Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on February 28, 2011 by lmharnisch

  2011_0226_mystery_photo  
  Los Angeles Times file photo  

  July 22, 1977  

[Update 2: This is radio personality “Sweet Dick” Whittington.]

[Update: Please congratulate Dewey Webb for identifying our mystery fellow, who has a long listing on imdb.]

 

OK, who’s our mystery guy?

ALSO

Sound clip of Dick Whittington

There’s more information on the jump!

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Photography | 22 Comments

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 28, 1961

Posted on February 28, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 28, 1961, Comics  

Feb. 28, 1961: Matt Weinstock has a whimsical item on a mythical group called Jobless Anonymous…

CONFIDENTIAL TO "BOTH 45": You cannot continue to live with your present setup. If your husband refuses to see a doctor (he IS sick, you know) see an attorney about a legal separation.

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What’s Your Favorite Comic From 1941?

Posted on February 28, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 28, 1941, Napoleon and Uncle Elby  

“Napoleon and Uncle Elby” by Clifford McBride. I love the artwork of this strip, but I’m not much on the subject matter in which the dog is sort of a proto-Marmaduke (surely the longest-running unfunny strip in history).

  Feb. 28, 1941, Tarzan  

“Tarzan” by Rex Maxon. The ethnic stereotypes are dreadful and Maxon has terrible trouble with anatomy. And yet the images can be quite powerful.

Feb. 28, 1941: One of the great pleasures in doing the Daily Mirror is reading years and years’ worth of old comics. Sometimes I can hardly wait to find out which of Adams Ames’ children is going to get into trouble next. And then there’s the ultraviolence and weird characters  of the Dick Tracy strips. Most of all, I delight in the fabulous artwork of folks like Al Capp.

So here’s your chance to tell me what comics you enjoy from 1941!

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Posted in 1941, art and artists, Comics | 4 Comments

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 27, 1961

Posted on February 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

 
 

  Feb. 27, 1961, Comics  

Feb. 27, 1961: A survey of whether Pepperdine students are married brings some interesting responses, Matt Weinstock says. 

DEAR ABBY: Re the item in your column about whether a man should stand and give a woman his seat on a bus: If a woman can dress in trousers, cut her hair short, sit in taverns and drink like a man, cuss, smoke, vote and take jobs formerly held by men, why should a man stand up and give her his seat on a bus?

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Paul Coates, Feb. 27, 1961

Posted on February 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

 
 

  Feb. 27, 1961, Mirror Cover  

Feb. 27, 1961: “The Apartment” gets 10 Academy Award nominations, including best picture. The other nominees are "The Alamo," "Elmer Gantry," "Sons and Lovers" and "The Sundowners."

Paul Coates has an interview with  Herman Abrams, who became known as the most ticketed man in the U.S. with 430 citations.

ALSO

Motorist Gains Dubious Victory

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Posted in #courts, 1961, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, LAPD | Comments Off on Paul Coates, Feb. 27, 1961

Garbo Visits L.A.!

Posted on February 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 27, 1941, Garbo  

Feb. 27, 1941: Greta Garbo slips into Union Station! The Times says, “Miss Garbo hasn’t done anything newsworthy for a long while, but the press has been in the habit so long of trying to get a follow on her ancient quote: ‘I vant to be alone,’ that every time Garbo shows up they descend on her, notebooks in hand and flash bulbs popping.”

Lee Shippey writes about the folly of U.S. isolationism … and the next time someone starts to tell you: "I've read the most marvelous book" all you have to do is say "Out of the Night," Tom Treanor says.

Susan Hayward and musical director Cy Feuer are in tune and their love notes have Ruth Terry off key, Jimmie Fidler says.

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Posted in 1941, Columnists, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Garbo Visits L.A.!

Military Snaps to Attention for Reagan

Posted on February 27, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 27, 1981, Comics  

  Feb. 27, 1981, Uniforms  

Feb. 27, 1981: Military officers are back in uniform around Washington after an informal switch to civilian clothes, apparently prompted by a remark in 1955 by President Eisenhower that “the place looked like an armed camp.” The change was due to another presidential quip, this time from Ronald Reagan, who supposedly asked: “How do I know you’re a general if you don’t wear a uniform?”
 
Keeping reading for Charles Champlin’s review of Georges Simenon's "The Little Doctor" and musings on murder mysteries.

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Posted in 1981, books, Comics, Ronald Reagan | Comments Off on Military Snaps to Attention for Reagan

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Feb. 26, 1941

Posted on February 26, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

 
 

  Feb. 26, 1941, Swarms of Planes Blast Reich  

  Feb. 26, 1941, Comics  

Feb. 26, 1941: Tom Treanor is, shall we say, still seeking his voice as a local columnist. He reminisces about his early days in Southern California, and that fills in some of the blanks about his life.

