Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Film Noir Fest Shows the Dirty Side of Life

Posted on April 27, 2016 by lmharnisch

Noir City
Poster by Bill Selby, courtesy of the Film Noir Foundation.

The 18th Annual Noir City: Hollywood at the Egyptian Theatre just concluded after another successful run, focusing on the moral quagmires or despicable decisions of many an ethically challenged character. Duplicitous dames and shady shysters throughout the films attempt to manipulate the system for their own selfish ends, taking a walk on the dark side of the street. Most of these films have never been released on DVD, making seeing them on the big screen a rare delight.

Opening night Friday, April 15, 2016 started off with the powerful Argentinian film “The Broken Stems,” (“Los Tallos Amargos,” 1956), featuring outstanding cinematography by Ricardo Younis and an inventive score by the talented Astor Piazzolla. An insecure newspaper reporter joins a somewhat innocent sounding correspondence school scam, gradually giving way to paranoia and suspicion, leading to darkly ironic and tragic results.

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Raising Money for Documentary on Paul Henreid

Posted on April 25, 2016 by lmharnisch

Tubestart

I recently received word from Monika Henreid that she has begun a fundraising campaign to help complete a documentary on her father, Paul Henreid. She hopes to finish the film in time for the 75th anniversary of “Casablanca” in 2017.

Monika Henreid writes that she has visited her father’s childhood home in Austria, some of the sites of his early acting career and interviewed Robert Clary, Angie Dickinson, Norman Lear, Norman Lloyd and Doris Berger for the project.

Further information is here.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on April 25, 2016 by lmharnisch

 

Wicked as They Come
This week’s mystery movie has been the 1956 Columbia picture “Wicked as They Come,” with Arlene Dahl, Phil Carey, Herbert Marshall, Michael Goodliffe, Ralph Truman, Sidney James, David Kossoff, Faith Brook and Frederick Valk. The screenplay was by Ken Hughes (who also directed), from a story by Robert Westerby and Sigmund Miller based on the novel “Portrait in Smoke” by Bill Ballinger. Music was by Malcolm Arnold, conducted by Muir Mathieson.

The movie opened in Los Angeles on Jan. 16, 1957, as the second half of a double bill with “Nightfall,” starring Brian Keith and Anne Bancroft, at the RKO Hillstreet and Whittier theaters, and at local drive-ins. (Yes, drive-ins in January).

As far as I can determine, it has never been commercially released on DVD or VHS.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 56 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: TCM 2016 Classic Film Festival Celebrates Motion Pictures

Posted on April 25, 2016 by lmharnisch

 

TCM Classic Film Festival

Turner Classic Movies celebrates all things movies with its upcoming Classic Film Festival Thursday, April 28 through May 1, 2016. Organized around the theme “Moving Pictures,” films that inspire, utter a call to action, rouse emotions, or take us to new worlds, the festival affords attendees the opportunity of seeing celebrities, viewing restored films, hearing inspiring stories, and meeting and making like-minded friends. The festival offers something for lovers of every film genre and period, from silents to contemporary films.

The TCM Film Festival once again presents several restored and recently released films, many featuring introductions by those who discovered, restored, or revived them. Thursday night at 9:30, the Argentinian noir “Los Tallos Amargos” (1956) is screened, a beautifully shot, dark look at a newspaper writer involved in a journalism correspondence school scam who begins suspecting his partner’s motives. It recently played both at MOMA and Film Noir Festival in Los Angeles.

“Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays” by Karie Bible and Mary Mallory is available at Amazon and at local bookstores.

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Coming Attractions: Mark A. Vieira’s ‘Into the Dark’

Posted on April 19, 2016 by lmharnisch

into_the_dark_cover

Mark A. Vieira writes that he will be signing advance copies of his book “Into the Dark” at the TCM Classic Film Festival. “Into the Dark,” published by Running Press and TCM, won’t be officially released until May 24, so this is an opportunity to be one of the first to get the book. Mark is scheduled to be signing “Into the Dark” on the lobby stage of the Roosevelt Hotel on April 29 from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on April 18, 2016 by lmharnisch

 

 

April 23, 2016, He Ran All the Way
This week’s mystery movie was the 1951 film “He Ran All the Way,” directed by John Berry, with John Garfield, Shelley Winters, Wallace Ford, Selena Royle, Gladys George, Norman Lloyd and Bobby Hyatt. The screenplay was credited to Hugo Butler and Guy Endore (actually Dalton Trumbo) based on the novel by Sam Ross. The photography was by James Wong Howe with music by Franz Waxman.

