Films in production — Wizard of Oz, September 24, 1938

Posted on September 24, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, W.C. Fields is out of "The Wizard of Oz" and Frank Morgan is in.

Nearly 500 people are dead from a hurricane that tore through the northeastern United States. Damage is so great that no reliable estimates are available. The death toll is Rhode Island, 240; Massachusetts, 112; Connecticut, 65; New York, 50; New Hampshire, 13; Vermont, 2; New Jersey, 2; Quebec, 2.

Czechoslovakia mobilizes its army in preparation for war with Germany. France also warns that it will come to Czechoslovakia’s aid if the Nazis attack.

Quote of the Day:

"I cannot say it is hopeless."
Neville Chamberlain.

In sports, UCLA defeats Iowa, 27-3 and USC meets Alabama at the Coliseum.

"Bopped around for four years by everybody but the Westlake School for Girls, the Trojans are supposed to be fired for a comeback that will match anything Alabama ever put over in Pasadena," Braven Dyer writes.

Note: Average weight of the Trojan line is 208; the backfield, 188.

Posted in books, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Sports | 1 Comment

Houston takes stock of historic sites after Hurricane Ike

Posted on September 23, 2008 by lmharnisch

Photograph by J.R. Gonzales, Bayou City History blog

The Houston Public Library, where trees were knocked down by Hurricane Ike.

My fellow history blog colleague, J.R. Gonzales at the Houston Chronicle, who is still without electricity after Hurricane Ike, takes an inventory of how historic sites in Houston and Galveston weathered the storm. He says that many buildings suffered flood damage, but remain standing. According to one post, the 1861 customs house used as the headquarters of the Galveston Historical Society was flooded with 8 feet of water. The 1877 tall ship Elissa rode out the storm but lost several sails.

Posted in @news | 1 Comment

Fire closes Ventura Freeway; milestone for Rams star, September 23, 1968

Posted on September 23, 2008 by lmharnisch

Above, a fire closes the Ventura Freeway from Camarillo to Woodland Hills.

By Keith Thursby
Times staff writer

Dick Bass, a three-time Pro Bowl running back who played for the
Rams from 1960-69, scored three touchdowns and became the 12th man in
NFL history to gain 5,000 or more yards as the Rams coasted to a 45-10
victory over Pittsburgh.

Bass was presented with the game ball after a four-yard gain that
put him over 5,000 for his career. "I accepted it but I wasn’t in the
right frame of mind for an award," Bass told The Times’ Mal Florence.
"I was mentally ready for the game–nothing else."

Florence described Bass as "the mod fullback with the stylish
wardrobe." This would be the last full season for Bass, who was the
second overall pick in the 1959 draft. He spent 13 more years with the
Rams in the broadcast booth as an analyst. He was only 67 when he died
in 2006.

keith.thursby@latimes.com

Posted in broadcasting, Freeways, Front Pages, Sports, Television, Transportation | 1 Comment

Movie star mystery photos

Posted on September 23, 2008 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles Times file photo

Update: Our mystery guest was identified almost immediately yesterday by Steven Bibb. Because he guessed so quickly that this is Ariane Borg, I deferred his answer for a day to see if anyone else would get it.

At left, news of Ariane Borg’s arrival in Los Angles, Oct. 17, 1935.

This is a third photo of our mystery guest, who was misfiled as Veda Ann Borg. The Times published a fair number of articles about her in the mid-1930s, noting that she had been brought over from Europe for a movie as the next Garbo or the next Dietrich and had done very little work since, although she was kept on contract. The Times credits her with at least one and possibly two films at MGM, although she’s not listed in the imdb credits for either one. I don’t have access to either of the films to check.

According to her entry in the French version of Wikipedia, she went back to Europe to celebrate her birthday with her family and was stuck there during World War II. Plans for an American comeback after the war never materialized and she abandoned any hope of a show business career.

	So sorry, only one guess was even vaguely warm. Not Lucille Ball and not Vera Hruba Ralston. This is going to be a toughie.
	And the original photo of the mystery woman who is not Veda Ann Borg.

