Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on June 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

June 22, 2011, Mystery Photo

Photograph by Howard Decker / LADailyMirror.com

[Howard says: The lady in the fur coat is Julia Jean Mildred Frances Turner, known as Lana, with her newly minted (seventh, I think) husband Ronald Pellar, known as Ronald Dante and Dr. Dante. They are shown arriving at LAX after being married in Las Vegas May 9, 1969. Pellar/Dante was an illusionist in Vegas. As I recall only UPI Photos and myself were there to get photos of the newlyweds. I got a dozen shots and sold them all. The lady on the left is obviously a fan. Those were the days, my friend, we thought they’d never end….]

[Please give Howard a big thanks for sharing his photos with us! You may not know but Howard also covered the famous incident in which a drunken Gail Russell plowed her convertible into Jan’s Restaurant on Beverly Boulevard in 1957. — lrh]

Howard Decker (a.k.a. Fibber) sends along another mystery picture from his career as a photographer.  Thanks, Howard!

Posted in Brain Trust, Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , , | 19 Comments

Architectural Rambling – The Van Griffith Estate

Posted on June 22, 2011 by lmharnisch

April 19, 1925, 2630 Vermont

April 19, 1925, 2630 Vermont

The Times Sunday Business section featured the former home of Van M. Griffith (d. 1974), the son of Griffith Park donor Colonel Griffith J. Griffith.  (For some reason, the early stories in The Times refer to him as “Dan Griffith” rather than Van.)   What makes Dan/Van Griffith interesting to us is his role on the Los Angeles Police Commission in the 1940s.

Researchers please note: Van Griffith’s material is included in the Griffith Family Papers at UCLA Special Collections.

Continue reading →

Posted in 1925, Architecture, City Hall, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Obituaries, Politics, Real Estate, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Nazi Mystery Photos [Updated]

Posted on June 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Hitler Mystery Photo

[Update: The photographer has been identified as Franz Krieger.]

Lens, the photography blog of the New York Times, has published a mystery album of Nazi photos, including this shot of Adolf Hitler. The Times is trying to identify the mystery photographer who took these images.

Photo: Adolf Hitler, 1941 Credit: New York Times

Posted in 1941, Mystery Photo, Photography | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on June 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

June 21, 2011, Mystery Photo
June 21, 2011, Mystery Photo

For Tuesday, we a couple of shots from a mystery film.

[Update: As most people realized, these are frame grabs from the “Night on Bald Mountain” sequence of “Fantasia” or “Night on Boob Mountain,” as we have been calling it at the Daily Mirror HQ. They pass quickly and Walt Disney certainly never imagined that people would one day have the ability to go through a film frame by frame to find them. Considering all the speculation about images purportedly hidden in Disney films like “The Little Mermaid,” it’s remarkable that this sequence in “Fantasia” hasn’t received as much attention.]

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | 11 Comments

Charlie Chaplin’s Big Moment in Venice

Posted on June 21, 2011 by lmharnisch

Kid Auto

Jan. 10, 1914, Auto Races I was intrigued by Sunday’s Then and Now piece by Anthony Mostrom on Charlie Chaplin’s “Kid Auto Races at Venice” and I thought I’d do a little digging.

Here’s what I found.

The film includes footage of two races. One of them is a pushmobile/soapbox derby race in which vehicles start from a ramp. The other race features half-size, gasoline-powered cars.

Judging by the film, the race course was set up on the streets of Venice and was fairly informal. Notice the loose dogs in the top photo.

The film makes freely cuts back and forth between the two races.

And I suppose nobody in 1914 was watching for continuity gaffes.

 

Continue reading →

Posted in 1914, Film, Hollywood, Libraries, Photography, Transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Memorial for Fallen Officer

Posted on June 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

June 20, 2011, Kevin Sandoval

Photograph by Larry Harnisch / LADailyMirror.com

The South Pasadena Police Department set up a memorial for Officer Kevin A. Sandoval, 23, who died after he collapsed and hit his head during training at the Burro Canyon Shooting Park on June 14.

A viewing is scheduled Thursday, June 23, at 6:30 p.m. with a Rosary at 7 p.m. at Holy Family Catholic Church, 1527 Fremont Ave. The memorial is Friday, June 24, at 11:30 a.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, 16025 Cypress St., Irwindale. Burial is at Forest Lawn Covina Hills, 21300 Via Verde Drive.

