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Devon McReynolds, who interned with the Daily Mirror last year, sends an update about plans to unveil a plaque at 11 a.m. on Tuesday at UCLA’s Campbell Hall in memory of Black Panther members John Huggins and Alprentice Carter, who were killed there on Jan. 17, 1969, at the conclusion of a meeting on establishing a black studies program. There’s more information about Tuesday’s ceremony on Facebook. Bob Pool wrote a story about the incident in 2008. |
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| May 24, 1980: Jerry Rubin (no, not the Chicago 7 Jerry Rubin) gets 20 days in jail for hitting Edward Teller in the face with a cream pie during a UCLA lecture.
On the jump, the Soaps column by the late Jon-Michael Reed (d. 1986) with the latest on GH and Y&R! |
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May 24, 1960: The next time you're in a traffic jam heading to Dodger Stadium, consider the public servants who debated the tract map submitted by the Dodgers for their Chavez Ravine stadium. "People attending such events have to come to expect certain inconveniences and make necessary allowances for them," said Samuel Leask Jr., the city's administrative officer. Much of the discussion over the tract map dealt with planning and building roads and Leask cautioned against trying to plan for big crowds. In a story the following day, an opponent of the Dodgers' plan read from a ballot argument in favor of the ballpark. Plans included a public recreation center, a city oil drilling site and land use for future freeways. But none of those features were on the tract map so C.A. Owen asked if this meant the public had been mislead in approving the stadium plans. "It's entirely possible," said Councilman Ransom Callicott. –Keith Thursby |
Sorry to be late this week! I got into the spirit of a new decade and started playing Pac-Man over on Google's homepage and, well, 16 hours later….
We veer almost too close to modern times for comfort this week! Larry has begun featuring content from 1980, so I am experimenting with watching films from that year… it's a little disconcerting, but not unpleasant. I saw all the "Superman" films as a tyke but had forgotten pretty much everything about them. I did remember one in which Superman gets rid of his powers to be with Lois Lane, and then there's an excruciating scene where he's beaten up — I just hated that. Turns out it's in this one. Doh!
I still hate that scene, but "Superman II" isn't bad; it's a cult classic and there are many excellent reasons why. You actually don't NEED any reasons beyond Terence Stamp, magnificently stone-faced as the villainous General Zod, standing around in a black ponytail with arms akimbo, shooting laser beams out of his eyes. But the movie also gives you lots of fantastically crackling repartee between Lois and Clark Kent, with lots of Margot Kidder rolling her eyes and Christopher Reeve mumbling "Aw, gee, Lois." They're hilarious. Despite her dated wardrobe and typewriter (and insistence on carrying her purse everywhere, even to the Fortress of Solitude), Lois the character feels very contemporary. She's fab.
And finally, famously, there's the Richard Donner factor behind the film's cult status. Donner directed the first "Superman" film, and had finished filming big chunks of this one when he was fired and replaced with Richard Lester. ("Hero Complex" blogger and staff geek Geoff can fill you in if you want more backstory.) "Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut" was released on DVD in 2006, incorporating original footage and even screen tests to re-create Donner's vision. While this sounds pretty interesting, I figured I should start with the theatrical release, so that's what I watched.