It is available from Kino films on DVD and Blu-Ray. It will be shown during the TCM Classic Film Festival on April 29 at noon at the Egyptian Theatre, with Dennis Berry, the son of director John Berry, and Hollywood Reporter film critic Todd  McCarthy.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 41 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Shaw and Lee, ‘Nut’ Comedians

Posted on April 18, 2016 by lmharnisch

TCM Classic Film Festiva
A still of Shaw and Lee from “The Beau Brummels” is featured in the promotional material for a special program honoring the 90th Anniversary of Vitaphone at TCM’s Classic Film Festival.

Long before the term “deadpan” described the work of Buster Keaton or Jack Benny, critics employed it in reviewing the work of the now virtually unknown comedy duo, Shaw and Lee. Pairing up on stage around 1911, the team worked together for over 40 years, first in theaters and later in radio, films, and television performing nonsense songs, verse, jokes, and dancing. Like most of vaudeville, their act can be an acquired taste; uproariously hilarious to some and painfully dull to others. While most of their fellow performers are long forgotten, Shaw and Lee live on, thanks to the magic of Vitaphone.

Like many performers, the men came from humble beginnings and little schooling to find a lifetime calling to support themselves and their families. They aped more famous actors as well by changing their names to ones that more easily fell off the tongue. Though never huge stars, they earned a living doing what they loved.

“Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays” by Karie Bible and Mary Mallory is available at Amazon and at local bookstores.

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Posted in Coming Attractions, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Journalism in Los Angeles, 1912 – 1962, Saturday at Occidental College

Posted on April 11, 2016 by lmharnisch

I don't read the Los Angeles Times

I will be discussing this c. 1901 lapel button and other interesting facets of Los Angeles newspapers, 1912-1962, at the Historical Society of Southern California’s daylong conference on journalism in Southern California, on Saturday at Occidental College. More information is here.

Posted in 1912, 1962, Coming Attractions | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on April 11, 2016 by lmharnisch

 

April 16, 2016, Mystery Photo

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1937 Warner Bros. picture “The Case of the Stuttering Bishop,” with Donald Woods, Ann Dvorak, Anne Nagel and Linda Perry. It was directed by William Clemens from a screenplay by Kenneth Gamet and Don Ryan, based on a story by Erle Stanley Gardner.

It doesn’t appear that the film was ever commercially released on VHS or DVD.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 45 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Mulholland Skyline Drive – The World’s Most Wonderful Highway

Posted on April 11, 2016 by lmharnisch

mullholland_drive
A postcard showing Mulholland Drive is listed on EBay with bids starting at 99 cents.

Spanning 21 miles from Hollywood to Calabasas, Mulholland Drive provides a dramatic dividing line between Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley, providing both residents and tourists with gorgeous panoramic views of the metropolitan area. While providing a great scenic outpost to the city, its construction aided development of its surrounding foothills as well as provided a route to lay water trunk lines to the area.

Water guru William Mulholland himself first conceived the construction of such a highway in 1914 as both a way to celebrate the glories of the Los Angeles areas as well as to provide a more accessible route for conveying water to residents of the foothills and surrounding areas.

“Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays” by Karie Bible and Mary Mallory is now available at Amazon and at local bookstores.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Black Dahlia: BuzzFeed Goes ‘Drunk History’ on an Unsolved Murder

Posted on April 7, 2016 by lmharnisch

image

Since “Drunk History” debuted, I have been waiting for the show to do a version of the Black Dahlia case. But BuzzFeed Videos beat them to it.

Our hosts Ryan and Brent cruised L.A. and free-associated about the murder of Elizabeth Short. Think “Drunk History” meets “Carpool Karaoke.”

BuzzFeed

And, of course, since they are dealing with a gruesome unsolved murder, Ryan and Brent treated the case as a “Drunk History” laff fest.

Did it ever occur to you guys that some of Elizabeth Short’s sisters are still alive and might find this subject  rather painful?