Posted in Film, Hollywood, Mystery Photo | 13 Comments

O.J. Simpson leads USC to 29-20 win over Minnesota, September 22, 1968

Posted on September 22, 2008 by lmharnisch

"My solution for the world’s ills is for everybody to take off their clothes and jump in a big pile…" — David Carradine

By Keith Thursby
Times Staff Writer

O.J. Simpson started his Heisman Trophy-winning season with four touchdowns in USC’s 29-20 victory over Minnesota.

Simpson scored twice in the fourth quarter. "I thought that now is the time to decide whether we’re really good, to find out just what kind of football team we have," Simpson told The Times’ Dwight Chapin.

Defensive tackle Tony Terry said the victory was just a matter of time. "You know why? Because we have O.J. All you have to do is give him the ball."

keith.thursby@latimes.com

Posted in Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, Sports | 1 Comment

Black civil rights leader stabbed; Dodgers win, September 22, 1958

Posted on September 22, 2008 by lmharnisch

Martin Luther King Jr. hospitalized

Woman judged insane after plunging a letter opener into the civil rights leader’s chest.

Black civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., 29, is in critical condition at Harlem Hospital in New York after being stabbed in the chest with a 7-inch steel letter opener while signing copies of his book "Stride Toward Freedom" at Blumstein’s department store.

Police say Izola Ware Curry, 42, an African American woman, not only stabbed King but was carrying a pistol in her dress. According to a witness, Curry said: "I’ve been after him for six years. I’m glad I done it."

Authorities suspected Curry was mentally ill and placed her under observation at Bellevue Hospital. However, she insisted "I’m not ill," and when a reporter asked "When did you first decide to kill Mr. King?" she snapped: "Who said I wanted to kill him?"

King remained in critical condition after the attack, and a few days later, he developed pneumonia. He was released from the hospital Oct. 3, 1958. Curry was charged with attempted murder and committed to Matteawan State Hospital after being judged insane.

While in the hospital, King expressed no bitterness toward Curry. Upon his release, he said, according to the New York Times: "Our society needs to be more concerned about mental health and social problems which contribute to this matter. We should go out with determination to solve many of the social problems which contributed to conditions that lead up to incidents like this."

A signed copy of "Stride Toward Freedom" sells for thousands of dollars today.

Bonus factoid: According to the New York Sun, Blumstein’s department store was boycotted in the 1930s because it only hired whites. Afterward, it began hiring African Americans, including the nation’s first black Santa Claus.

Holocaust remembered.

Braves win pennant.

Posted in #courts, books, Dodgers, Front Pages, Religion, Sports | Comments Off

Dodgers boost radio ratings, September 21, 1958

Posted on September 21, 2008 by lmharnisch

KMPC thrives on Dodger diet

Station at 710 on the AM dial wins the local radio pennant. (Not to be confused with KPMC, 1560)

Above, back in the days when there were beauty contests for every subject, even to encourage people to vote.

By Keith Thursby

Times staff writer

The Dodgers were a run-of-the-mill team in 1958 but they were a hit on the radio.

Don Page, writing the Radio Beat column for The Times, praised
Dodger broadcasters Vin Scully and Jerry Doggett. "Their descriptions
were always of high caliber and of remarkable clarity," wrote Page.

The Dodgers quickly became ratings winners for KMPC. Page reported
that the station "consistently smothered all opposition with phenomenal
ratings, even beating television marks in the same time periods."

KMPC was a big sports station in Los Angeles for many years but
wouldn’t air the Dodger games much longer. The website
walteromalley.com, a must read for any Dodger fan, has among its many
historical items a letter from Gene Autry to O’Malley dated Nov. 24,
1959 telling how much the Singing Cowboy regretted losing the Dodgers
to another station for the coming season. The Dodgers moved to KFI.

Autry, of course, would get another baseball team for his station in 1961 when he became owner of the Los Angeles Angels.

