Category Archives: LAPD

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 12

Posted on October 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

To recap briefly, I have been digging into the historical basis of the movie “Zoot Suit,” which I saw this summer in the Last Remaining Seats series. The Times ignored the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots for several days, in what … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged #National Archives, #Navy, #World War II, #Zoot Suit Riots | Comments Off

Coming Attractions: This Week on the L.A. Daily Mirror

Posted on October 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

On Monday, Eve Golden has a roundup of unusual obituaries in Queen of the Dead, and in Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory takes a look at the Clover Club, a 1930s casino on Sunset Boulevard. On Tuesday, there’s another installment of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1931, 1942, Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, Mary Mallory, Queen of the Dead, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged #coming attractions, #la, #zoot suits | Comments Off

October 1, 1910: ‘A Terrible Roar’

Posted on October 1, 2011 by lmharnisch

Courtesy of University of Southern California, on behalf of the USC Special Collections. October 1, 1910: The Times Building in flames, as seen from Broadway just south of First Street. Notice The Times Eagle outlined by the fire. El Alisal, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1910, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Fires, Labor, LAPD | Tagged #1910, #Times bombing | 2 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 10

Posted on September 28, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Racial incidents between servicemen and African Americans in San Diego. Credit: The National Archives at Riverside. To recap briefly, I have been digging into the historical basis of the movie “Zoot Suit,” which I saw this summer in the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, 1943, African Americans, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged #film, #hollywood, #la, #LAPD, #zoot suits | Comments Off

This Week on the L.A. Daily Mirror

Posted on September 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: The Hollywoodland Sign. Credit:Hope Anderson @www.underthehollywoodsign.com On Monday, we have Eve Golden’s roundup of unusual obituaries in Queen of the Dead and Mary Mallory looks at the history of the Hollywood Sign in Hollywood Heights. On Tuesday, join author … Continue reading →

Posted in 1927, 1941, 1943, Cold Cases, Coming Attractions, Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, LAPD, Queen of the Dead | Tagged #coming attractions, #Eve Golden, #hollywood, #la, #Mary Mallory | 2 Comments

Silver Lake Hammer Murder – Part 3

Posted on September 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 19, 1941: Valverda Booth visits her husband, Ernest Booth, while he is in custody in the Silver Lake Hammer Murder of heiress Florence Stricker. Is there anything more delightful to the heart of a research drudge than a notice … Continue reading →

Posted in 1927, 1929, 1941, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, Libraries | Tagged #prisons, #Silver Lake Hammer Murder, authors | 4 Comments

Found on EBay – ‘Thicker’n Thieves’

Posted on September 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

Every so often, Charles Stoker’s “Thicker’n Thieves shows up on EBay for way too much money. There was a time when you could pick up a copy for $8 or $10 in almost any used book store in Los Angeles … Continue reading →

Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Found on EBay, LAPD | Tagged #EBay, #LAPD, #rants, books | Comments Off

John Wayne Gacy Victim May Be Exhumed

Posted on September 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: The last Crown Vic rolls off the Ford assembly line. Leslie Luebbers,the director of the Art Museum at the University of Memphis and head of the Paul Revere William Project will give a lecture on the famed African American … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Architecture, Art & Artists, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Music, Preservation, Transportation | Tagged #Crown Victoria, #John Wayne Gacy, #Paul Revere Williams | Comments Off

Silver Lake Hammer Murder – Part 2

Posted on September 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 16, 1941: The Silver Lake Hammer Murder turned out to be far more complicated than I expected. This segment looks at the lives of victim Florence Stricker and her husband, Dr. George H. Stricker, up to the time of … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged #1941, #hammer murder, #Silver Lake | 1 Comment

Heiress Beaten to Death in Silver Lake

Posted on September 15, 2011 by lmharnisch

2153 Moreno Drive, via Google’s street view. Sept. 15, 1941: The murder house is on one of those narrow, curving streets above Silver Lake Reservoir, 2153 Moreno Drive. Her husband came home from work and found her beaten to death … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Cold Cases, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, LAPD, World War II | Tagged #Cold Cases, #Jimmie Fidler, #LAPD, #Silver Lake | 3 Comments

Widow Accused of Killing Ft. MacArthur Officer, Sept. 3, 1941

Posted on September 3, 2011 by lmharnisch

Sept. 3, 1941: OK, Maj. Tucker, let me get this straight. You and your wife, Marie, got home from a party, where both of you had been drinking. She was in the bedroom and you were in the kitchen making … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Art & Artists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor, World War II | Tagged #1941, #homicide, #LAPD, #World War II | Comments Off

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 7

Posted on August 30, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: June 8, 1943 — A mob of servicemen stop a streetcar on Main Street to remove a passenger wearing a zoot suit. Here’s a second radio address by Los Angeles Mayor Fletcher Bowron, delivered June 16, 1943, on the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, Radio, San Francisco, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged #1943, #Fletcher Bowron, #Radio, #zoot suits | Comments Off

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011, Part 3

Posted on August 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Ed Jokisch retires, Feb. 18, 1972. Retirement cartoons are an LAPD tradition. This is what they looked like in the 1970s. Credit: Ed Jokisch family. This is Part 3 of my interview with the late Ed Jokisch. Note: Toward … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Crime and Courts, Homicide, LAPD | Tagged #crime and courts, #LAPD, Black Dahlia | Comments Off

Found on EBay – Zoot Suit!

Posted on August 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

What appears to be an original zoot suit, with reet pleat, drape shape and stuff cuff, has been listed on EBay. According to the vendor, this suit was in the wardrobe department of a movie studio. There is no label, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Fashion, Found on EBay, LAPD, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged #EBay, #zoot suits | 3 Comments

LAPD Pistol Team – 1934 [Updated]

Posted on August 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: The LAPD pistol team puts on a demonstration at the Auto Club headquarters in 1934. Credit: “Three Cars in Every Garage: A Motorist’s History of the Automobile and the Automobile Club of Southern California,” Page 164. Did they really … Continue reading →

Posted in 1934, Books and Authors, LAPD, Photography, Transportation | Tagged #guns, #LAPD, #photography, Auto Club | 6 Comments

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 #Cold Cases, #crime and courts, #gays and lesbians, #history, #LAPD, Black Dahlia | 6 Comments

Voices: Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, 1914 – 2011

Posted on August 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: LAPD homicide detectives in a gag photo, Christmas 1946. Ed is on the left in the back row. Credit: Ed Jokisch I received word Saturday that my friend, retired Police Capt. Ed Jokisch, has died at the age … Continue reading →

Posted in 1914, Crime and Courts, Downtown, LAPD, Obituaries, World War II | Tagged #LAPD, #obituaries, Black Dahlia | 3 Comments

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 #changeling, #film, #homicide, crime and courts, lapd | Comments Off

‘Grim Sleeper’ 911 Call

Posted on August 2, 2011 by lmharnisch

Barbara Ware, killed at the age of 23, whose body was found Jan. 10, 1987. Note: Since the “Grim Sleeper’s” 911 call is back in the news, here’s a post I wrote about it in 2009. I thought it would … Continue reading →

Posted in 1987, Grim Sleeper, LAPD | Tagged #Grim Sleeper, #LAPD | 3 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 6