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Posted in 1947, Black Dahlia, Cold Cases, LAPD | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on April 4, 2016 by lmharnisch

April 9, 2016, Mystery Photo
This week’s mystery movie has been “Die Buchse der Pandora” or “Pandora’s Box,”  the 1929 Nero film directed by Georg Wilhelm Pabst from a screenplay by Ladislaus Vajda, photographed by Gunther Krampf, with Louise Brooks, Fritz Kortner, Franz Lederer, Carl Goez, Krafft-Raschig, Alice Roberts, Daisy d’Ora, Gustav Diessl, Michael v. Newlinsky and Siegfried Arno.

The earliest showing I can find in Los Angeles is a 1962 revival at UCLA in which “Pandora’s Box” was screened in a series with “Fires on the Plain,” “The Cousins,” “Sunset Boulevard” and “M.” The earliest screening I can find in New York is a 1959 showing at the High School of Fashion Industries auditorium.

The movie is available in a Criterion Collection edition.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 40 Comments

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Ahoy Mateys! Guests Walk Plank at Pirate’s Den.

Posted on April 4, 2016 by lmharnisch

Radio Television Mirror
The Pirate’s Den, Radio Television Mirror.

During the height of Hollywood’s Golden Age, colorful and elaborate restaurants and nightclubs filled the scene. In the 1920s, programmatic architecture flourished in California, providing automobile passengers giant iconic representations of the foodstuffs available inside. By the 1930s, the fanciful, elaborate elements moved inside, with eating or entertainment establishments virtual playgrounds of fun. The show had moved from the sidewalk to the interior, providing decorative ambiance.

Many celebrities capitalized on the craze, with stars like Raymond McKee and Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle building or lending their names to businesses in hopes of raking in profits from the whimsical atmosphere. A group of celebrities followed suit in 1940, pooling their resources to open the Pirate’s Den at 335 N. La Brea Ave., helping a friend in need in the process.

“Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays” by Karie Bible and Mary Mallory is now available at Amazon and at local bookstores.

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Posted in Architecture, Film, Food and Drink, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Nightclubs | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: Ahoy Mateys! Guests Walk Plank at Pirate’s Den.

Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights: ‘Babe Comes Home’ Ushers in Baseball Season

Posted on March 28, 2016 by lmharnisch

motion36moti_0172

Babe Ruth in “Babe Comes Home,” Motion Picture News.

Play ball! This week sees the start of another baseball season in the United States, once the most popular pastime of average Americans and considered as American as motherhood and apple pie. The sport jumped from the major leagues to national hearts in the 1920s thanks to radio broadcasting, advances in the game, and the batting prowess of George Herman “Babe” Ruth Jr.

Though a successful left-handed pitcher in the 1910s, Ruth’s slugging skills with a bat brought him international fame and cemented his place in American folklore and sports history. Beginning in 1918, the Babe tied or established home run records that would stand for decades. HIs dominating skills at the plate helped usher in power and high scoring into baseball, driving its popularity.

“Hollywood Celebrates the Holidays” by Karie Bible and Mary Mallory is now available at Amazon and at local bookstores.

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Posted in 1927, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Mary Mallory, Sports | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Can You Identify This Mystery Sink? (Updated)

Posted on March 28, 2016 by lmharnisch

March 24, 2016, Mystery Photo

And just for fun, who can identify the location of this extremely unusual mystery sink?

Hint: This is a sink that half the population living in the Pasadena area might be able to identify.

No, not a hospital. This odd sink, which is activated by knee action, is in the men’s room at Pie ‘N Burger in Pasadena, a retro diner that I was sure the Brain Trust (at least half of it) would recognize. I have no idea if the women’s facilities are similarly equipped.

Posted in Mystery Photo | Tagged , | 8 Comments

The History of Journalism in Southern California, Conference April 16.

Posted on March 26, 2016 by lmharnisch

LA_Times_Building_1920s

 

The Los Angeles Times Building No. 3 at First Street and Broadway in the 1920s, courtesy of Water and Power Associates.

The Historical Society of Southern California will offer a daylong conference on “Journalism in Southern California,” from the 1850s to the present on April 16 at Occidental College.

I will be part of the morning lineup, offering my thoughts on newspapers from 1912 to 1962, an era of boom and bust in the news business.

Other speakers include:

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Posted in Coming Attractions, History | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

How I Almost Killed Garry Shandling

Posted on March 24, 2016 by lmharnisch

garry_shandling_1981_lo_rez.jpg

This would be a much funnier story if Garry Shandling were still alive, but if he were, I wouldn’t be telling it.