Autry’s letter to O’Malley closed with this line: "I am still a Dodger fan!’

keith.thursby@latimes.com

Posted in broadcasting, Dodgers, Sports | 1 Comment

Los Angeles history — Nuestro Pueblo

Posted on September 21, 2008 by lmharnisch

An oil derrick in the street near the Beverly Center? Who knew?
Oil was 80 cents a barrel or $11.66 USD 2007.

Posted in Environment, Science | 2 Comments

Movie star hits USC football player over car crash, September 21, 1938

Posted on September 21, 2008 by lmharnisch

Nazis poised to take Sudetenland

Britain and France warn Czechoslovakia she must surrender or fight alone. Germans set tomorrow as war deadline.

John Barrymore in "Hold That Coed." Bonus: Learn to dance the Limpy Dimp.

Train crash kills 11

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson is arrested after assaulting a USC football player over a traffic accident. Police say Robinson got into an argument with USC’s Paul Moffat, who struck Robinson’s chaffeur-driven limousine at Jefferson Boulevard and Orchard Street during a traffic jam.

Robinson drew a gun but instead of firing, hit Moffat on the head with it. Robinson was released on his own recognizance and Moffat was taken to Georgia Street Receiving Hospital, where he received five stitches to close the gash in his head. The matter went to the grand jury, which refused to indict Robinson.

At left, the neighborhood where Robinson lived in 1938, 1194 W. 36th Place, via Google maps’ street view.

Brakeman blamed for wreck

UCLA prepares for Iowa

Posted in @news, Countdown to Watts, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, LAPD, Transportation | Comments Off

Yankee Stadium opens, April 19, 1923

Posted on September 21, 2008 by lmharnisch

By Keith Thursby

Times Staff Writer

The New York Yankees play their final regular-season game at Yankee
Stadium today. Here’s a look at how The Times covered the first game in
the House That Ruth Built, a victory over the Boston Red Sox.

New York will finish the regular season at Boston. Seems ridiculous
that the schedule could not have been worked out so the Yankees and Red
Sox could close the season and the ballpark in style by playing in New
York.

Posted in Front Pages, Sports | Comments Off

Los Angeles history — Wattles Mansion

Posted on September 20, 2008 by lmharnisch

L.A. orders Hollywood preservation group out of mansion

Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times

HISTORIC: Gardener Lupe Flores works at the Wattles Mansion. Hollywood Heritage has supervised the estate for 25 years under an exclusive agreement with the city of Los Angeles.

City says Hollywood Heritage ignored rules and rented out the Wattles Mansion for disruptive parties. The organization denies the events are a nuisance and says the eviction notice was a shock.

By Bob Pool, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 20, 2008

Hollywood’s leading preservation group has been ordered out of the community’s most prominent historic estate for allegedly ignoring city rules and renting out the mansion for disruptive parties.

Hollywood Heritage has supervised the famed Wattles Mansion for 25 years under an exclusive agreement with the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks. The city purchased the mansion for about $2 million in 1968.

Read about the history of the Wattles Mansion here.

Posted in Architecture, Hollywood | 1 Comment

Los Angeles history — car designer

Posted on September 20, 2008 by lmharnisch

The tail fin era

General Motors designer Chuck Jordan visits Los Angeles to encourage young car nuts to pursue their dreams. His advice: ‘Start as bold as you can…. If you don’t start out ambitious enough, it will be drained down to nothing.’

Above, Chuck Jordan’s design for the 1959 Eldorado. Below, the 1955 Chevrolet Cameo.

One of the joys of this blog is that I never know what I’m going to
find in the daily paper. It could be some tragic killing or an oddball brite. But today, I fell into the rabbit hole of research with
a brief story about a local boy who made good as a General Motors car
designer after winning a student contest 11 years before.

His name was not, as Bill Dredge wrote in The Times in 1958, Chuck
Gordan. He was, in fact, Charles M. "Chuck" Jordan, designer of the
1955 Chevrolet Cameo), the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado and many other autos.

Chuck Jordan’s winning entry in the 1947 Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild contest. Photo by Harry Schoepf

As for the contest, back in 1947, Jordan received a brief writeup in
the weekly auto column after winning the Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild
Award.

