Stravinsky says "No!" Above, the sordid murder case … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Comics, Homicide, Sports, Suicide | Comments Off

Body of Boxing Manager Found on Ventura Freeway, March 1977

Posted on March 16, 2009 by lmharnisch

Photograph by the Los Angeles Times Howard Steindler, about 1970. Howard Steindler’s killing follows the classic arc of a story about an unsolved murder. First, an interesting victim dies violently. There are a few tantalizing clues, almost enough to break … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Downtown, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD, Sports | Comments Off

California’s Condors; Spring Training in L.A., March 14, 1949

Posted on March 14, 2009 by lmharnisch

A California condor soars over Ventura County. Couple found shot in parked car. Times reporter Ken Nevins and photographer Art Rogers take a backcountry trek with game warden Leslie Edgerton to visit what Nevin called "Condor Cave." Sixty years ago, … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Comics, Environment, Hollywood, Homicide, Sports, Suicide | Comments Off

James Earl Ray Gets 99 Years for Killing King; Angels Want Ex-Dodger, March 11, 1969

Posted on March 11, 2009 by lmharnisch

Black militants shut down two schools in protests over police brutality … and gold is selling for $48.41 an ounce or $270.94 USD 2007. "It was the first time I ever killed a man in hand-to-hand combat," Medal of Honor … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Dodgers, Front Pages, Homicide, LAPD, RFK, Sports | 1 Comment