Lee Shippey writes about a meeting of the Southern California Writers Guild in Pasadena and gives a nice summary on local authors of the era. 

There's no Hollywood disease that one good picture can't cure, Jimmie Fidler says.

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Movieland Mystery Photo [Updated]

Posted on February 26, 2011 by lmharnisch

  2011_0219_mystery_photo  
  Los Angeles Time file photo  

I thought it would be fun to switch back to mystery people, so here’s today’s mystery guest!

[Update: Please congratulate Mike Hawks and Mary Mallory for identifying our mystery fellow!]

[Update 2: This is Tay Garnett in a photo published Feb. 22, 1935.]
There’s a new photo on the jump!

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Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo, Obituaries, Photography | 45 Comments

Jim Murray: Don’t Kill the Umpire, Feb. 26, 1961

Posted on February 26, 2011 by lmharnisch

 
 

  Feb. 26, 1961, Jim Murray  

Feb. 26, 1961: It has been far too long since we checked in with Jim Murray, so here’s a column about umpires.

And for fans of sportswriter Jeane Hoffman (you know who you are) we have an item on a proposed series between the Dodgers and the Angels. Was her column really called “Skirting All Sports?” Oh you sports guys!!

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Posted in #Jim Murray, 1961, Columnists, Dodgers, Sports | 1 Comment

Found on EBay — B.H. Dyas Co.

Posted on February 25, 2011 by lmharnisch
dyas_poker_chip_ebay This monogrammed 1920s poker chip, sold by the B.H. Dyas Co. store in Los Angeles, has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $7.50.

ALSO

B.H. Dyas Co. on the Daily Mirror
Posted in #games | Comments Off on Found on EBay — B.H. Dyas Co.

Paul Coates and Matt Weinstock, Feb. 25, 1961

Posted on February 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

 
 

  Feb. 25, 1961, Comics  

Feb. 25, 1961: A "confessed love slayer" is among 11 men who escaped from the booking room at the County Jail.The leader of the jailbreak is identified as "love slayer" Joe Morgan, who at the age of 16 killed Jose Rojo of East L.A.  in 1945.

Matt Weinstock publishes some grammatical outrages, including: "Her has gone, her has went, her left I all alone. Can't her never come back to I, must I always go to she? It could never was."

Paul Coates has the story of a man who used an unconventional method to look for a job – and became famous.

DEAR ABBY: I am having a terrible time trying to convince my mother that her old-fashioned ideas about dating are not right for this day and age. She says if a boy asks you to a school dance and you tell him you are going out of town or something, you can't show up with another fellow. This means a girl has to accept the first boy who asks her, whether he's a drip or not, or else stay home. Abby, please tell my mom in your column that times have changed.

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Posted in #courts, 1961, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Crime and Courts, Matt Weinstock, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul Coates and Matt Weinstock, Feb. 25, 1961

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Feb. 25, 1941

Posted on February 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 25, 1941, U.S., Britain Warn Japanese  

  Feb. 25, 1941, Comics  

Feb. 25, 1941: An attorney tells Tom Treanor that the legal profession is on the decline. "People don't need lawyers any more, they need accountants," the attorney says.   Being a stockbroker is likewise overrated, another friend says.

Ginger Rogers has 47 costume changes in "Tom, Dick and Harry" — a new wardrobe high, Jimmie Fidler says.

Robert Stack, actor, has a portrait of himself made of 20,000 canceled stamps, according to Lee Shippey.

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Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Lee Shippey, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Feb. 25, 1941

Faith and the Negro ‘Question’

Posted on February 25, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 25, 1911, Hats  

  Feb. 25, 1911, Faith and the Negro 'Question'  

Feb. 25, 1911: Religion columnist William T. Ellis has a few things on his mind about the Negro “question,” but none of them involve defining what the “question” might be. Presumably it was so familiar to readers that he felt no need to explain it.

 
Ellis considers African Americans “brothers,” but they are, as far as he is concerned, younger brothers who need guidance from their wiser,  older white siblings: "A weaker brother, a deficient brother and perhaps an erring brother he may be, but the black man is still a brother," Ellis says.

Patronizing, condescending white superiority masquerading as Christian compassion and acceptance. Ugh.