We caught up with him again in 1965 when he was in charge of the
automotive design studios at General Motors Styling. By then, the
Fullerton High graduate was visiting the Art Center to monitor
students’ progress on a special design project.

"A man has to have a real sincere interest in cars," Jordan told The
Times’ Bob Thomas. "Otherwise they get awful tired within a year
working with cars. Every designer we have is a car bug. Also he must
have the talent to design new, bold ideas. We’re not after face-lifters
or customizers. It takes a real talent to dig up something new."

As for the Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild Award, the contest that was started as philanthropy project during the Depression was eliminated
in 1968 as a cost-saving measure.

Motor Trend has a long interview with Jordan on its website.

The Automotive Chronicles has an article on a reunion of Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild Award winners.

At left, Los Angeles endures another smog alert … The latest in a series of pipe bomb blasts raises fears on the Westside … The cost of living declines for the first time in two years … The U.S. keeps Red China out of the United Nations … And the front page lineup of UCLA and PIttsburgh for their game at the Coliseum. UCLA is the 7-point favorite, The Times says.

In sports, USC beats Oregon 21-0 at the Coliseum … In Chicago, the Dodgers beat the Cubs, 5-1, with runs by Ron Fairly and Don Demeter, giving Ralph Mauriello his first major league win … Gene Littler sets a personal record of 62 in the second round of the Hesperia Open … And sports editor Paul Zimmerman takes a look at the upcoming game between the Rams and the Steelers, especially quarterback Jack Kemp.

Posted in @news, Dodgers, Freeways, Front Pages, Politics, Sports | Comments Off

Movie revivals — Crimson Kimono

Posted on September 19, 2008 by lmharnisch

Coming soon to a theater near you…

Above, "Crimson Kimono" (paired with "Battle of the Coral Sea").

Jan. 27, 2009, 8 p.m. Ramo Auditorium at Caltech.

"The Crimson Kimono," with discussion afterward. Frank Capra Film Series. Free.

Posted in Coming Attractions, Film, Hollywood | 4 Comments

Los Angeles on smog alert, Braves win against Cards, September 19, 1958

Posted on September 19, 2008 by lmharnisch

Los Angeles urged to drive less and reduce smog

Ozone levels in the region reach 0.53 per million, which would be a Stage 3 alert in 2008.

The "Mating Urge," in "flaming color." Imdb says this wasn’t released until 1959. Oops.

Girl crushed in elevator

Los Angeles goes on what was then a Stage 1 smog alert. Today it would be a Stage 3. A Times editorial suggests offering an award for the invention of an "afterburner" for cars.

Also, a young woman dies in an extremely peculiar accident at the home of a wealthy La Jolla family.

On the jump, the City Council holds a hearing on redevelopment of Bunker Hill and a former football star is killed when his car spins out of control in Sylmar.

In sports, Braven Dyer has an amusing story about illegally widening the football field at the Coliseum. Probably not true, but funny.

The pill goes on sale

Oregon favored over USC

Posted in @news, City Hall, Dodgers, Downtown, Environment, Film, Freeways, Front Pages, Hollywood, Science, Sports | 1 Comment

Movie revivals — The Godfather

Posted on September 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Coming soon to a theater near you…

Above, "The Godfather," 1972.

Sept. 19-25, 2008, ArcLight Hollywood.

"The Godfather" and "Godfather II." Member movie.

Posted in Coming Attractions, Film, Hollywood | Comments Off

Los Angeles history–Nuestro Pueblo

Posted on September 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

The hanging tree

Once described as the oldest rubber tree on the American continent, it was actually an Australian fig … maybe. Either way, it’s gone now. And the rustlers who were supposedly hanged here must have been awfully short because the branches are low.

2015 Long Beach Ave. in 1938 and, below, via Google maps’ street view.

Posted in Downtown, Nuestro Pueblo | Comments Off

Los Angeles gets a new mayor, September 18, 1938

Posted on September 18, 2008 by lmharnisch

Bowron: Liberal, moderate and conservative

The Times’ Timothy G. Turner writes: ‘Fletcher Bowron is no longhair nor will he turn the town over to Psalm singers. He is little concerned with gambling and prostitution as such, only in their effect on political corruption.’