I was partially responsible — in a roundabout way — for nearly killing Garry back in the 1970s.

No really. A friend knew Garry from a writing class at the University of Arizona. Garry by this point was living in L.A. and had done a couple of “Sanford and Son” and “Welcome Back, Kotter” episodes, but I’m not sure whether he had made his debut on the Carson show.

Anyway, my friend and I in far-off Tucson tried our hand at a “Kotter” script and sent it to Garry for feedback. We got a letter sometime later with the following note:

“This letter nearly killed me. I stopped to mail it and was walking between two cars to the mailbox when someone crashed into one of the cars and pinned me between them.” He went on to recount his recovery from broken bones (as I recall he was injured rather seriously) and then went on to critique our little script — which was terribly amateurish. (Fortunately, my friend and I each found a place in journalism, which was a much better fit with our talents).

Later on, in the early 1980s when I was a feature writer at the Arizona Daily Star, Garry’s mother used to call up Sherry Stern, the TV writer, whenever he was going to be on TV. It was, in retrospect, very sweet.

Farewell, Garry, and thanks for encouraging a young — and not very talented TV writer — who went on to find himself. Eventually.

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Garry Shandling: A Tour of L.A. Comedy Clubs in 1981

Posted on March 24, 2016 by lmharnisch

Garry Shandling, 1981

Garry Shandling, 1981
I rarely dig into my old clips, but here is my feature on Garry Shandling, who died today at the age of 66, from the Arizona Daily Star, Nov. 24, 1981.

The ending isn’t exactly mine; it was altered  by an editor who thought he was improving the story and has since gone to the great city room in the sky. I was still a pretty green reporter at this point, so I put up with it.

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Harry Houdini: An Interview by Marcet Haldeman-Julius, October 1925

Posted on March 24, 2016 by lmharnisch

October 1925, Interview with Houdini

Note: In honor of Harry Houdini’s birthday, we are reposting this interview from 1925.

We have been collecting issues of Haldeman-Julius Monthly for several years, but one issue was particularly elusive: The October 1925 number featuring an interview with Harry Houdini, written by Marcet Haldeman-Julius, which was published a year before his death and is apparently keenly desired by collectors.

A copy of this issue was recently added to the archives and we are pleased to present the interview, which appears nowhere else online, refuting the argument that “everything is on the Internet.”

The paper is old and brittle and would not stand up to a scanner, so I photographed the article (Pages 387-397) instead. The images are watermarked because of prevalent practice of swiping pictures on the Internet without attribution or acknowledgement of a source. Pinterest and  Skyscraperpage.com, this means you.

Haldeman-Julius Monthly was published by Emanuel Haldeman-Julius with the motto “Make the World Unsafe for Hypocrisy.” It changed names to “The Debunker” in 1928 and apparently ceased publication about 1931.

Emanuel Haldeman-Julius loved to debunk charismatic religious figures of the  day and Louis Adamic wrote a series of articles for the magazine about Los Angeles evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson’s mysterious disappearance and miraculous return in 1926. In this vein, the bulk of the Houdini interview is devoted to the charlatans of the day posing as mediums who could communicate with the dead and frequently duped grieving and gullible survivors.  There is also a detailed of description Houdini’s New York brownstone, which was crammed with books and memorabilia, and a cameo appearance by Mrs. Houdini.

Previously in the L.A. Daily Mirror
Aimee Semple McPherson’s Fight With Satan
C.B. DeMille: Movie Evangelist

Enjoy.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + + +)

Posted on March 21, 2016 by lmharnisch

Wings of Danger

This week’s mystery movie has been the 1952 Hammer Films picture “Wings of Danger” alias “Dead on Course,” with Zachary Scott, Robert Beatty, Naomi Chance, Kay Kendall, Colin Tapley, Arthur Lane, Harold Lang and Diane Cilento. The screenplay was by John Gilling, from the novel by Elleston Trevor and Packham Webb. Music was by Malcolm Arnold,  photography by Walter Harvey and art direction by Andrew Mazzei. The movie was directed by Terence Fisher.

It is available from VCI Entertainment on Volume 2 of the Hammer Film Noir Collector’s Set for $20.99.

What caught my interest in this movie is this gentleman.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 29 Comments