Category Archives: Obituaries

Mark Twain, 1835 – 1910

Posted on April 22, 2010 by lmharnisch

  April 22, 1910:  Samuel Langhorne Clemens “recognized his daughter Clara (Mrs. Ossip Gabrilowitsch), spoke a rational word or two and feeling himself unequal to conversation, wrote out in pencil: “ ‘Give me my glasses.’   “These were his last words. … Continue reading →

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Mark Twain Near Death

Posted on April 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  April 20, 1910: Samuel Clemens "has been perfectly conscious and in possession of all his faculties throughout his illness and, weak though he is, frequent flashes of the characteristic wit that made him a unique figure when in health, … Continue reading →

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Daryl Gates in His Own Words

Posted on April 17, 2010 by lmharnisch

Photograph by R.L. Oliver / Los Angeles Times March 29, 1978: Sima Gates checks the new badge of her husband, Daryl F. Gates, after he was sworn in as the city's 49th chief of police during ceremonies at the Police … Continue reading →

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Union Officer Recalls Lowering U.S. Flag at Ft. Sumter

Posted on April 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

April 13, 1910: The Times marks the [Update: 49th — I think a 100-year-old correction is some sort of record] 50th anniversary of the firing on Ft. Sumter by interviewing an officer who was there, Lt. Col. W.H. Hamner, a … Continue reading →

Posted in @news, Obituaries | 1 Comment

Mystery Photo

Posted on April 9, 2010 by lmharnisch

   Los Angeles Times file photo Update: This is vaudeville star Kitty Doner in a 1925 publicity photo. Doner died Aug. 26, 1988, in Los Angeles at the age of 92.  Dec. 23, 1925: Kitty Doner appears as a man … Continue reading →

Posted in Mystery Photo, Obituaries, Photography | 24 Comments

End of Watch, Danny Galindo

Posted on April 8, 2010 by lmharnisch

Photograph by Don Cormier / Los Angeles Times Regular Daily Mirror readers will be familiar with Detective Danny Galindo, who died Tuesday at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena. Here he is in 1963, taking the part of Karl Hettinger, center, … Continue reading →

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Voices – Jaime Escalante, 1930 – 2010

Posted on March 30, 2010 by lmharnisch

   July 21, 1983: Jaime Escalante once worked as a busboy at a Pasadena coffee shop because he didn’t speak English.

Posted in Education, Obituaries | 1 Comment

Voices – June Havoc, 1912 – 2010

Posted on March 29, 2010 by lmharnisch

Jan. 5, 1981: “This is what I wanted since I was 3,” June Havoc says of her home in Connecticut.

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Voices — ‘Howlin Mad’ Smith

Posted on March 21, 2010 by lmharnisch

March 21, 1960: Jack Smith profiles retired Gen. Holland Smith, who died in 1967 at the age of 84. 

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Movie Star Mystery Photo

Posted on March 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Los Angeles Times file photo Update: This is Anne Nagel in a publicity photo stamped Sept. 17, 1936.   July 8, 1966: Anne Nagel dies of cancer at the age of 50.     Just a reminder on how … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Obituaries, Suicide | 28 Comments

Ron Milner, March 19, 1980

Posted on March 19, 2010 by lmharnisch

  March 19, 1980: Lawrence Christon reviews Ron Milner’s “Season’s Reasons,” which he calls “a state of the black union address." "Much of the play emphasizes how little American racial attitudes have improved," Christon says.  Milner died in July 16, … Continue reading →

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Voices – Alex Chilton

Posted on March 17, 2010 by lmharnisch

June 16, 1985: "Having a band is a very difficult thing, especially if you're not making a whole lot of money,” Alex Chilton tells Don Snowden. 

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Dinosaur Expert Roy Chapman Andrews Dies

Posted on March 12, 2010 by lmharnisch

  March 12, 1960: Roy Chapman Andrews is not an author I think about very often anymore, but he wrote one of the favorite books of my childhood, “All About Dinosaurs.” I suppose he’s one reason I took all those … Continue reading →

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Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, March 5, 1960

Posted on March 5, 2010 by lmharnisch

Leonard Warren, 1911-1960 Telephone Girls Belie Propaganda       I'm a client, reasonably well paid up, of Pacific Telephone Co.  And I'd like to assure you that my complaint is nothing personal.       In fact, over the years, I've … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #opera, classical music, Columnists, Environment, Homicide, Obituaries, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul V. Coates – Confidential File, March 5, 1960

Movie Star Mystery Photo

Posted on February 27, 2010 by lmharnisch

       Los Angeles Times file photo Update: Our mystery fellow is Daniel Frohman, shown above left with Pola Negri and Jesse Lasky  in a photo dated Oct. 8, 1922. This week’s mystery fellow is the man on the left … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Obituaries, Photography | 20 Comments

Charles Lane, the Classic ‘Stinker’

Posted on February 23, 2010 by lmharnisch

     Feb. 23, 1980: The Times profiles character actor Charles Lane (d. 2007). “The great old days, a lot of them, stunk,” he says. Lane also says Frank Capra “is the most talented man we ever had.”

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Obituaries | 1 Comment

Voices — Alexander Haig, 1924 – 2010

Posted on February 20, 2010 by lmharnisch

"As of now, I am in control here in the White House pending return of the vice president and (I am) in close touch with him." — Secretary of State Alexander M. Haig Jr.,on the transfer of power after the … Continue reading →

Posted in Obituaries, Politics | 2 Comments

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: Your Movie Columnist

Posted on February 13, 2010 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 13, 1951: Edith Head, the Paramount designer, says: "I don't know why I'm so happy these days unless it's because I've found a waist smaller than Veronica Lake's." The 21 1/2-inch waist belongs to Jan Sterling, Hedda Hopper … Continue reading →

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Recalling the Days of Payola

Posted on February 10, 2010 by lmharnisch

  I was  "blown away" today to see my dad on the front page of the Mirror News. My dad, Norm Prescott, was a big DJ in Boston and New York. We all moved to Los Angeles in 1966. The … Continue reading →

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Stuntman Dies in Fall From Plane

Posted on February 6, 2010 by lmharnisch

  “The Days of Real Sport,” by Clare Briggs. Feb. 6, 1920: A ghastly story. Stuntman Earle (or Earl) Burgess  dies after performing stunts on the wing of a plane. He was clinging to the left landing skid when he … Continue reading →

Posted in Comics, Film, Hollywood, Obituaries | 1 Comment