Above, a breath of fresh air at City Hall.

Battleship Arizona visits L.A.

Times’ veteran columnist Timothy Turner describes Bowron as a middle-of-the-road politician and a former newsman with far more experience than portrayed in our editorials.

"He will not … do anything radical in cleaning up the city. He knows the city can never really be cleaned up, that no city can. He will do the best he can," Turner says.

In sports, the Cubs move within 2 1/2 games of the Pirates in the National League pennant race. Hank Greenberg hits his 52nd and 53rd home runs, leading Babe Ruth’s 1927 record.

Crash injures actor

Cubs beat Giants

Posted in #courts, City Hall, Current Affairs, Downtown, Film, Front Pages, Hollywood, LAPD, Politics, Sports | Comments Off

Rams win against Cards, September 17, 1968

Posted on September 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Defense does job; Rams win opener

94-yard TD run starts Cardinals to 24-13 defeat.

Above, Richard Nixon campaigns in Yorba Linda in the 1968 presidential race.

By Keith Thursby

Times staff writer

There’s still something not quite right about putting the Rams and the city of St. Louis in the same sentence.

On this Monday night, the Rams were the visiting team and the game
was still played outside (one factor in the Rams’ move to St. Louis was
the use of a fancy new domed stadium). The Times’ Bob Oates described
the weather as a "Missouri mist resembling Los Angeles smog," but it
turned out to be the perfect setting for the Rams to open their season
with a 24-13 victory over the Cardinals.

Defense and special teams played key roles. Ron Smith returned the
second half kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown and the Rams’ defense made
life miserable for St. Louis’ young quarterback, Jim Hart.

Oates’ game story was interesting for its length and attention to
detail. At times, there was a professorial tone to his writing as he
tried to explain the finer points of a sport that was becoming more
complex each season.

At one point he examined the Rams’ defense:

"The Rams were in what they call combination coverage — part zone,
part man-to-man — when quarterback Hart passed to Jackie Smith both
times the ball was intercepted. Hart was keying on the tight safety
(Ron Smith) on each occasion. He did not see [Eddie] Meador on either
play.

"NFL quarterbacks are not in the habit of watching out for free safeties when they throw the ball to the tight safety’s man."

These days, Oates would probably be working at ESPN, breaking down game films on one of the network’s endless football shows.

This post begins a look at two Los Angeles Rams seasons: 1958 and
1968. Both teams were led by future Hall of Fame coaches (Sid Gillman
in ’58, George Allen in ’68). In 1958, the Rams were coming off a 6-6
season under their young general manager, future NFL Commissioner Pete
Rozelle. The 1968 team started the season considered among the league’s
elite franchises after finishing the previous season 11-1-2, losing in
the playoffs to the eventual NFL champion Green Bay Packers. Should be
fun to retrace two very different teams in two different eras in Los
Angeles sports.

keith.thursby@latimes.com

Posted in Front Pages, Politics, Sports | 1 Comment

Dodger struck with ball, September 17, 1958

Posted on September 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Snider hurt; L.A. loses 2

Duke hit by line drive, may miss rest of season.

Above, Lawrence Welk in stereo with "Swinging Pete Fountain," the clarinetist who once said "Champagne and Bourbon Street don’t mix."

By Keith Thursby

Times staff writer

Scary moment for Duke Snider and the Dodgers. Snider was on third
base in the fifth inning of the Dodgers’ game at Cincinnati when he was
struck by a line drive hit by his teammate, Frank Howard.

The Times’ Frank Finch wrote that the ball "struck Snider’s right
shoulder and then his right ear a glancing blow, dropping him as though
he’d be shot by an elephant gun."

Snider was taken to the hospital but was able to speak to reporters
first. Finch noted that "although he’d escaped serious injury–even
death–by inches, the dapper Snider insisted on showering before he was
driven to the hospital."

"I saw the ball coming off Howard’s bat and I tried to duck into it
so that I would take the blow off my plastic helmet," Snider said.
"Boy, he really hit that one."

