History in Pictures and ‘Greta Garbo’ — Another Good Story Ruined

Posted on February 25, 2014 by lmharnisch

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I don’t follow History in Pictures on Twitter, but many of my friends do and there were groans and complaints when this photo was posted Saturday, identifying the woman as Greta Garbo.

Let’s take a closer look:

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1944 on the Radio — Kay Kyser on ‘Amos ‘N’ Andy,’ Feb. 25, 1944

Posted on February 25, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 25, 1944

It’s Friday in 1944 and today we have:

— Kay Kyser and the writers of “Sunday, Monday or Always” on “Amos ‘N’ Andy.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— “The Rainmaker” on “The Lone Ranger.” Courtesy of Otrrlibrary.org.

— “The History of Plant No. 14” in 3,000 words on “Vic and Sade.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

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1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 25, 1944

Posted on February 25, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 25, 1944, Walter Winchell

Feb. 25, 1944

Dear. Mr. President

This is more than an accusation against Franco the Fascist. It is a bill of particulars for the Senate and House foreign relations committee. It screams for investigation … Right now an American ambassador sits with a dictator and a war criminal — whom the ambassador has proclaimed as the savior of his country … in the dictator’s jails languish 200,000 people, whose sole crime is that they believe in democracy … The American ambassador is Carlton J.H. Hayes, and his crony, the German agent Hayes has proclaimed as the savior of his country and the builder of its future, is dictator Franco.

From the St. Petersburg Times.

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Movieland Mystery Photo (Updated + + + +)

Posted on February 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

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Yes, this week’s mystery movie was “Crash Dive” with Tyrone Power, Anne Baxter and Dana Andrews.

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | Tagged , , | 35 Comments

1944 on the Radio — Dinah Shore and Phil Silvers, Feb. 24, 1944

Posted on February 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 24, 1944

It’s Thursday in 1944 and today we have:

— “The Dinah Shore Program.” Courtesy of Otrrlibrary.org

— Phil Silvers is the guest on “The Kraft Music Hall” with Bing Crosby. Courtesy of Otrrlibrary.org.

— “Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons.” Courtesy of Otrrlibrary.org.

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Mary Mallory / Hollywood Heights — Committee for the First Amendment Defends Free Speech

Posted on February 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

Herbert Biberman
Herbert Biberman, one of the Hollywood 10, courtesy of Mary Mallory.


In times of social uncertainty and economic malaise, those in fear often turn to discriminating, finger pointing, blame and stonewalling, claiming “the other” is destroying livelihoods, ways of life, and social beliefs just by speaking out. These “others” become the scapegoats for all that is wrong: drought, job insecurity, national security concerns, discrimination, etc.

After the conclusion of World War II, when the Allies defeated the Nazis, Japanese and Axis, thus bringing to an end annihilation, genocide, starvation and imprisonment to so many, everything seemed to turn for a short time to hope, peace, freedom, welcome and acceptance. Unfortunately, demagogues quickly saw the bogeyman again with the Soviets’ takeover of Eastern Europe, which the Allies had allowed in order for a quicker end to World War II. Anyone questioning the role of government, demanding free speech and asking for social justice, was suddenly judged a turncoat, evildoer, overthrower. Many in the United States government would soon ape the policies of totalitarian countries they claimed to abhor by scapegoating those deemed “different,” blocking free speech, destroying lives and careers.

Mary Mallory’s “Hollywoodland: Tales Lost and Found” is available for the Kindle.

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Posted in 1947, Film, Hollywood, Hollywood Heights, Politics | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 24, 1944

Posted on February 24, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 24, 1944, Walter Winchell on Broadway

Feb. 24, 1944

Portrait of a Man Reading the Newspaper

An editorial attacking the presence at Tehran of Pvt. Robert Hopkins, son of Harry Hopkins, said: “If the fathers of all the other Army privates followed Harry’s example, everybody except the Japs and Nazis would have to quit and go home. If Harry Hopkins, in his travels, had come across his boy in the sun-drenched Iranian countryside, hanging on to an Army rifle, he and a lot more Americans could have been proud. Such things, however, do not happen in Mr. Roosevelt’s official family.”

“Washington, Feb. 12, U.P.: The White House tonight confirmed reports that Stephen T. Hopkins, 18, son of Harry Hopkins, personal aide to President Roosevelt, has been killed in action in the South Pacific.”

From the St. Petersburg Times.

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1944 on the Radio — ‘Orson Welles’ Radio Almanac,’ Feb. 23, 1944

Posted on February 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 23, 1944

It’s Wednesday in 1944 and today we have:

— “The Lone Ranger.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— It’s Ash Wednesday in 1944, according to “Orson Welles’ Radio Almanac.” With guest Hedda Hopper and gags about bobby-soxers! Courtesy of Archive.org.