Posted in Obituaries | 1 Comment

Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on June 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

June 20, 2011, Mystery Photo

Photograph by Howard Decker

[Update: Howard says: The beautiful bride is Kris Harmon, on her way into the church in Brentwood to marry Ricky Nelson on April 20, 1963.]

Our good friend Howard Decker (a.k.a. Fibber of the Brain Trust) sends along this picture of a mystery wedding. He says, “I took the photo with my Rolleiflex that I won for a buck in a raffle a few years earlier when I was a copy boy for the Examiner.”

Thanks, Howard!

Posted in Brain Trust, LAPD, Mystery Photo, Photography | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Eve Golden: Queen of the Dead

Posted on June 20, 2011 by lmharnisch

hearse_photo_2007_05265

Eve Golden  describes herself as: a biographer, show-business historian, photo archivist and obituary writer. And a haughty dowager.

Queen of the Dead—dateline June 18, 2011

• Mildred Wolf, who played piano accompaniment to silent films, died on June 5 at the age of 101. As a silent-film fan, I know how important a good pianist is—once, the accompanist at a New York revival house didn’t show, and that was one ruined Marion Davies film. Wolf was one of thousands of musicians thrown out of work by the advent of talkies (which I still insist are just a fad). Her son, Charles Bernstein, became a film composer, which is either ironic or inevitable, I suppose.

• Jeanne Bice, who died on June 10 at 71, was a genuinely nice gal who was responsible for more godawful fashion than anyone since  . . . well, honest, she may have been unrivaled. Her Quacker Factory churned out Day-Glo plaids, bedazzled headbands, holiday-themed horrors, all sold on QVC. But you couldn’t hate Jeanne Bice—and believe me, I tried. She “got the joke,” which I always admire: “I’m an overweight woman who wears funny clothes and a headband for God’s sake! That’s funny,” she happily admitted.

• Catching up on a few older obits, we find real-life film-noir dragon lady Madame Ngo Dinh Nhu (sister-in-law of South Vietnam’s president, Ngo Dinh Diem), who died on April 24, age 87. OK, she was kind of evil: when Buddhist monks immolated themselves, she said she would bring mustard to the next barbeque. The Eva Peron of South Vietnam, her influence was decidedly mixed: according to one obit, “she pushed through measures that increased women’s rights [but] orchestrated moves to ban contraceptives and abortion, outlaw polygamy, forbid divorce and close opium dens and brothels. Wrestling, cock-fighting and boxing followed on the forbidden list.” But here is where I reveal my utter shallowness—did you see the photos of her? All I could think was, “omigod, she is gorgeous.” In an early-’60s “gowns by Jean Louis” way. She made Jackie Kennedy look like a Cockney chimney sweep.

• And we lost several real heroes recently: Mietek Pemper (91, on June 7) was a Plaszow concentration camp inmate who compiled and typed Schindler’s famous list of 1,200 Jews to be saved for factory work. Maurice Craig (also 91, on May 11) saved Dublin, in a way: the architectural historian worked for decades (with only middling success, sadly) to preserve the city’s ancient buildings from demolition. “Architecture is the most accessible of the arts; yet paradoxically it is the least noticed by people at large,” he wrote. Crusading lawyer Dana Turner (who died at 57 from heart disease, on April 28) fought for the rights of the transgendered, particularly in employment. She was seen in the 2006 documentary Cruel and Unusual, about transgender women being sent to male prisons.

—Eve Golden

Posted in Architecture, Crime and Courts, Eve Golden, Fashion, Film, Hollywood, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender | Tagged | 3 Comments

Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Reinvention [Updated]

Posted on June 19, 2011 by lmharnisch

frank_zappa

zappa_right_hand_crop frank_zappa

[Updated June 21, 2011: Photographer Eddie Caraeff says:

[Larry certainly was crazy!

[I think Frank was just making a PG rated gesture w/ his hand,  however that was many, many years ago.

[Not sure you know that my Grandmother is featured next to him on his album cover. Not in person, since he was too nuts for that,I made a life size cardboard cut-out of Grandma Goldie which he stood next to outside in my backyard. I still lived with my parents when I started working with Frank at age 17.]

The New York Times published this photo at the top with its obituary of Larry “Wild Man” Fischer and I got to wondering: What IS going on with Franz Zappa’s right hand? Is his index finger really longer than his middle finger?   So I tracked down the photo on the left, which is cropped from an image of him playing the guitar.