The game was the nightcap of a doubleheader. The Dodgers lost both games.

keith.thursby@latimes.com

Posted in broadcasting, Dodgers, Music, Sports, Television | 2 Comments

Los Angeles mayor removed in recall, child killer executed, September 17, 1938

Posted on September 17, 2008 by lmharnisch

Bowron defeats Shaw

Superior Court judge, elected with 65% of the vote, will take office Sept. 26. He says: ‘This election, in no sense, is a personal triumph. This is not my fight. I have merely been part of a movement — a most significant movement for clean government.’

Above, The Times’ lead editorial laments the recall of Mayor Frank Shaw and emphasizes the inexperience of Fletcher Bowron, noting with alarm his support from subversives and radicals.

Chamberlain bows to Hitler

Another historic day: Bowron is elected, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain concedes to Adolf Hitler on Czechoslovakia and California executes Albert Dyer in the murders of the "Three Babes of Inglewood." Note that Dyer was hanged, the method of execution used in California before the gas chamber.

In sports, the Los Angeles Angels take the pennant in the Pacific Coast League, beating the Oakland Acorns at Wrigley Field.

Plans are underway for the 1938 World Series to begin Oct. 5. It will be the last series for Yankee Lou Gehrig, the "Iron Horse."

Albert Dyer is executed

1938 World Series planned

Posted in #courts, @news, City Hall, Current Affairs, Downtown, Front Pages, LAPD, Politics, Sports | Comments Off

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"My solution for the world’s ills is for everybody to take off their clothes and jump in a big pile…" — David Carradine

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Martin Luther King Jr. hospitalized

Woman judged insane after plunging a letter opener into the civil rights leader’s chest.

Holocaust remembered.

Braves win pennant.

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KMPC thrives on Dodger diet

Station at 710 on the AM dial wins the local radio pennant. (Not to be confused with KPMC, 1560)

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Nazis poised to take Sudetenland

Britain and France warn Czechoslovakia she must surrender or fight alone. Germans set tomorrow as war deadline.

Train crash kills 11

Brakeman blamed for wreck

UCLA prepares for Iowa

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L.A. orders Hollywood preservation group out of mansion

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The tail fin era

General Motors designer Chuck Jordan visits Los Angeles to encourage young car nuts to pursue their dreams. His advice: ‘Start as bold as you can…. If you don’t start out ambitious enough, it will be drained down to nothing.’

Above, Chuck Jordan’s design for the 1959 Eldorado. Below, the 1955 Chevrolet Cameo.

Chuck Jordan’s winning entry in the 1947 Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild contest. Photo by Harry Schoepf

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Coming soon to a theater near you…

Above, "Crimson Kimono" (paired with "Battle of the Coral Sea").

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Los Angeles urged to drive less and reduce smog

Ozone levels in the region reach 0.53 per million, which would be a Stage 3 alert in 2008.

Girl crushed in elevator

The pill goes on sale

Oregon favored over USC

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Coming soon to a theater near you…

Above, "The Godfather," 1972.

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The hanging tree

Once described as the oldest rubber tree on the American continent, it was actually an Australian fig … maybe. Either way, it’s gone now. And the rustlers who were supposedly hanged here must have been awfully short because the branches are low.

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Bowron: Liberal, moderate and conservative

The Times’ Timothy G. Turner writes: ‘Fletcher Bowron is no longhair nor will he turn the town over to Psalm singers. He is little concerned with gambling and prostitution as such, only in their effect on political corruption.’

Battleship Arizona visits L.A.

Crash injures actor

Cubs beat Giants

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Defense does job; Rams win opener

94-yard TD run starts Cardinals to 24-13 defeat.

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Snider hurt; L.A. loses 2

Duke hit by line drive, may miss rest of season.

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Bowron defeats Shaw

Superior Court judge, elected with 65% of the vote, will take office Sept. 26. He says: ‘This election, in no sense, is a personal triumph. This is not my fight. I have merely been part of a movement — a most significant movement for clean government.’

Chamberlain bows to Hitler

Albert Dyer is executed

1938 World Series planned

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