Category Archives: Uncategorized

March 9, 1980: Charles Champlin profiles Farrah Fawcett, 33, on the next phase of her life, when she’s more confident in her own judgment and less influenced by advisers.  

 Eagles drummer Don Henley at the Forum. March 3, 1980: Robert Hilburn reviews the Eagles’ first local appearance in more than three years … Also on the bill, Roy Orbison. 

  March 2, 1980: Charles Champlin reviews “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” "The musical biography by now has a pattern as fixed as a traditional 12-bar blues. It is just that some blues are better than others, and so are some musical … Continue reading →

  Sept. 8, 1959: This is the third part of a transcript of testimony by “Holy Barbarians” author Lawrence Lipton before the the Los Angeles Police Commission on the Gas House, the Beat hangout in Venice.  Part 1 is here. … Continue reading →

    Feb. 22, 1980: Is it possible to say “Michael Cimino’s upcoming film, ‘Heaven’s Gate.’ ” and not shudder? Producer Joann Carelli has exactly one credit on imdb after “Heaven’s Gate,” “The Sicilian.”

    Feb. 8, 1960: Frank D. Brill's last words, "Use your gun. I haven't any use for you. You haven't guts enough to shoot."

“That Guiltiest Feeling,” by Clare Briggs.   Jan. 23, 1920: Hey, it’s Hobart Bosworth!

[Note: You may remember reading about Glynn Wolfe in regard to the Black Dahlia case—lrh] Dames Cheaper in Dozen Lots?     He was a farm-boy, and she was a farm-girl, and they were 18.  And it was that time of … Continue reading →

Prince Albert Calais wears a corset, but on doctor’s orders.     Nov. 27, 1919: Actress Ruth Villmore Eversole, known professionally as Ruth Royce, sues for divorce because her husband got angry when she came home late. He also made … Continue reading →

  From “Chinatown”: WALSH: They got into a terrific argument outside the Pig 'n Whistle. GITTES: What about? WALSH:   I don't know. The traffic was pretty loud. I only heard one thing – apple core. A Pig ‘n Whistle candy … Continue reading →

    Nov. 4, 1941: Laughter on the set keeps ruining takes of “Arsenic and Old Lace.”

 Nov. 2, 1959: Notice the cover story by the late Ruben Salazar. Women simply can’t do anything, can they? "In Los Angeles County are 600,000 Mexicans. Of this number 100,000 retain their Mexican citizenship. The rest have become U.S. citizens." … Continue reading →

  Someone, I'm not sure who, left a copy of Steve Hodel's new book, "Most Evil," on my desk. Does Steve Hodel, author of "Black Dahlia Avenger," say his father was Zodiac? In a word, yes. From the introduction: "I … Continue reading →

Photograph by Art Rogers / Los Angeles Times Sept 19, 1959: Nikita Khrushchev, Los Angeles International Airport. What did Khrushchev make of his trip to Los Angeles? Fortunately, he deals with it at some length in his autobiography, published by … Continue reading →

Sept. 21, 1959: Khrushchev grew increasingly frustrated that his U.S. trip was being closely controlled, preventing him from meeting "average Americans." In San Francisco, he finally broke loose from his handlers to meet crowds. San Francisco Mayor George Christopher takes … Continue reading →

The Soviet flag planted on the moon — a fearsome sight in the 1950s. Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev is scheduled to land at Andrews Air Force Base because the runway at National Airport (now Reagan National Airport) couldn't accommodate his … Continue reading →

This menu from Bullock's Wilshire, dated 1949, has been listed on EBay. These menus rarely turn up, but there was one from 1946 a few days ago from a different vendor. Bidding starts at $14.95.

The 1907 Shriners' convention in Los Angeles generated an incredible amount of souvenirs, mostly pins and badges, glassware and ceramics. This is the first time I have seen a piece of music written for the event. "The Los Angeles Pilgrimage … Continue reading →

Aug. 21, 1939: Charles Owens and Joe Seewerker visit "The Madonna of the Trail" at Route 66 (now Foothill Boulevard) and Euclid in Upland. The Daughters of the American Revolution placed 12 of these identical statues across the United States … Continue reading →

Aug. 16, 1959: My goodness, isn't it such a shame the way they have commercialized Christmas these days. Ads in the middle of August, can you imagine such a thing! That's not the way it was when I was a … Continue reading →