Hm. I think we have what NASA would call “an anomaly.”

You don’t suppose Zappa was making “a rude gesture,” do you?

Like here?
Or here?

Ed Caraeff is credited as the photographer, so I emailed just to see. I’ll let you know what I hear.

Photo: Frank Zappa and Larry “Wild Man” Fischer Credit: Ed Caraeff

Posted in Music, Obituaries, Photography | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

For Sale: Billy the Kid [Updated +]

Posted on June 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

William Bonney

[Update: The tintype sold for $2.3 million. The Denver Post identifies the buyer as retired industrialist William Koch.

Quoting the Post: “I love the Old West,” said William Koch , 71, who now lives in Palm Beach, Fla. “I plan on enjoying it and discreetly sharing it. I think I’ll display it in a few small museums.”

Camera, Four-lens tintype, 1860s A) 164501 C) 4268DAccording to the Post, a traveling photographer used a camera that took four pictures at once. One copy was destroyed in a fire, leaving two others that have not been found.]

[Update 2: This example of  a four-lens tintype camera is in the collection of the National Museum of American History.]

This original photo of William “Billy the Kid” Bonney, the so-called Upham tintype, is being sold at Brian Lebel’s Old West Show & Auction, June 25 in Denver. The estimate sale price is  $300,000 to $400,000.

According to the vendor, the tintype was a mirror image, so Bonney really looked like this:

William Bonney Flop

Photo: William Bonney Credit: Brian Lebel’s Old West Show & Auction

Posted in Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Photography | 3 Comments

Our New Logo

Posted on June 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

Thanks for our friend Ed Fuentes of View From a Loft, the Daily Mirror has a new logo. A big thank-you to Ed! Check out his website! 

Posted in Art & Artists | 3 Comments

Movieland Mystery Photo

Posted on June 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

Witzel Mystery Photo

Here’s a mystery photo from EBay! A vendor has listed a photograph from the Witzel studio. The back is marked the Vanity Fair Girls but it is otherwise unidentified. Sounds like an excellent mystery photo! Bidding on the photograph starts at $19.95.

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography, Witzel | 12 Comments

From the Reference Desk: Movie Star’s Mother Dies in Car Crash

Posted on June 18, 2011 by lmharnisch

Feb. 7, 1926, Prevost

1926_0207_prevostHere’s a lesson in what to do if you don’t have access to ProQuest.

Stacia of She Blogged by Night had a question the other day about car a accident involving Vera Steadman, Al Christie and Marie Prevost’s Mother, Mrs. H. Prevost. I have access to ProQuest, so it’s easy to look up the incident and find a story published in The Times on Feb. 7, 1926.

But what if you’re like Stacia and don’t have ProQuest? My first step is Google’s news archive, a large database of U.S. newspapers. Most of the results are pay per view, but material from some smaller papers is free.

Here’s a story from the Calgary Daily Herald of Feb. 6, 1926, with the basic information.

There’s even a follow-up story from the Palm Beach Daily News.

Continue reading →

Posted in 1926, Film, From the Reference Desk, Hollywood, Libraries, Obituaries, Transportation | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Found on EBay – C.C. Pierce

Posted on June 17, 2011 by lmharnisch

San Francisco Earthquake

San Francisco Earthquake
I’m always on the lookout for photographs by Charles Chester Pierce, whose C.C. Pierce and Co. was one of the most active studios in Los Angeles. The images are always sharp and finely detailed. Most of them show Los Angeles, but here’s a book of images that has been listed on EBay, showing San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake. Bidding on this book starts at $9.99.

Many of Pierce’s photographs are at the Huntington (51 linear feet!).

Posted in 1906, Found on EBay, Photography | 2 Comments

Los Angeles Tattoo Shops, 1943

Posted on June 17, 2011 by lmharnisch

tattoo_last_supper_ebay

This is one of my favorite discoveries from the city archives, a description of tattoo shops in Los Angeles by an anonymous citizen.

Los Angeles City Council File 15670

September 2, 1943

Dear Sir,

1943_september_03_tattoosI recently made an investigation of the tattoo shops here and the persons who operate them, for a friend of mine, whose young son, age 13, had been marked up like a circus freak by a so called (professor) Freaser.