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Posted in 1911, Countdown to Watts, Religion | 1 Comment

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 24, 1961

Posted on February 24, 2011 by lmharnisch

 
 

  Feb. 24, 1961, Comics  

Feb. 24, 1961: Crazy times on the back lot at MGM: As one crew was shooting a scene for "Gunslinger," a Confederate cavalry charge from "The Americans" came thundering through the scene (evidently the riders had trouble stopping their horses). As the bandits and the Confederates were regrouping, a helicopter being used in a third production rose in the background, Matt Weinstock says.

DEAR ABBY: Twenty years ago I went to live with a man as his wife without marrying him. We had three children. When our youngest reached his 18th birthday (last week) this man told me he was selling our home and everything in it, as he plans to take off and find himself a "wife" and live a little.

I asked him when he was giving me my half of the money. He said "Since when does a man give his housekeeper half his money?" As his common-law wife am I not entitled to half his money? I haven't a dime to call my own and have never worked outside my home. What are my rights? I don't want to go to a lawyer as I have my pride.

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Feb. 24, 1961, Paul Coates

Posted on February 24, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

 
 

  Feb. 24, 1961, Mirror Cover_racing  
  Feb. 24, 1961, Take Home Edition  

Feb. 24, 1961: Notice the different headlines between the two editions: "I JUST HAD TO KILL," L.A. SLAYER ADMITS and SUICIDE BARES THIRD IOWA BANK SCANDAL. All of this will change when the Mirror staff is either laid off or absorbed by The Times in January.

Irving Waldorf, 22, a disc jockey who prowled the streets with an "uncontrollable urge to kill," according to the Mirror, told police he shot Max Lisecki, 54, in the back on skid row after spending the day searching for a victim.

A reader asks Paul Coates: Would you please send me all the information you have on "ant hunting?"

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Posted in #courts, 1961, Columnists, Crime and Courts, Front Pages, Paul Coates | 2 Comments

Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Feb. 24, 1941

Posted on February 24, 2011 by lmharnisch

  Feb. 23, 1941, War Summary  

  Feb. 24, 1941, Comics  

Feb. 24, 1941: Heavy rains are causing flooding in Los Angeles, so Tom Treanor visits the Los Angeles County flood control center. Notice that Devil’s Gate Reservoir is still in operation.
 
Clark Gable will thank anyone who can explain to his father how a boy who ran away from home to escape farm chores could grow into a man whose chief hobby is farming, Jimmie Fidler says.

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Posted in 1941, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Film, Hollywood, Tom Treanor | Comments Off on Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood, Feb. 24, 1941

What Next for Richard Chamberlain After ‘Shogun?’

Posted on February 24, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

  Sept. 15, 1980, Shogun  

 

  Feb. 24, 1981, Richard Cmaberlain  

Feb. 24, 1981: Young persons…. There was once a sensationally popular TV miniseries called “Shogun,” based on James Clavell’s novel set in feudal Japan, that aired in September 1980 and starred Richard Chamberlain, the former heartthrob of the 1960s TV series “Dr. Kildare.”

The story of John Blackthorne and Lord Toranaga (Toshiro Mifune) quickly became a touchstone of popular culture. In writing about “Shogun,” Times TV critic Cecil Smith reported that "Nielsen numbers show that more than half the people in the country are caught up in it." 

Several months later, Times writer Roderick Mann catches up with Chamberlain, who says he’s interested in another miniseries: “The Thorn Birds.”

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Posted in 1981, books, Film, Hollywood, Roderick Mann, Television | 1 Comment

Matt Weinstock, Feb. 23, 1961

Posted on February 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

  image  

Feb. 23, 1961: Mildred and Gordon Gordon celebrate the sale of their suspense novel "Operation Terror" with … ice cream bars. In their early days, they had to give up ice cream bars because they were too expensive and ever since the desserts were a sentimental symbol of success, Matt Weinstock says.
 
DEAR ABBY: I am a boy who is 14. I take piano lessons and want to be a fashion designer. To most boys I am an ideal sissy. On the bus going home from school they pester me and try to pick a fight. Abby, I don't want to fight, although I think I could knock their stupid blocks off. Don't tell me to ignore them. It won't to any good.

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Posted in #gays and lesbians, 1961, Animals, art and artists, Columnists, Comics, Matt Weinstock | Comments Off on Matt Weinstock, Feb. 23, 1961

Paul Coates, Feb. 23, 1961

Posted on February 23, 2011 by lmharnisch

 

  Feb. 23, 1961, Mirror Cover  

Feb. 23, 1961: For a column pegged to Washington’s birthday, Paul Coates  recalls his suspicions about a lemon tree that met an unhappy fate.

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Posted in 1961, Columnists, Front Pages, Paul Coates | Comments Off on Paul Coates, Feb. 23, 1961