— Donald Dame, a tenor with the Metropolitan Opera, is the guest on “To Your Good Health” from the House of Squibb. Courtesy of Archive.org.

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1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 23, 1944

Posted on February 23, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 23, 1944, Walter Winchell

Feb. 23, 1944

This is curious. The end of Winchell’s column disappears in mid-sentence from the Palm Beach paper, just as he is about to refer to a situation in Palm Beach. And take more potshots at Congress.

Man About Town

Screen names have been warned for the last time by the Hays office to clean out the skeletons from their closets … The district attorney is ready to crack down on a renowned bandleader … The Betty Grable pinup photo is the most widely circulated bathing picture since September Morn … Lubitsch wants Gene Tierney for his film of the exciting novel “Dragonwyck” … Rose Franken says she won’t write plays until the first-string critics return.

From the Palm Beach Daily News and St. Petersburg Times.

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1944 on the Radio — Cecil B. DeMille on ‘Burns and Allen’

Posted on February 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

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Feb. 22, 1944

It’s Tuesday in 1944 and today we have:

— Cecil B. DeMille is the guest on “Burns and Allen.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

—Phil Baker, the host of “The $64 Question,” is the guest on “Duffy’s Tavern.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— An old “friend” visits on “Fibber McGree and Molly.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

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1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 22, 1944

Posted on February 22, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 22, 1944, Walter Winchell

Feb. 22, 1944

Notes of an Innocent Bystander

The Magic Lanterns: Warner Bros., old hands at cinematizing the news tickers, have decided that the Free French need a little attention. Vichy being a villain made to order. They’ve got it in ‘Passage to Marseille,’ another one of their solar plexus punches. It takes the correct line on the question. It gets top-hole playing from H. Bogart, Claude Rains and Sydney Greenstreet, who used to hang around Casablanca, and Michele Morgan and Helmut Dantine…. Other thighfuls garner more publicity, but none fills a set of nylons better than Merle Oberon in “The Lodger.”

From the Palm Beach Daily News.

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1944 in Print — Life Magazine, Feb. 21, 1944

Posted on February 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 21, 1944, Life Magazine

Feb. 21, 1944: Did you recognize a young Patrice Munsel in this cover photo?  Alfred Eisenstaedt photographs Washington’s home at Mount Vernon and the featured movie is “Cover Girl.” And strange satiric drawings by actor Peter Helmers. Courtesy of Google.

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1944 on the Radio — Frank Sinatra in ‘Wake Up and Live’

Posted on February 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 21, 1944

It’s Monday in 1944 and today we have:

— Frank Sinatra, Bob Crosby, “Jimmy” Gleason and Marilyn Maxwell  in “Wake Up and Live” on “Lux Radio Theatre.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— A celebration of George Washington for Washington’s birthday, with American music from the House of Squibb. Courtesy of Archive.org.

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1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 21, 1944

Posted on February 21, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 21,1944, Walter Winchell

Feb. 21, 1944

Man With a Press Pass in His Hat

Midtown Vignette: They can point him out to you at the Stork Club … His recent antics there (around cocktail time) have those-in-the-know in stitches … One of those doll-like things (who comes there nearly every sundown with other girls) has him staring at her incessantly … If she gets up to table-hop or go into the adjacent Club Room, he follows discreetly … He wishes he could meet her … But he is bashful … when he sees this here (which he will) he will learn what a small world it is, afterawl … In his Park Avenue offices, he employs nearly twenty pretty stenogs, clerks and so on … she’s one of those twenty eyefuls!

From the St. Petersburg Times.

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Running the CanoScan 9950F on Windows 8

Posted on February 20, 2014 by lmharnisch

The Canoscan 9950f

If you have the misfortune to “upgrade” to Windows 8, you have discovered that it doesn’t play well with some of your software and peripherals, even in what Microsoft jokingly calls “compatibility mode.” The biggest disaster at the Daily Mirror in our computer upgrade was the loss of the CanoSscan 9950F scanner, which is the only affordable scanner that can handle negatives, slides, etc. The others, from Nikon, Epson and Microtek, cost thousands of dollars, while a CanoScan 9950F can be found on EBay for about $200.

If you go to Canon’s Web page for the CanoScan 9950F, you will find that there are no drivers listed for Windows 8. And if you try to run the scanner under Windows 8 without updating the drivers, you will get nothing but error messages.

In desperation, we installed the Windows 7 drivers. And voila. It worked!    You will need to know whether you are running in 32- or 64-bit mode, but anyone who has read this far and understands what I’m talking about should have no problem.

You may have to “jump start” it with with the CanoScan Toolbox to get it running the first time, rather than the PhotoStudio software that also came with the scanner. And you may get the typical Windows 8 warnings like “DO YOU REALLY WANT TO DO THIS?” and “WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!” but click through those and it will work.