Of course I knew nothing and cared less about this business until I saw the filthy conditions under which they operate, which are just about as filthy and unsanitary as the restaurants in which I am compelled to eat. Of course I know that no one in the city or state govt. is interested in their sanitation or the filth of the foods they serve. As long as they pay their license they can poison any one they want to and get away with it.

Sept. 3, 1943: Councilman Ira McDonald’s attempt to regulate tattoo shops brought this anonymous response, which I unearthed in the city archives.

Photo: Undated postcard showing Artoria, tattooed by C.W. Gibbons, Los Angeles

Continue reading →

Posted in 1943, Art & Artists, City Hall, Crime and Courts, Downtown, Libraries, Photography, World War II | 5 Comments

Coming Attractions — Genealogy Research at the L.A. Public Library

Posted on June 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

The Los Angeles Public Library will present a program on getting started in genealogical research. The free presentation will be from 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 18, 2011.

Folks should gather at the reference desk in the History & Genealogy Department on Lower Level 4.  No reservations are necessary for groups of six or less. Larger groups should schedule an appointment at (213) 228-7400.

As we say at the Daily Mirror: Any day we can do research is a good day.

Posted in Coming Attractions, Libraries | Comments Off on Coming Attractions — Genealogy Research at the L.A. Public Library

LAPD End of Watch, June 16, 1935

Posted on June 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

June 16, 1935, Officer Madon The daily NewsWatch of the Los Angeles Police Protective League honors the anniversaries of LAPD officers killed in the line of duty. For June 16,the union honors Alfred C. “Scotty” Madon, a motorcycle officer who was fatally injured on June 14, 1935, when he swerved and struck a curb while trying to avoid a car that made a sudden left turn at 96th Street and Western Avenue. Madon was 37 and had a wife, Phyllis, and 12-year-old son.

Posted in 1935, Crime and Courts, LAPD, Obituaries | Tagged , | Comments Off on LAPD End of Watch, June 16, 1935

The Daily Mirror Is Moving

Posted on June 16, 2011 by lmharnisch
I’m moving to LADailyMirror.com
Henry Fuhrmann, one of the assistant managing editors at The Times, likes to say: “Always take the high road. The view is nicer up there.”

Henry is my friend, as well as my supervisor, and he and Mark McGonigle, my boss, have been strong supporters of the Daily Mirror, even when the decision was made at a higher level to shut it down. (And don’t worry; I’m still working as a copy editor on the Metro desk.)

Continue reading →

Posted in Countdown to Watts, Crime and Courts, Film, Hollywood, Homicide, UFOs, World War II | 23 Comments

The Mystery of the Transparent Car

Posted on June 16, 2011 by lmharnisch

Transparent Pontiac

For sale: A transparent Pontiac!

transparent_pontiac_1940_0219

The sale car is on display in St. Petersburg, Fla., Feb. 19, 1940.

transparent_pontiac_1941_0122

The sale car on display in Spokane, Wash., in 1941.

April 13, 1941, Transparent Car

But wait! A different transparent Pontiac is on display in Los Angeles in April 1941. ALSO from the World’s Fair.

April 28, 1940, Glass Car Here’s the mystery of the see-through car. Hemmings Motor News has a feature on the sale of a transparent Pontiac. The story is a bit  complicated but here’s what I found: According to The Times clips, General Motors built a transparent car for the New York World’s Fair and in April 1941 the vehicle was displayed in Los Angeles, as show in the ad above.

The vehicle was so popular that Fisher Body decided to build another transparent Pontiac for the 1940 Golden Gate International Exposition.

But as you will notice, there were actually two transparent Pontiacs, each of which toured the U.S. after the World’s Fair. The transparent car built for the Golden Gate exposition was apparently a third car. The estimated sale price of the transparent car is $275,000 to $475,000.

Photo: Transparent Pontiac Credit: RM Auctions

Continue reading →

Posted in 1939, 1940, 1941, Art & Artists, Transportation | 8 Comments

Found on EBay – I. Magnin

Posted on June 15, 2011 by lmharnisch


I Magnin Store

Feb. 11, 1939, I Magnin This postcard showing the millinery salon at the I. Magnin store in Los Angeles has been listed on EBay. The vendor dates it at 1915 but the store actually opened at Wilshire Boulevard and New Hampshire on Feb. 10, 1939. Bidding starts at $3.

Posted in 1939, Fashion, Found on EBay, Interior Design | 3 Comments