Category Archives: Stage

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 13

Posted on October 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

May 4, 1995: Portions of the June 10, 1943, report on the Zoot Suit Riots have been redacted and placed in a parallel file. This is due to privacy concerns because the individuals may still be alive, an archivist explained. … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, African Americans, Fashion, Film, LAPD, Latinos, Stage, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Eve Golden: Queen of the Dead

Posted on October 17, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: 1940 La Salle hearse for sale on EBay. Bidding starts at $8,500. Queen of the Dead—dateline October 17, 2011  •  Another cast member from I, Claudius (known to my friends as I, Clavdivs, or I, Clamdip) is gone: George … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Film, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Obituaries, Queen of the Dead, Stage, Television | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – The Follies Burlesque

Posted on October 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

This photo of dancers at the Follies Burlesque on Main Street has been listed on EBay. The vendor hasn’t identified the source of the picture or the dancers’ names, but says it dates to the 1950s.  Bidding on the photo … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, Downtown, Found on EBay, Photography, Stage | Tagged , | Comments Off on Found on EBay – The Follies Burlesque

Buddy Rogers Denies Rift With Mary Pickford

Posted on October 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

Oct. 12, 1941: Tom Treanor writes about the era when mourners could board a special funeral car that also carried the casket to the cemetery. C.V. Means, general traffic agent of the Los Angeles Railway, says that anyone can still … Continue reading →

Posted in 1941, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Nightclubs, Stage, Streetcars, Tom Treanor | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 11

Posted on October 11, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Harry Arnheim of the Hollywood Tropics, 1525 N. Vine St., protests being placed off-limits by the Navy. Credit: National Archives at Riverside. To recap briefly, I have been digging into the historical basis of the movie “Zoot Suit,” which … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, Crime and Courts, Fashion, Film, Food and Drink, History, Hollywood, Stage, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Found on EBay – Julian Eltinge

Posted on October 7, 2011 by lmharnisch

This rather bedraggled postcard of Julian Eltinge in “The Fascinating Widow” has been listed on EBay. Hm. Eltinge Cold Cream is a new one on me. Eltinge was one of the most famous female impersonators of his day and built … Continue reading →

Posted in Found on EBay, Hollywood, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Stage | Tagged , | 1 Comment

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 9

Posted on September 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Isadore Bernstein’s name appears on a list of  undesirables.  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 Last … Continue reading →

Posted in 1942, 1943, African Americans, Crime and Courts, Fashion, Film, History, Hollywood, Latinos, Libraries, Stage, World War II, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 9

John Wilkes Booth Site for Sale – Civil War Reenactors Not Included

Posted on September 8, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Cleydael. Credit: Motley’s Auction and Realty Group. Three historic buildings in Texas’ Bastrop State Park were lost in the recent wildfire, but many other structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps have survived, according to Ben Wear of the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1859, Architecture, Crime and Courts, Film, Homicide, Stage, Theaters | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on August 30, 2011 by lmharnisch

[Update: This is Carrie Finnell. Please congratulate Dewey Webb for identifying her. Finnell (d. 1963) was a famous stripteuse of the 1920s and ‘30s who invented the art of tassel twirling with her “educated muscles,” shown here in repose. ] … Continue reading →

Posted in Mystery Photo, Photography, Stage | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

#Broadway, #Civil War, #history, #museums, 8|12|2011

Posted on August 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Diary of Alexander Sterrett Paxton. Credit: Washington and Lee University. Daniel de Vise of the Washington Post writes about a collection of six Civil War diaries obtained by Washington and Lee University. The diaries were kept by Alexander Sterrett … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, History, Museums, Music, Preservation, Stage, World War II | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on #Broadway, #Civil War, #history, #museums, 8|12|2011

#architecture, #art, #black dahlia, #history, #religion, 8|9|2011

Posted on August 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: 130 W. 30th, via Google maps’ street view. SPOTLIGHT David W. Dunlap, writing in the New York Times’ City Room, tells the story of Congregation Beit Simchat Torah,  sometimes called the “gay synagogue,” which is moving into a building … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Black Dahlia, Books and Authors, Cold Cases, Genealogy, Libraries, Music, New York, Religion, Stage | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Architectural Rambling: Julian Eltinge Home – 1921

Posted on August 9, 2011 by lmharnisch

The home of Julian Eltinge at 2328 Baxter Street in Silver Lake is barely visible from the street. Note: While trolling EBay, I found yet another article that had been cut from a magazine, in this case, the Architectural Record … Continue reading →

Posted in 1921, Architecture, Found on EBay, Interior Design, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Stage | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

‘Zoot Suit’ and History – Part 6

Posted on August 2, 2011 by lmharnisch

Image: Los Angeles Conservancy’s Last Remaining Seats Program for “Zoot Suit” Credit: Jose Legaspi In Part 5, we looked at the story of Joe Dacy Coleman, “patient zero” in the Zoot Suit Riots, which led to a report at the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, African Americans, Black Dahlia, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, LAPD, Latinos, Libraries, Stage, Streetcars, Zoot Suit | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

James Curtis: L.A. Voices

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

Photo: Dick Lane and Helen Wallace in “Sioux City Sue,” 1946. In 1975, while still in college, I did a short series of interviews. There was no real purpose to these, other than they were with people who interested me … Continue reading →

Posted in 1975, Books and Authors, Film, Found on EBay, History, Hollywood, James Curtis, L.A. Voices, New York, Stage, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Eve Golden: Queen of the Dead

Posted on July 4, 2011 by lmharnisch

Queen of the Dead—dateline July 4, 2011   • Adorable, baby-voiced actress Alice Playten, 63, died on June 25. She was one of those “oh, her!” actresses whose face and voice are more familiar than her name. She did zillions … Continue reading →

Posted in Art & Artists, Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood, Obituaries, Queen of the Dead, Stage, Television | Tagged , , , | 5 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

Eve Golden: Queen of the Dead

Posted on June 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

Queen of the Dead—dateline June 25, 2011 • Wheelchair-bound actor and male stripper Lee Kemp, 39, died of cancer on April 11. The British actor became a paraplegic after a 1990 motorcycle accident and—against all odds—continued his career, even winning … Continue reading →

Posted in Eve Golden, Film, Hollywood, Obituaries, Queen of the Dead, Religion, Stage | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Eve Golden: Queen of the Dead

Queen of the Dead by Eve Golden

Posted on June 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

You’ll recognize Eve Golden as one of the Daily Mirror regulars. Now that I’m no longer at latimes.com I’m free to use outside writers and Eve is my first addition. She describes herself as: a biographer, show-business historian, photo archivist … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and Authors, Film, Hollywood, Music, Obituaries, Photography, Queen of the Dead, Religion, Stage | 9 Comments

Sex Mysteries Demonstrated With Living Artist Models

Posted on June 14, 2011 by lmharnisch

  July 24, 1932: Cartoonist Edmund Waller “Ted” Gale puts Miss Los Angeles in the midst of a dazzling array of national stereotypes for the 1932 Olympics (note that Mexico is in a sombrero … and is Japan wearing a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1932, Art & Artists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Stage, Theaters | 1 Comment

Found on EBay – Groucho Marx

Posted on June 12, 2011 by lmharnisch

A program from Groucho Marx’s one-night performance of “The Same Boat, Brother” at Philharmonic Auditorium on Nov. 14, 1945, has been listed on EBay.  According to reviews in the Los Angeles Times, the show was fairly unsuccessful. Bidding for the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1945, Books and Authors, Film, Found on EBay, Hollywood, Stage, Theaters | Comments Off on Found on EBay – Groucho Marx