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May 24, 1910: The Porosknit Union Suit – perfect for summer wear! On the jump, 52 motorists face a $2 fine or two days in jail for not having taillights on their autos. One man is insulted that the fine is so low and tells the judge he would rather pay $20 [$454.78 USD 2009]. |
| Deep thoughts on “Alley Oop.” |
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May 23, 1960: Woman discovers miracle gardening secret – tennis balls, Matt Weinstock says. Abby has advice for a woman over 40 whose son wants to dance with her at the senior prom – even though she will be five months’ pregnant by that time (the horror!). |
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May 23, 1960: Paul Coates gets a second column out of the arrest of two people in a 25-cent gambling pool on roller derby at the Olympic Auditorium. |
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May 23, 1940: “Sometimes it seems futile to sit here writing about movies and movie personalities, when on the other side of the world hundreds of thousands are horribly dying in the wreckage of all they held dear,” Jimmie Fidler says. |
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May 23, 1960: Kelly "Randy" Holmes of 2829 Allesandro St. is killed when he is buried under four feet of dirt while playing in a trench for the Golden State Freeway near what is now the interchange with the Glendale Freeway. Two friends from the neighborhood, Alfonso Garcia Jr., 9, and his 7-year-old brother, Gilbert, were unhurt despite being half-buried in dirt. On the jump: “Should We Really Believe Weird Stories of Red Missile Bases in Cuba?” |
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May 23, 1910: On the jump, a fight with an ax and brass knuckles ensues after Hugh Wilson of San Diego comes home at 3 a.m. to find his wife in the same room with D.J. Carroll, the best man from his recent wedding. All three of them were living together in a rented bungalow, but the landlord had ordered them to move out. Mrs. Wilson says she is going home to mother. |
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May 22, 1940: “B. Taylor gave B. Stanwyck furs instead of his usual diamonds on their anniversary,” Jimmie Fidler says. |
Los Angeles Times file photo |
| Here’s two mystery guests in a mystery film….. |
| Los Angeles Times file photo I’m calling this series of mystery photos “Lucille Ball and Friends.” In going through The Times’ files of Ball photos, I was struck by the number of unfamiliar images. We’ve all seen the stills of Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory. These photos were different – the unknown Lucy.
I especially like this photo because it shows Ball with a group of aspiring actors and actresses she had under contract in her project to provide the kind of training she received early in her career. Here they were in 1959, having achieved some measure of success, and yet I didn’t recognize a single one of them. And aren't the outfits great? So 1950s! The Times’ clips provide the names of the Desilu Workshop Theater members, but the people aren’t identified on the back of the photo. See if you can match the names with the faces: Jerry Antes, Bob Barran, Majel Barrett, Janice Carroll, Carole Cook, Georgine Darcy, Dick Kalman, Marilyn Lovell, Fran Martin, Gary Menteer, Johnny O'Neill, Bob Osborne, Roger Perry, Howie Storm, Mark Tobin and Bob Trevis. And yes, there are 14 unidentified people and 16 names. Welcome to the world of unlabeled photos.
Los Angeles Times file photo
Los Angeles Times file photo
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May 22, 1980: People line up for three blocks outside the Egyptian to see the 12:01 a.m. showing of “The Empire Strikes Back.” And yes, they’re in costume. “Terri Hardin, a 22-year-old freelance artist from Sun Valley, has seen ‘Star Wars’ 178 times and plans to double that number for ‘The Empire Strikes Back,’ ” The Times says. |
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May 22, 1910: In a century-old version of “flipping,” a developer says speculators can make money on lots in Arlington Square, at Santa Barbara Avenue (Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard) and Arlington Street. On the jump, a miner is badly injured when he is dragged 300 feet by a runaway horse before shooting the animal to death. |
This Batchelder vase has been listed on EBay. The tile turns up fairly often but this is only the second vase I recall seeing – a previous item was listed in March but didn’t sell. Bidding on this vase starts at $39.99. |
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May 21, 1960: Matt Weinstock gets an update on life in Japan from Col. A.L. Thomas … CONFIDENTIAL TO 'CONFIRMED BACHELOR IN THE OFFICE': Bachelors often get tangled up with several women in their frantic effort to avoid getting tied up to one. Beware! |
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May 21, 1960: Paul Coates writes his weekly letters column … a short-sleeved summer suit for men? No, really! |
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May 21, 1941: “Edna May Oliver attributes her amazing good health to her habit of downing two quarts of vegetable juice daily,” Jimmie Fidler says. |
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May 21, 1960: Robert F. Kennedy talks to reporters at the Biltmore Bowl after arriving in Los Angeles to set up campaign headquarters for his brother Sen. John F. Kennedy (D-Mass). And a headline writer takes the easy way out, shortening “Robert” to “Bob.” On the jump, "La Dolce Vita" wins the Palme d’Or at Cannes … And the Southern Baptist Convention approves a resolution against having a Roman Catholic as president. |