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1944 on the Radio — Groucho Marx on ‘The Jack Benny Show’

Posted on February 20, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 20, 1944

It’s Sunday in 1944 and today we have:

— Groucho Marx is the guest on the “Jack Benny Show.” Rochester sings a bit of the hit song “My Heart Tells me.” Groucho is top form.  Courtesy of Archive.org.

— William Bendix stars in “The Life of Riley.” Meat is the yardstick of protein foods! Listen as the announcer says “loss-ANG-less.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— “The Burma Road: The Highway to the Heart of Japan” on “Pacific Story.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

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1944 in Print — ‘Walter Winchell on Broadway,’ Feb. 20, 1944

Posted on February 20, 2014 by lmharnisch

Feb. 20, 1944, Walter Winchell

Feb. 20, 1944

We are clearly working up to Walter Winchell’s clash with Congress next month (that is, March 1944).

The Private Papers of a Cub Reporter

Winchell quotes a piece from Princeton Republican, an Illinois paper.

“Last Thursday, the cackling congressman from Michigan, Rep. Clare Hoffman, stood on the floor of the House in Washington and whined that he had been ‘smeared’ by Walter Winchell, whose daily news and gossip column is syndicated to more than 800 U.S. newspapers. Hoffman, who we are ashamed to admit was elected on a Republican ticket, is the bird who told an audience in Niles, Mich., on Jan. 3 that the day is here when the American people, by a march on Washington, by the use of the armed forces which are in this country, must, if either be necessary, put an end to ‘playing at war’ here at home.

“Because Hoffman advocated armed insurrection against the government of the United States, Winchell accused the congressman of conduct tending to treason. Hoffman bawled that he was ‘smeared!’ … He is a disgrace to his state, and to the House of Representatives, and to his country.”

In the rose-colored rear-view mirror, we like to think that the “Greatest Generation” set aside their differences and pulled together to defeat a common enemy. Obviously, they did not.

From the St. Petersburg Times.

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Irene Lentz From the Archives

Posted on February 19, 2014 by lmharnisch

Irene Lentz

This was supposed to be a quick item linking to The Times piece by Vincent Boucher on Irene Lentz and brief blog posts I did about her years ago. But as I dug into The Times clips about her 1962 suicide, I found so many mistakes in the current story that I’m not going to bother with it.  It’s a fact-checker’s shooting gallery.

Irene Lentz on EBay, 2008 | Irene Lentz on EBay, 2008 | Irene Lentz on EBay, 2009

Posted in Another Good Story Ruined, Fashion, Found on EBay | Tagged , | 1 Comment

1944 on the Radio — Loretta Young and Frances Langford on ‘Command Performance’

Posted on February 19, 2014 by lmharnisch

radio_dial_1944

Feb. 19, 1944

It’s Saturday in 1944 and today we have:

— Jungle Jim tries to rescue his friend from a Japanese prison camp. Ethnic stereotype alert. Courtesy of Archive.org.

— “Britain Has Become a Fortress.” If you haven’t noticed how frequently the radio shows refer to the coming invasion of Europe, you will hear a feature today on the coming invasion, from NBC news. Courtesy of Archive.org.

— Loretta Young, Frances Langford and Connee Boswell appear on “Command Performance.” Courtesy of Archive.org.

— “Death After Dark” on “Nick Carter, Master Detective.” The mystery of the vampire killings! Courtesy of Archive.org.

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James Curtis: L.A. Voices — David Lewis, Part 3

Posted on February 19, 2014 by lmharnisch

'All This, and Heaven Too'
There was one wonderful scene, not in the book, that Casey wrote. It contained scraps of things from the book, but it became one of the finest love scenes l ever saw in any film. It takes place on a Halloween night in a country inn. The Duc has come down from Paris to see the children. They are seated around the fireplace, and Henrietta reveals a small piece of her past.

During the making of All This, and Heaven Too, Charlie Einfeld, who was the head of publicity for Warners in New York, was making one of his periodic visits to the West Coast.

I liked him enormously and he liked me. In my mind, if not theirs, I knew All This, and Heaven Too was a major film, so I discussed with him the idea of roadshowing it. He liked the idea, which made it possible to give the film the length it needed. He began to speak of it as ”ATAHT.” Gone With the Wind had been ”GWTW” and Charlie wanted to cash in on that. Ours was more euphonic and Charlie Brackett said, ”ATAHT”–it’s the most lovely sound I’ve ever heard.”

“All This, and Heaven Too” is airing Feb. 21 on TCM.

Previously by James Curtis:

James Curtis’ interview with Dick Lane Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

James Curtis’ interview with Jules White Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

James Curtis’ interview with David Lewis Part 1 | Part 2

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